Dr. Oz's nine age-proofing tips

Help yourself feel young

Stay healthy, look great and feel young with these great tips from Dr. Oz. He shares everything from kick-starting a metabolism, to healthy habits for every decade of your life. 

If you want more great advice, tune in to The Dr. Oz Show on CTV every day at 2 p.m.(EST).

Fix 1: Boost metabolism

If you want to kick your metabolism up a notch,you need more muscle on your bones! Why?Because muscle burns about three times morecalories than fat. The problem is that aging makesyour body lose muscle, so you need to act now.The key is to add targeted weight training to yourexercise regimen by focusing on the large-musclegroups, like your shoulders, belly and thighs,which will ensure you get the best bang for yourresistance-training buck.

Sneaky ways to squeeze muscle building intoyour daily schedule:
1. Try doing plank exercises during commercialbreaks while you watch TV.
2. Do squats or lunges while you’re in thekitchen waiting for the water to boil.
3. Replace the chair in your office with a largeexercise ball to strengthen your core muscleswhile you check your emails.

Fix 2: Outsmart weight gain

Maintaining a healthy weight is the single bestthing you can do for your health. Achieve it witha simple equation: exercising and eating well.We’ve already talked about building muscle, butyou also need to add cardio to your routine.

Cardio, especially interval workouts (whichburn fat better than straight-up endurance work), helps you blast fat all over your body and keeps yourheart healthy at the same time. If you already docardio, add an extra five to 10 minutes to eachworkout, or bump up the intensity. And mix upyour workouts so that your body doesn’t get tooaccustomed to one type of calorie burn. Try a longpower walk one day, the elliptical the next and abike ride the day after that. The variety will keepyour body guessing and ensure the pounds keepfalling off. Your goal should be at least 10,000 steps a day, or about 30 minutes of exercise.

Fix 3: Stress less

Excessive stress can contribute to heart disease,stroke and even depression. That’s why learninghow to manage it on a day-to-day basis is socrucial. Try physical activity. When you exercise,your body releases stress-busting chemicalscalled endorphins, which help make you feelcalmer and happier. Try a 10-minute walk whenyou’re feeling most anxious — it can do wonders tocalm you down. Stretching exercises, such as yoga,are also a great way to de-stress. I start everymorning with a seven-minute yoga routine thatyou can find on my website. Acouple of sun salutations are also a great way tosoothe your mind right from the start. Here aresome other simple things you can do to keep yourday stress-free:

• Get your daily dose of vitamin C. This vitalvitamin allows the body to clear cortisol out of thebloodstream, which helps prevent your bloodpressure from spiking in response to stressfulsituations. Oranges, kiwis and red bell peppersare vitamin-C superstars.

• Have a cup of black tea. Simply taking a breakand sitting down for a soothing cup of tea helpsyou de-stress, but there’s an added bonus: Blacktea is rich in flavonoids, which can help blockyour nervous system’s fight-or-flight response.

• Try a self massage. Studies show massageshelp reduce stress in the body and relieve tensionin both muscles and mind sothat you generally feelmore relaxed. Try borrowing from theancient secrets ofacupressure and tap intothe pressure points onyour ears. Start by applying light pressure to your ear lobes using yourthumb and index finger. Then rub the earlobes and move up the outer rim of the ear to the top ofyour ear. Apply pressure verygently and then workyour way backdown. Do this forabout two minutes .Feel better? I knew you would.

Fix 4: Avoid injuries

As you get older, wear and tear on your body builds upand you become more prone to injury. Your tendons and muscles become less stretchy and your musclesare more easily fatigued and have greater trouble recovering. Then the cushiony cartilage that protects your joints wears away, making you more susceptibleto injury. But that doesn’t mean you should give upexercising altogether. In fact, it’s just as important asever—so you may have to change your approach. Your warm-up is now a crucial part of your exercise routine.

Without a proper warm-up, your muscles will betight and your risk of injury greater. In fact, the medical community has a new appreciation for fascia, the layerof fibrous connective tissue right below the skin that holds together your muscles, blood vessels and nerves. It’s incredibly important to stretch these tissues to prevent injuries, such as plantar fasciitis. The pointof a warm-up is to get your heart beating, your blood flowing and your muscles loose so that you cangradually slide into your workout. (It’s the shock ofdiving right into a workout that can leave you injured.) To further protect yourself from injury, talk to yourdoctor or pharmacist about adding a daily dose ofglucosamine (1,500 mg/day) and chondroitin (800–1,200 mg/day) to your supplement regimen. They are components of normal cartilage and may help support lost cushioning to prevent future aches and pains.

