You’re Not Over the Hill, You’re in the Valley: Why Exercise Must Increase With Age
Move Your DNA with Katy Bowman
Nutritious Movement
4.8 • 686 Ratings
🗓️ 17 December 2025
⏱️ 74 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Katy offers an aging reframe: in middle age, you are not “over the hill”—you are actually at the bottom of a valley, and staying strong and healthy means choosing to go uphill on purpose. Katy and Jeannette unpack the difference between chronological age and biological aging, why modern life may be speeding up the aging process, and how movement and exercise positively influence the cellular “hallmarks of aging.” They explore why exercise needs to increase with age (even when life gets busier and energy feels lower), and how reframing discomfort can make consistency possible—so you can extend not just your lifespan, but your healthspan, too.
Katy also speaks with Pack Matthews of Ikaria Design (creator of the Soul Seat) about “active sitting” and why our rest positions matter as we age. Pack shares his personal origin story—using floor-sitting and dynamic postures to counter arthritis. They also preview the upcoming Soul Seat Mini for the smaller people in your life and explore its role in dynamic classrooms.
Enhanced Show Notes and Full Transcript
00:03:00 — Flipping the visual: “over the hill” → “in the valley”
00:04:00 — The Dynamic Collective
00:06:00 — Chronological age vs biological aging & lifespan vs healthspan
00:08:35 — What may be accelerating aging: obesity, diet, sedentary behavior, stress
00:12:00 — How “biological age” is measured + hallmarks of aging
00:18:00 — Why exercise must increase with age: choosing uphill (progressive overload)
00:36:00 — Listener question: handedness across humans, animals, and even plants
00:47:00 — Interview: Pack Matthews (Ikaria Design) on the Soul Seat + active sitting
LINKS & RESOURCES MENTIONED
Handedness in Animals and Plants
CONNECT, MOVE & LEARN
Movement Advent 2025: 24 Ball Exercises to Balance Tech Stress
Join Our Newsletter: Movement Colored Glasses
Follow Katy on Substack
Try Katy's Virtual Studio Free for 7 days!
MADE POSSIBLE BY OUR WONDERFUL SPONSORS:
My Happy Feet: Toe-spacing socks that gently realign toes for comfortable recovery—take 20% off with code MYDNA.
Ikaria Design: The Soul Seat® offers height-adjustable, multi-position sitting—get 10% off new chairs and desks with code DNA10.
Peluva: Five-toe minimalist shoes that move like you do—take 15% off with code NUTRITIOUSMOVEMENT.
Venn Design: Stylish ball-shaped Air Chairs that encourage dynamic sitting—featuring in our 2025 Movement Advent!
Smart Playrooms: Beautiful playroom design and movement-rich equipment—save 10% on monkey bars and rock-wall items with code DNA10.
Movemate: Active standing boards with smoothly articulating wooden slats. Designed to keep you moving without interrupting your focus.
Thoughts/questions email us at podcast@nutritiousmovement.com
Your Voice on the Podcast: Read The Credits
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I just kicked off my annual exercise advent December 1st. This is the 12th year. I've prepared an |
| 0:06.9 | exercise a day for 24 days just for you. This year's theme is this. Screen savers. |
| 0:14.3 | 24 ball exercises to balance tech stress. You'll need to track down one of those fitness or stability balls. Maybe you've |
| 0:22.7 | got one in your garage or pushed under a desk. You can also find one at the gym or your friends |
| 0:27.9 | probably have one that you can borrow. One new thing this year, no social media is required. |
| 0:34.4 | You can find links to the exercises on my Instagram and Facebook, but you can also sign up |
| 0:40.8 | to get the exercises emailed to you at my Substack Movement Colored Glasses. Just Google Substack |
| 0:48.3 | and Katie Bowman Movement, and you'll find it. Click on any article about the advent, and you'll |
| 0:53.3 | find a place to sign up for the |
| 0:54.8 | exercises. Yes, they are free. Even if you're catching this a few days or even a couple weeks into |
| 1:01.0 | the Advent, go sign up. The exercises will live on and your body can use them at any time. |
| 1:07.4 | The Advent is my little gift to you, readers and listeners. |
| 1:11.8 | So get on it, a ball that is, and happy holidays. |
| 1:15.5 | Or I guess I should say happy balladays. |
| 1:18.1 | You're welcome. |
| 1:19.3 | Now to the show. |
| 1:20.6 | This is the Move Your DNA podcast, a show where movement science meets your everyday life. |
| 1:27.4 | I'm Katie Bowman, biomechanist, author, |
| 1:31.0 | and I'm 49 years old. And I'm Jeanette Lauren, biologist, movement teacher, and to be |
| 1:37.6 | honest, I'm shocked at how old I am. Everybody is welcome here. Let's get started. |
| 1:45.8 | You're shocked at how old you are? |
| 1:47.5 | You know when someone asks you how you're old you are and you say it and you're like, |
... |
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