Better as You Age
It is possible to get better as you age.
Transported while fly-fishing for smallmouth bass, after several hours, I looked up only to realize I couldn’t see a single member of my fishing club. Somehow, without noticing, I found myself standing waist-deep in the October waters of the Juniata River, alone.
Later, at dusk, when I returned to the VRBO, the place felt strangely quiet. Conversations dwindled. It was immediately clear my peers had been talking about me. Then came the questions—half teasing, half genuinely curious:
How You Become Better as You Age
How do you stay out there wading for so long? Aren’t you cold? Don’t your bones hurt? Don’t you get tired?”
What my fellow fishing club members were really asking was: how is it that I stay warmer for longer while wading in 57-degree water? How is it that I have the stamina to stand and fish for hours?
From my perspective, I heard, “How are you aging better than the rest of us?”
I didn’t think sitting around the table after three-days of fly-fishing was the best time and place for a deep discussion on cause and effect—how we all naturally age and the attention and effort that is required if you want to age better than what you see—the status quo.
Instead, I went home and wrote The Ageless Angler: A Guide to Fly-Fish More as You Age. A brief but dense treatise about influencing your biological trajectory, including foundational practices that will keep you strong, flexible and resilient. I promise that it won’t put you to sleep and at the same time, it will inspire, give you strength, resilience and a heightened sense of purpose in your later decades.
Aging Happens
Messages of what happens to our bodies as we age have become marginally more common. Notice the posters at your local pharmacy.
This language is used to encourage attention and engagement in your healthspan (quality of life) as you age.
But that message is the tip of the iceberg.
In fact, most of the biological systems that keep us strong, spry and robust—our overall resilience dulls with age.
What is more critical than noticing and acknowledging this fact is embracing the supreme fact that what you do, the choices you make, influence not only your immune system but all your biological systems. You are the CEO, the director your biological trajectory.
Two Ages
Your birthday is fixed. A number on the calendar. Your biological age is dynamic, largely influenced by lifestyle. You could be 50 chronologically and have a cardiovascular system (your engine) that is 40.
The speed and magnitude of your biological aging are determined by you. And most of the effort involved, probably 80% of it, does not require a doctor.
It’s Not Easy
Creating a plan to age with strength, stamina, creativity and grace is not easy and is not common. You may find yourself alone. The hardest and yet most exciting piece is figuring out your own path and developing from what works for you. Having support could make all the difference because you’ll gain traction quickly by following and imitating those who are where you want to be until you find your own way.
A community is a priceless asset for beginners. Coaching from people who are in your corner, who have been where you are eases anxiety and creates comfort.
Chronic Conditions
According to research published in 2025, 93% of adults age 65 and older have at least one condition, while 79% have two or more. But age, condition or illness are not reasons to stop, give up or acquiesce to the challenges created by aging. Most of us have chronic conditions that require management, including me. My experience is a high level of fitness prevents my conditions from progressing.
I view chronic conditions as reminders, mere signals. Don’t allow age or condition to rule your days. We are here to encourage and support your active lifestyle—for the decades when most people permanently park their Merrell Moabs.
Here is How to Begin to Become Better as You Age
As we get older, we face a crossroad almost every day. Should I take that walk? Should I eat those Froot Loops or opt for a smoothie with kale, berries, flax and yogurt?
Your small, unexciting daily choices shape the trajectory of your life. Brief indulgences may not completely derail your efforts. Doughnuts or the Kelce Mix once and a great while are probably harmless. But just imagine what 30 or 40 years of that as a steady diet would do to your metabolism, immune function, energy level? What do you think you can expect from that kind of diet combined with inattention to the inevitable decline that occurs as a natural part of aging?
Design your own ‘trekking poles for life.’ Examine your choices. Find things that you enjoy doing that give you strength, balance and flexibility. Do the small, every day, unglamorous things that are highly effective in taking the pressure off aging while guiding your steady improvement.
- Eat whole foods
- Exercise, or at least move more
- Try fasting
- Get outside
There are ingredients to health and there are impediments to health. Small and seemingly inconsequential personal choices shape your health trajectory.
Try working on being more aware how exercise and food choices affect you. I carefully monitor what helps me burn brighter and glow with energy and enthusiasm, because I strive daily to be the best older person I can be.
We can age better than what we have witnessed because today we know more. We are better informed and better prepared for our later decades.
Look for what will make aging more tactical and less burdensome. Maybe these are ideas, things you never thought of, hidden fortunes. Or maybe a community where you meet others who are on the same trail. There’s power in all these options.
Maybe it’s just a conversation. With support you’ll find your power and whoosh, you’re on your way—new purpose, new trajectory, new life!
Two offerings of inspiration and support.
There is more detail in my book.
Ideas and support in our Newsletter.
Categorized in: General Knowledge