MICHAEL CLINTON ,THE founder and CEO of ROAR Forward spent three years researching Longevity Nation: The People, Ideas, and Trends Changing the Second Half of Our Lives and talked to more than 70 of the planet’s top doctors, researchers, scientists, nutritionists, and trainers, and visited innovative longevity medical centers and many of the world’s Blue Zones. On this journey, he discovered various good habits that he picked up and layered into his own daily regimen, helping him to hopefully live a longer, better, healthier existence.
Men’s Health How has your exercise regimen changed and why?
Michal Clinton: I’ve become more multi-dimensional in my regimen. I’ve always been a marathon runner, but now I’m adding in more cycling and weight training (at least three times per week). The newest element has been a commitment to stretching, balance work and squats. In the past, I would just lace up and head out. now, there is prep work before any kind of workout.
MH: How has your diet changed?
MC: I haven’t eaten red meat since my teenage years. some chicken but mostly fish. While I have always loved carbs and desserts, I’ve cut way back on that—dessert maybe once a week. I focus on a salad everyday, loaded up with legumes, beans, chick peas and anything else that’s healthy and freshly grown.
On the drinking front, only wine (with an occasional margarita), but I regulate my alcohol intake by trying to keep it no more than five glasses of wine a week. It’s still an enjoyable part of my diet and social life.
MH Have you learned to sleep better?
MC: Once i learned about better sleep hygiene techniques, I tried some of them and my Oura ring now tells me that I’m generally at a 90-91 rating with good rem and deep sleep! my best practice has been to keep the room very cool even in the winter, put the phone away 20 minutes before trying to go to sleep and do some meditating/reflection of the day asking myself “what brought me the most fulfillment today.”
An avid runner, Michael Clinton added strength training three times a week to his regimen.
MH: You’re a proponent of life layers and forging strong relationships with various communities—why is that so critical to longevity?
MC: ‘Life layers’ mean who are you other than your professional identity? It also means who are you beyond being a partner or parent? How do you build other identities that define you as a person, especially since kids grow up, jobs change and you may not have a partner during periods of your life. You build a set of identities that go beyond those core ones. One way to do that is to connect to the communities of people that interest you. In my case it is the world of photography, adventure travel, and nonprofit board work. Each of them let me become a person in that world.
MH What longevity tech did you add to your own wellness practice?
MC: I’m obsessed with my Oura ring. My prediction is that it and other wearables will continue to evolve in providing incredible insights into our health metrics. What is exciting is how they will serve as preventative indicators. Longevity tech will be serving us in so many ways in the future, not just for health but for robotic companionship to avoid isolation and loneliness.
MH: What’s in your supplement stack now?
MC:I don’t really take any supplements beyond metformin. While a lot of the evidence on metformin is not conclusive, I think it is a very promising drug that will enhance longevity. Beyond that, my approach is on core longevity hacks: exercise six days a week, eat right, sleep well, have a purpose in life and be intentional and focused with my family and friends.
MH:Who was the most inspiring person you met and why?
MC: In Longevity Nation, I interviewed over 70 ‘longevity innovators’ so it is hard to identify just one. Laura Carstensen, M.D., Ph.D., who founded the Stanford Center on Longevity in 2007 has to be one of the key people I admire. she was way ahead of the trend and continues to be at the center of all things longevity.
Dr. Becca Levy at the Yale School of Public Health has done some amazing research on how a positive attitude about aging can add seven years to your life. In her book Breaking the Age Code she puts forth her research findings. In a world that continues to be ageist, it’s a wake up call that our own attitude about getting older is important for our mental health.
Clinton at the Stanford Center for Longevity.
MH: Who is the smartest person in longevity research?
MC: The Buck Institute for Research on Aging based in California has top tier researchers, doctors, and scientists who are focused on longevity. Eric Verdin, MD. The CEO and president is a world class visionary who leads the charge there. I’d put him among the top 10.
The Buck Institute’s focus on “omics” such as proteomics, metabolomics and transcriptomics which are currently research tools, may become clinical tools to assess human health. Instead of the traditional blood panel of one hundred values or more, the future may be a deeper understanding of thousands of variables of our individual biology. with a deeper understanding of personalized, AI data-driven details, according to Dr. Verdin. That will help to predict what diseases you might be susceptible to and start getting early treatment. It will lead to ‘precision medicine’ focused specifically on your own biology. Buck is on the forefront of this revolution.
MH: You visited Okinawa, a Blue Zone where people are expected live to their mid-80s, what stuck with you from that visit?
MC: It was an inspirational visit that underscored the importance of community. I joined a 40 minute exercise/movement class that was a joyful experience. Every household has their own fresh vegetable garden for plant-based eating. There is a community store where individuals can take extra product to sell if they don’t consume it. What was most interesting is the intention to make sure that every person in the community has a human interaction each day. It helps avoids isolation and depression. It might include a one on one visit or an established social gathering.
Clinton in Okinawa, Japan, a Blue Zone where life expectancy is 80-plus.
MH: What scares you about the future of longevity?
MC: As the longevity sector continues to grow and expand, it is creating a global marketplace. However, there will be a lot of get-rich-quick schemes with some products that are not science or evidence-based. Avoid the hype. Do the work to make sure what you choose is legitimate. Listen to doctors, but know that there might be some bad actors in the medical world too.
MH What gives you hope for the future of longevity?
MC: We are living in an amazing time with the convergence of medical developments, medicines like GLP-1s and technology (AI) that are going to continue to revolutionize healthcare. All of it is going to expand life expectancies, normalizing the 100-year life.
The key is that all of the discoveries need to be available to everyone, not just the rich. A good example are GLP-1s that will soon be covered by Medicare, are having prices slashed significantly and other versions being introduced. It will help democratize these kinds of drugs, which many are now calling longevity drugs due to how they reduces inflammation, improves cardiovascular health, organ function and more. All of that will lead to longer, healthier lives.
MH: What else should MH readers know about your longevity journey?
MC: While there are many studies on what role genetics play in our own personal longevity, most scientists and doctors agree that nearly 75 percent of our healthy life is in our own hands. It gets back to the core longevity hacks that we talked about earlier.
In a longevity nation, those who will live long healthy lives are those that follow the core tenets that Men’s Health reports on. What I learned is that we have a lot more control on our own well-being, but we have to own our individual plan.
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