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WHY EVENING IS THE BEST TIME FOR EXERCISE: CELERIAC AND RADISH SALAD

January 4, 2019 4 Comments


Happy new year to all our readers!

We love the beginning of a new year. It’s the perfect time for thinking about the future and for making adjustments to our lives. Naturally we want a long, healthy and happy future. So we’re taking the opportunity to make small lifestyle changes that promise big benefits.

Just before Christmas a large study on exercise was published, overturning what sleep experts and scientists have been telling us for decades: exercise in the evening stops you sleeping. Not so, according to this study. But even more importantly, this study found that people who exercised in the evening actually slept better at night.

Scientists at the Exercise Physiology Lab at ETH Zurich (a Swiss university specialising in Science and Technology) combed through the literature on exercise and sleep, analysing 23 studies and concluding that exercise in the four hours before going to bed had no negative effects on sleep.

“If doing sport in the evening has any effect on sleep quality at all, it’s rather a positive effect,” said Professor Christina Spengler, head of ETH Zurich’s Exercise Physiology Lab.

The researchers found that people who exercised in the evening spent 21.2 percent of their sleeping time in deep sleep. People who did no evening exercise spent 19.9 percent of their sleeping time in deep sleep. While the difference is small, it’s statistically significant, according to Professor Spengler.

This 1.3 percent of extra deep sleep matters because our periods of deep sleep are particularly important for our body’s physical recovery. It’s during periods of deep sleep that our bodies most effectively repair themselves: this is when our brains produce growth hormone (GH) which helps strengthen bones and muscles. This is also the time our immune systems are stimulated and the proteins synthesised that keep us looking and feeling our best. If you’ve ever woken with a head full of tar (better known as brain fog), you’ve probably not had enough deep sleep (or your deep sleep has been interrupted).

If you’ve a chronic illness, or you’re growing, some additional deep sleep could make quite a difference to one’s health.

There was only one exception to the exercise-before-bed rule: very vigorous exercise (like HIIT), done within an hour of sleeping, delayed the onset of sleep in some people. Professor Spengler explained that it was the only type of evening exercise that might have a negative effect on sleep.

I’ve always like the idea of exercising in the evening. But because I’ve never been a good sleeper, I’ve been cautious about going for an evening run, preferring to do serious exercise in the morning.

So my first new year’s resolution is to include some proper evening exercise (ie more than a spot of yoga) in my life. My second resolution is to use my phone less. But more about that later in the month.

This is a gorgeous winter salad that makes a lovely first course. Invented by chef, Elizabeth Butler, for her Kew Deli, Antrobus & Butler, I recently ate it in the home of some friends then rushed back and reinvented it the following morning. The thinner you can get the celeriac the better. A food processor with a mandolin setting is ideal. Otherwise do as I did and slice thinly with a very sharp knife.

WINTER SALAD OF CELERIAC AND RADISHES WITH TRUFFLE OIL AND CHIVES

1 small celeriac, very finely sliced (use a mandolin for speed)
6-8 radishes, thinly sliced
4 tsp olive oil
1 tsp truffle-infused olive oil (more if you like)
2 tsp lemon juice
Zest of one lemon
3 tsp finely grated parmesan
Handful chopped chives

Mix the sliced celeriac and radishes.

Make the vinaigrette by whisking together the olive oil, truffle oil, lemon juice, zest, parmesan and seasoning. Pour it over. Scatter over the chives and serve.

Annabel

  • Meal Types: Dinner, Soups and Salads
  • Conditions: Ageing, Insomnia
  • Ingredients: Celeriac, Radishes
« HOW CHRISTMAS IS HELPING YOU AGE BETTER
THE HEALTH CHECKS – AND FOOD – YOU NEED NOW »

Comments

  1. Alison C says

    January 4, 2019 at 5:08 pm

    I cannot wait to try this recipe!

    Reply
    • Annabel Abbs says

      January 10, 2019 at 2:42 pm

      Let us know what you think… xx

      Reply
  2. Charles says

    January 17, 2019 at 8:59 pm

    As a student I used to exercise in the evening and continued to prefer evenings until I started to work long hours in middle age when I switched to the morning. Now that I am retired I exercise in the morning, the afternoons are for gardening or picking fights with actuaries, as I am a pension fund trustee. I am too tired these days to do much in the evening.

