What Cards Did You Draw in the Genetic Lottery?

“That person lucked out with their genes!”

Sometimes you see someone who’s 60 but looks 45, moving with the energy of someone half their age, and you think to yourself, “That person just got lucky. Good genes. They won the genetic lottery.”

If you’ve ever thought that, like I once did, you couldn’t be further from the truth. The famous Danish Twin Study, conducted way back in 1999, established that only about 20% of how long the average person lives is dictated by genes. But a much more recent study, conducted in 2018, was even more astonishing. The scientists analysed the family trees of over 400 million people and found that, “The genetic heritability of human longevity is well below 10%.”

Watching hundreds of people transform their health at Be Well has taught me this: the ‘lucky’ people show up consistently. They understand that health & wellbeing isn’t about luck, it’s preparation meeting opportunity. They create their own luck, one session at a time.

Living in the Blue Zone
So, if not genes, then what? There’s this fascinating study from the Blue Zones, those regions where people routinely live to 100. The researchers found it wasn’t due to their genes, it was due to their lifestyle choices. And the wonderful thing is our lifestyle is modifiable. Diet, sleep, exercise, recovery, social connections, no harmful habits, stress reduction, purpose. Those are the variables that determine our healthspan and lifespan, not genetics.

We created Be Well to be a place where healthspan and lifespan aren’t left to chance. The Blue Zone of Hawthorn, maybe even Australia 😎. We cultivated an environment, and a community to support Members to maintain daily practices to achieve their  optimal health and wellbeing.

Anybody and Every Body
When I see someone struggling with their health & wellbeing journey, I am reminded we are the architects of our own vitality. If you believe your best years are behind you, then they probably are. If you believe your body can feel stronger, more energetic, more alive at 60 than it did at 40, then it can.

There are forces beyond our control: genetics, accidents, life circumstances. But here’s what David, co-founder and my husband, learned after his heart attack: Your health & wellbeing is like tending a garden, you can’t control the weather but you can control how you prepare the soil, plant the seeds, and show up each day to water and nurture what you’re growing.

The reset button is always available. It’s never too late to start your health, fitness and wellbeing journey. Never.

Your future self is waiting.

See you again at Be Well soon!