How To Live To Be 100

February 15 2018 by Lisa Middlemas , Executive Coach with the Executive Coaching Consultancy.

When I first heard about the concept of Managing Energy and not Time, it was a revelation. Dan Buettner,
along with National Geographic and other experts, researched longevity hotspots around the world. His Ted
Talk is about his findings in what he calls “Blue Zones” that are the regions on the globe with the highest
concentration of centenarians. Not only do they live around 12 years longer than their average counter
parts in the developed world, but they are healthier, more active and suffer less with heart disease, cancer
and other major ailments.

What struck me was how the information he shares is based on scientific study with a breadth of research
and statistics to back it up. It definitely made me think!!

His study revealed the following 9 common denominators for healthy longevity:

1. Move Naturally. Rather than “exercise”. Most of these communities walk about 5 miles per day.
2. Purpose. Knowing what makes you smile, what gets you up in the morning.
3. Down Shift. Having rituals that make them stop built into their daily routines, such as pray and
naps and rest days on the Sabbath.
4. 80% Rule. People in Blue Zones stop eating when their stomachs are 80% full and have eating
habits that help them not to over eat.
5. Mainly plant based diets. Beans, vegetables, fruit, and whole grains. Only small amounts of meat
are eaten.
6. Wine @ 5. A glass a day, regular, small amounts of alcohol in a social environment.
7. Belonging. Being part of a faith-based community.
8. Loved Ones First. Having close and strong family connections with extended family.
9. Right Tribe. Being born into a tribe of people who influence you in a positive way makes you happy
and healthy too. Each community proactively surrounds themselves with the right people daily.

For me it was more about the enjoyment these people were getting from life in their old age rather than
necessarily living to 100 and that it’s a daily practice, no short cuts or quick fixes to a healthy, satisfying life.
Watch part 1 of the video (0:00 to 3:49) and say if the following statements are TRUE (T) or FALSE (F):

1. Mainly genes dictate how long we live F

2. We are programmed to live more than other mammals F

3. Every time cells turn over, some kind of damage accumulates T

4. Life expectancy in the USA is 12 years lower than our capacity to stay alive T

5. The rate of middle age mortality is higher than in the “Blue Zones” T

Watch part 2 of the video (3:49 to 7:16) and complete the missing words:

Their history actually goes back to about the time of Christ. It’s actually a Bronze Age culture that’s been
1
isolated. Because the land is so infertile, they largely are ____________ , which occasions regular, low-
intensity physical activity. Their diet is mostly plant-based, accentuated with foods that they can carry into
the fields. They came up with an unleavened whole wheat bread called carta musica made out of durum
grass-fed
wheat, a type of cheese made from ____________
2
animals so the cheese is high in Omega-3 fatty acids
instead of Omega-6 fatty acids from corn-fed animals, and a type of wine that has three times the level of
polyphenols than any known wine in the world. It’s called Cannonau.

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They have all kinds of little strategies to keep from overeating, which, as you know, is a big problem here in
America. A few of the strategies we observed: they eat off of smaller plates, so they tend to eat fewer
calories at every sitting. Instead of serving family style, where you can sort of _____________
3 eat as you’re
talking, they serve at the counter, put the food away, and then bring it to the table.

If you were lucky enough to be born in Okinawa, you were born into a system where you automatically have
a half a dozen friends with whom you travel through life. They call it a Moai. And if you’re in a Moai you’re
4
expected to share the ____________ if you encounter luck, and if things go bad, child gets sick, parent
dies, you always have somebody who has your back. This particular Moai, these five ladies have been
together for 97 years. Their average age is 102.

In the Okinawan language there is not even a word for retirement. Instead there is one word that imbues
roughly
your entire life, and that word is “ikigai.” And, __________
5 translated, it means “the reason for which you
wake up in the morning.”

For this 102-year-old karate master, his ikigai was carrying forth this martial art. For this hundred-year-old
fisherman it was continuing to catch fish for his family three times a week.

Watch part 3 of the video (7:17 to 10:30) and choose the best option to complete the sentences or answer
the questions:

1. Where is the longest-lived population in America?

Minnesota
Loma Linda
Sterling

2. Adventists stop routine activities 24 hours every week to

connect through Instagram and other social networks
walk in the outdoors
go to church

3. A 97-year-old man
still works as a builder
does 20 open-heart operations per month
ended up on the operation table after building a fence

4. Marge Deton, who is 104,

usually drives on the San Bernardino freeway
lives in Twin Cities
drinks root-beer

Watch part 3 of the video (10:30 to the end). The speaker compares centenarians’ daily activities with
younger people’s activities. What activities are related? Match the ones in column A with the ones in
column B

A B

1. climbing stairs a. unhealthy friends

2. mix a cake by hand b. a “longevity” diet
3. downshifting c. the treadmill
4. a bit of alcohol and plants d. stress and inflammatory disease
5. the “right people in the tribe e. push a button

BONUS VIDEO: The principles of living longer

 LIFE EXPECTANCY (6 minute English podcast)
In this programme, Catherine and Dan will be discussing how long we humans can expect to live, as well as
teaching you six new items of vocabulary.

By the year 2030, will the USA’s life expectancy be:

a) in the top third

b) the middle third or

c) the bottom third

...compared to the rest of the world?

Listen to the programme to find out the answer.

Vocabulary

dead on your feet

extremely tired

motto
a short phrase which reflects the beliefs of an organisation or person

life expectancy
how many years a person is likely to live

equitable
fair or impartial

obesity
a state of being very overweight

binge
consume a large amount of something in a short space of time, especially something that you don’t usually
have