    I prefer the morning and sleep like an angel unless something is on my mind in which case I wake up early.

    Reply
    • Annabel Abbs says

      January 20, 2019 at 7:43 pm

      Yes, Charles, mornings are certainly easier, especially when it’s dark at 5pm. I’m enjoying my new regime of a little evening exercise although it’s often just an after-supper stroll! The key is to find what works and stick with it… Gardening is excellent exercise too.

      Reply

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Welcome to The Age-Well Project

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Everything we’ve learnt about ageing well points Everything we’ve learnt about ageing well points to a time (for women at least) in their mid-60s when the chronic conditions of ageing, like diabetes, heart disease and dementia, are - statistically - more likely to kick in. 

And we know that our reproductive hormones do so much more than prepare us to have periods and babies, we have receptors for them throughout our bodies and brains. 

Oestrogen, in particular, helps keep bones strong, blood vessels flexible, brains firing and inflammation levels low. Essentially, it wraps us up in a cosy protective cloak to keep us safe and healthy while we're able to reproduce, but once the eggs have run out - we're on our own! 

Between the average age of menopause at 51, and that time in our 60s when the chronic conditions of ageing are more likely to kick in, we have a decade or so in which it’s vital to focus on our health.

And how to do that? It’s on the blog - link in bio

#longevity #womenover50 #agewell #ageingwell #agingwell #longevityblog #healthblog #agewellblog #over50bloggers #womenover50 #healthspan #womenover60 #menopause #menopausehealth #postmenopause #postmenopausefitness #postmenopausal #oestrogen #hormonalhealth
If you’re lucky enough to have good metabolic he If you’re lucky enough to have good metabolic health you might want to thank your Mum today. Recent studies have found that women who move around during their reproductive years and during pregnancy and then breastfeed for a bit pass on a compound in their milk called 3SL which provides lifelong protection against poor metabolic health. The offspring of moving, breastfeeding Mums appear to have a lower lifetime risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and other chronic metabolic disease. Even gentle strolling during pregnancy and while nursing can produce this compound. So today we thank our Mums for that - as well as everything else.  Susan’s mum in the hat. Annabel’s mum in the pony tail. 

#mothersday #mothers #move #agewell #goodhealth #longevitylifestyle #longevity #walk
There’s been lots of good news for walkers recen There’s been lots of good news for walkers recently. A study published last month found that over-60s who walked between 6000 and 9000 steps a day cut their risk of heart disease (including strokes and heart attacks) by 40-50 percent, when compared to a more typical 2000 steps a day. In fact this study found that for every additional 1000 steps walked, the risk fell still further. 

How far are you walking to age well? Let us know in the comments and there’s more on the power of walking on the blog - link in bio

#longevity #womenover50 #agewell #ageingwell #agingwell #longevityblog #healthblog #agewellblog #over50bloggers #womenover50 #healthspan #womenover60 #walking #womenwhowalk #womenwhohike #reversewalking #backwardswalking #walkingbackwards
A big hug from us to you to mark International Wom A big hug from us to you to mark International Women’s Day! 

The campaign this year reminds us to embrace equity as a way to recognise that each of us has different circumstances, and we need different resources and opportunities to reach an equal outcome. Of course, this is as vital in ageing and health outcomes as in every other field.  

So we’re embracing our age and hoping to grow older in a more equitable society ❤️

#internationalwomensday #embraceequity #embracequity2023 ##longevity #womenover50 #agewell #ageingwell #agingwell #longevityblog #healthblog #agewellblog #over50bloggers #womenover50 #healthspan #womenover60 #iwd2023 #madformidlife
We’ve learned to love walking backwards! So many We’ve learned to love walking backwards! So many benefits when it comes to ageing well. 

If you’re not sure how to start or are worried about looking silly (we were) - there are lots of tips on the blog, link in bio. 

If you’re a backwards walker, let us know in comments below! 

If you’re planning to start, save this post for when you’re ready for some reverse walking 

#longevity #womenover50 #agewell #ageingwell #agingwell #longevityblog #healthblog #agewellblog #over50bloggers #womenover50 #healthspan #womenover60 #walking #womenwhowalk #womenwhohike #reversewalking #backwardswalking #walkingbackwards
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