A Tale of Two Twins: How lifestyle Choices Impact Our Health
- Vitality Fitness and Rehab
- Sep 6, 2023
- 4 min read
Hello everyone,
I would like to welcome you to the very first Vitality Fitness and Rehab blog. Over the coming weeks, months, and years, I will be releasing a weekly blog all about aging and improving our quality of life as we age through exercise and lifestyle modifications. I will share tips on exercise and nutrition, facts and statistics on the aging process, and tools to help you implement a new, healthier lifestyle.
To illustrate our point, let's start with a story about the "twins" known as the "Sick Twin" and the "Healthy Twin." I have chosen this anecdote to better convey the subject matter of this fitness blog, emphasising how life choices and environmental factors can impact health conditions and quality of life. These aspects affect everyone, even those with identical genes.
Once there lived a set of twins with identical genes. Growing up, there was little that differentiated the pair. They dressed alike, acted alike, moved alike, dined alike, and exercised alike. However, sometime into their late forties or early fifties, both twins were suddenly struck with the realisation that they were not growing any younger. For most individuals, this realisation often occurs through the sight of a protruding beer belly in the mirror or a breathless jog up the stairs. However, in the case of the twins, it manifested as an inexplicable, sudden lower back pain. This unforeseen event became the defining moment that earned them their respective nicknames: 'Sick & Healthy'.
Sick Twin interpreted his back pain as a sign of aging and believed that he should "take it easy." Sick Twin's self-imposed "easy" day transformed into weeks, and then the weeks dragged on to become months. Before long, Sick Twin found himself living a predominantly sedentary lifestyle, transitioning from work at his desk to binge-watching TV series and consuming empty calories on the sofa.
Sick Twin slowly began to gain weight until he went for a routine check-up with his doctor. During the check-up, the doctor informed him that he was now classified as obese and at risk of developing further medical conditions. The doctor explained that Sick Twin's cholesterol levels had increased, and he had a buildup of fatty plaque along the arterial walls, which carry blood around the body. This plaque was causing his arterial walls to narrow, consequently increasing his blood pressure. In addition to obesity, Sick Twin was experiencing lower back pain, hypercholesterolemia, and high blood pressure. These conditions made it more challenging for him to exercise and perform his daily activities, leading to a decline in his mental health.
As Sick Twin gained more weight, he noticed an increase in pain in his weight-bearing joints, such as his knees. Eventually, he was diagnosed with osteoarthritis, an inflammatory condition that causes degeneration of the cartilage at the ends of bones. This downward spiral left Sick Twin, now in his 60s, with obesity, lower back pain, hypercholesterolemia, high blood pressure, depression, osteoarthritis, a failing heart due to high blood pressure, and a significantly reduced quality of life. Eventually, he lost all independence when he was placed in a care home and sadly passed away a few years later from a heart attack.
In contrast, Healthy Twin approached the situation differently. When Healthy Twin woke up with back pain, he tackled the issue head-on by enrolling in Jake and Vitality Fitness and Rehab's longevity program. This program aimed to help him maintain his youthfulness, flexibility, and strength for many years to come. Healthy Twin was determined to stay active and independent.
Healthy Twin started his new program, which consisted of resistance training, walking, hiking, and playing squash with his colleagues. With consistent effort, Healthy Twin saw improvements in his strength and resilience, resulting in reports that he felt ten times better now than in his twenties—a fantastic confidence booster. Furthermore, he also reduced the likelihood of developing coronary heart disease, reduced his blood pressure, minimised the risk of developing arthritis, improved his mental well-being, enhanced his posture, and maintained a healthy weight.
Fast forward a few years, and Healthy Twin is retired, completing a heli-glacier hike in New Zealand, one year after his Sick Twin brother's unfortunate demise.
These are twins who were born with the same genes, but their lives took very different paths. Some elements of this tale were quite depressing and extreme. However, it is a story that most people can relate to in some way. The good news is that with exercise and lifestyle management, these conditions can be prevented, managed, and improved at any point. Therefore, there is no need to fear that it is too late for you.
Upcoming blogs from Vitality Fitness will shed further light on the health conditions mentioned in this narrative such as lower back pain, resistance training after 40, obesity, type-2 diabetes, osteoarthritis and many more. This will hopefully provide you with the necessary information, guidance, and advice on how to tackle these problems head-on. This will help you live, move, and feel better for longer, so your future can resemble that of the Healthy Twin.
Live, move and feel better, for longer.
You are able to find videos on Sick twin, Healthy twin and some exercises for maintaining a healthy strong body on our social media channel here: Facebook , Instagram
If you have any further questions, please email us at enquiries@vitalityrehabfit.co.uk. Alternatively, our team will be posting a blog each week discussing various conditions and the aging process which you can get emailed to you weekly by going to our website here and entering your email.