Fix 5: Check your heart rate every day

The average resting heart rate for adults is between 60 and 80 beats per minute. And a 2010 study found if a woman’s resting heart rate was above 90, she was three times more likely to die of heart disease. By being aware of your heart rate, you can stop a heart attack or stroke before it happens. Fortunately, checking is simple: Place your index and middle fingers on your wrist bone, directly under your thumb. Press gently to feel your pulse. Count the beats for 10 seconds. Then multiply by six to get your resting heart rate. Now make sure you track it! A recent study shows that if your heart rate goes up by more than 10 beats a month, your risk for heart disease increases by 16 percent.

Under-a-Minute Tip: Take your resting heart rate before you get out of bed every morning. If it is high or keeps going up every month, see your doctor.

Fix 6: Cultivate a strong relationship

Being in a happy partnership can bring you a host of health benefits, from lowering stress levels and reducing your risk of Alzheimer’s disease toimproving cancer-survival rates. So how do you keep the passion alive year after year? I’ve been married for over 25 years to my lovely wife, Lisa, and I can tell you that marriage takes work. Here are some smart ways to strengthen the mostimportant relationship — they’ve worked for us!

• Every day: Take at least 10 minutes to have a real conversation with your partner. As life gets complicated with kids and bills and demanding work, it’s easy to spend your nights discussing the minutiae of everyday problems, but that won’t help you stay close emotionally. Set aside a little time each day to talk about something real. Whether it’s your emotions, your personal problems or even a lively debate about a world problem, these talks will help you stay closer together.

• Every week: Schedule at least one family dinneror outing together. It’s important to shareadventures, build memories and strengthen yourbonds as a family unit.

• Every year: Review your relationshipgoals — and if you don’t have relationship goals,make some. They can be about things like payingoff debt, parenting styles or your shared outlookon family nutrition. The point is to have commongoals so you can have a common plan and beon common ground.

For more relationship advice, check out Lisa’s bookUs: Transforming Ourselves and the RelationshipsThat Matter Most.

Fix 7: Stock up on all-star supplements

1. Multivitamin: Look for one that’s targeted to women your age. Take it once a day with food, so it won’t upset your tummy.

2. Calcium: After age 30, your bone density starts to decrease so it’s important to stock up on this key mineral, no matter how old you are!

3. Vitamin D: This is a key immunity booster and cancer fighter. Take a minimum of  800 IUs a day.

4. Omega-3s: You need both EPA and DHA omega-3 fatty acids. Fish sources are best, but you can also look for fortified eggs and other products at the grocery store. 

5. Vitamin B: Simply put, a B complex is the best feel-good vitamin you can find. Plus, it can boost your metabolism and help prevent heart disease later.

Fix 8: Add one healthy habit per decade

In your 20s: The best thing you can do is kick your bad habits — whether it’s smoking, tanning or heavy drinking. You may not see the effects right now, but the damage adds up. Taking a proactive approach to your health in your 20s can help you ward off wrinkles, premature aging and even cancer.

In your 30s: Take control of your stress. Whether you’re juggling a young family or an escalating career, anxiety in your 30s can be out of control. Carve out a little time in your schedule every day just to chill with a brisk walk, a good book or some soothing music.

In your 40s: Your hormones are shifting, your metabolism is slowing and that belly fat may be starting to creep on. Add a little extra exercise to your day to help battle the bulge and decrease stress hormones. And don’t forget sex. It’s easy to let it slip by, but an active sex life can keep your marriage alive and help you feel young and beautiful.

In your 50s: You’ve lost about 90 percent of the estrogen you used to have, and the result is sagging, dry skin. Make sure to moisturize with an SPF cream during the day, and use an extra-emollient moisturizer at night to keep skin smooth and supple.

Fix 9: Put yourself first!

One of the biggest problems I see in women today is they don’t take responsibility for their own health. With kids, jobs, mortgages and husbands, your own health can fall by the wayside. It’s easy to make excuses: You’re too busy to exercise or you just don’t have time to schedule that Pap smear. But all of these things add up over time. You need to be proactive, carve out time in your schedule and take responsibility for being the healthiest person you can be — because no one else is going to do it for you!