I was in the sauna talking with a few friends about health and longevity. A younger guy asked me “how old are you when you close your eyes?” I had never heard this question before, and I had to admit that I did not have an immediate answer.
This got me thinking and the first answer I came up with is “it depends.” Then I started listing all the things that came to mind that could affect how old I am with my eyes closed, let’s call it our Eyes Closed Age (ECA). Here’s what I came up with that I feel can affect my ECA at any given time:
- Physical status
- Frame of mind
- What I am doing
- Who I am with
- What I am listening to
Physical Status
This is how my body is feeling. It may be useful to come at this from the opposite direction, or “how old do I feel with my eyes closed?” When I am feeling aches and pains, or feeling sick, or tired, or sick and tired, I will for sure tend to feel not so young. This will affect my energy level which has a direct effect on my ECA. When I feel great my ECA tends to be in the early 40s. I will note that aches due to DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) from a workout 2 days prior, actually reduces my ECA because I know I am getting stronger and looking better.
My level of physical fitness plays into this, as well. When I can keep up with younger people, and even better, when they have to keep up with me, my ECA will for sure be younger. Maintaining a healthy level of fitness also helps to reduce biological age which goes hand in hand with ECA.
Frame of Mind
When I feel “up” my ECA will for sure be younger. Nothing like approaching the day with energy and enthusiasm to maintain a youthful outlook on life. A positive outlook helps in all areas of life, and it is especially true here. When I am excited about what I have going on I will feel better physically and mentally. The better I feel, the younger I feel, and the younger I feel, the lower my ECA.
If you consider the opposite, when feeling down and out, it saps my energy and increases my ECA. This makes it important to incorporate things that boost mental well-being. Proper nutrition and exercise are key pillars of mental health, along with perhaps the most important–sleep. Being well rested helps to maintain a higher level of energy, and we all know the opposite feeling when burning the candle at both ends.
What I Am Doing
When I am skating, especially inline freestyle, I can’t help but feel younger. That’s a big part of why I love it so much. If I keep skating, I’ll be able to keep skating for years, and I have visions of being that 90-year-old guy out on the floor turning tricks. I know that the fact I am generally one of the better skaters out there helps my ECA. I mean, what 60-year-old can do these things–I must be younger than that.
Interestingly, when I am on the ice speeding around the track, I can sometimes feel a bit older when younger teammates fly by. This will change as my technique and speed improve this year. Still, just being out on the ice in a speed suit with 17″ blades will keep my ECA lower.
The same is true for all physical activities, like snowboarding and surfing. It seems that being physically active is key to a lower ECA. It also helps if the activities include participation with younger people.
Who I Am With
When I am skating or snowboarding it tends to be with people younger than I am. Especially with inline freestyle skating, I am usually the oldest person but generally one of the better skaters, and this seems to automatically lower my ECA. I have the same feeling when I am with any of my four adult kids ranging in age from late 20s to mid 30s. I feel more a contemporary of younger people when I am participating in any activity, since often they are keeping up with me and not the other way around. Consider one of the definitions of “contemporary”:
contemporary, noun, plural contemporaries
1: one that is contemporary with another
Petrarch and Chaucer were contemporaries.
2: one of the same or nearly the same age as another
It’s interesting to me that doing things with people my age and older does not increase my ECA, because in my eye I am much younger than they are. I have also noticed that when I am with other guys in their 60s that have a younger ECA, it really makes 60 seem young. I work with some guys in their 60s that I figure have an ECA in their 40s, and there is so much more energy than when I am with guys that I am guessing have an older ECA. And when it comes to guessing someone’s ECA, there are clues. Things like how they dress, how they act, and the music they listen to can be a reflection of their ECA.
What I Am Listening To
As I mentioned above, music can be an indication of ECA, but I also find that the music I listen to can affect my ECA. There’s not a particular genre that makes a difference, and it could be music from any decade. To me, it seems as if the effect of music on my frame of mind is what makes the difference. There are some songs that my youngest son and I both agree are depressing. Listening to music like this does not help with my ECA. Conversely, music that hits the right chord, so to say, for sure lowers my ECA.
This is another area where I feel contemporary with my kids as we all like much of the same music. There’s nothing like your daughter asking you to attend a Senses Fail concert with her and her friends to lower your ECA. I’m still working on their appreciation of Bosa Nova from Brazil. Perhaps this lowers my ECA because it was so popular in the late 60s when I was a lot younger.
Why It Matters
Having a lower ECA keeps me doing the things I have always done, and as long as I keep doing these things, I feel I will be able to continue doing these things. As Peter Attia talks about, think of the things you want to do when you are 100, and then consider what you need to be able to do today to perform at 100.
Although our physical body will inevitably change as we age, we can slow the process, and having a lower ECA will help. For me, it’s because a lower ECA allows me to keep doing what I do, regardless of my actual age. And it’s fun when people ask you your age and you see the look on their faces when they are surprised you are in your 60s.
So, how old are you when you close your eyes?