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Resistance training is crucial.

“I used to be the guy who rode my bike 100 miles a day,” Hyman recounts. “I’ll still go out for a couple hour [long] bike ride, but what’s become more and more clear to me is that if you don’t understand how to build muscle, how to improve your mitochondrial number and function, you will age faster.” 

Muscle mass is crucial for longevity, period and full stop. Having low muscle mass has previously been associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline1, insulin resistance2, and high inflammatory markers3. Muscle-strengthening activities, however, have been shown to reduce mortality risk by 10 to 17 percent4.

“It can be bands, it can be weights, it can be all sorts of things that you can do, but resistance training is so essential to stimulate muscle synthesis, mitochondrial biogenesis, and improving function,” adds Hyman. That’s not to say you shouldn’t ever do cardio—just make sure you add some sort of strength training into the rotation. “I think you need both,” says Hyman. See here for our full guide to strength training, with some example moves you can follow. 

On the subject of muscle mass, we can’t forget about protein. Protein is a building block of muscle, and it’s critical for optimal energy, immunity, metabolic function, musculoskeletal health, hormonal balance, recovery, and more. Now, a growing number of health and nutrition experts are encouraging people to go beyond the RDA5 and increase protein intake—including Hyman. 

“You see people who don’t understand the science of protein [are] very frail, and frailty is a risk factor for early death6, falls, and sarcopenia,” he says. “Now, if you want to be vegan, that’s OK, but you have to understand what you’re doing and how to stay out of trouble.” 

You see, not all protein is created equal. Plant proteins tend to have a lower content of the amino acid leucine, which is considered the most important for muscle protein synthesis7. “Let’s say you want to get 120 grams [of protein], which is really what you should be getting, you need to eat 31,000 calories and 24 cups of brown rice. Now that just doesn’t make any sense,” he explains. “I don’t think that eliminating animal protein, unless you are willing to be really stringent about your protein intake and have processed plant protein powders with added amino acids, [puts you] in good shape.”

Of course, if you do eat animal proteins, you’ll want to make sure that you’re consuming high-quality, grass-fed sources, if you can. “I think having the right amount and the right kind of protein at the right time is really important,” Hyman adds. 

OK, we’ve been talking about the sleep-longevity connection for a while now—it’s not necessarily a “new rule” of increasing healthspan. Still, it bears repeating, according to Hyman. “Sleep is a time of repair, renewal, rebuilding, and a time of autophagy,” he shares. “Short-changing yourself on sleep and not focusing on the quality of your sleep is going to accelerate aging across the board.” 

Short sleep duration (less than seven hours) is even associated with shorter telomeres8, with five hours being especially risky. Make sure you have a solid wind down routine and perhaps invest in a natural sleep aid, if you need an extra nudge.