My 2 Minute Routines for An Extended Healthspan

‘Healthspan’ was popularized by Dr. Peter Attia in his seminal book Outlive.

It proposes a whole new way of looking at longevity in life, in place of the more common ‘lifespan’. 

While there are numerous things that improve Healthspan, from recent research on racket sports to age old wisdom of meditation, I figured some routines that take no more than 2 minutes each, that if consistently followed, could extend Healthspan.

One Leg Balance

The simple act of learning to balance on one leg improves stability, and as Dr. Peter Attia says, both Cardio and Resistance, the 2 main pillars of exercise, rests on Stability. If we don’t have stability, we risk injury, and then it is goodbye cardio and resistance. 

Stability becomes more important as we age, and research has shown that a simple act of a fall and a hip fracture accelerates death in old age.

And to avoid getting laughed at by family members while trying to balance on one leg, best to do this during the 2-minute brushing routine in the morning. This is in and of itself another important 2-minute routine, but I’m pretty sure we all have this covered. If not, aim for 2-minutes with a sonic toothbrush that has a 2-minute reminder for best results.

Lower Abs

The abs are vanity muscles that are the toughest to build, and the lower abs is the equivalent of getting a cat to play fetch. When you are losing weight, the first place it goes is the face and the last place is the abs. And if you have Indian genes and on an Indian diet, then good luck getting to it.

While there is absolutely no replacement to hard work over many years to get some muscle definition here, I came across this 2-minute breathing exercise that could stimulate the lower abs. Not entirely sure of its efficacy, and YouTube has as many abs training videos as it has cat videos, but usually this guy seems to know what he’s talking about and it’s worth a watch: Jeff Cavaliere lower abs.

Hanging From a Bar

At some point in the morning, simply hang for 2 minutes from a bar. That’s it, no pull ups, chin ups, ab training, nothing. Just hang. This ensures spinal decompression and wrist strength, which not only improves performances across resistance training (as resistance training is highly correlated with Healthspan) but ensures you can still open that jar at a much older age, something you may have noticed your parents come to you for once too often.

This act of 2-minute hanging can seem like the longest 2-minutes of the day. Despite having to carry a measly 60kgs and doing this for over a year, I still need a 15 sec break in between this routine. In sum, it may not be easy, but for just 2 minutes, the benefits far outweigh the effort.

Ice Bath

Instagram seems to be flooded with these mini bathtubs to take an ice bath in, so I would assume the trend is picking. The shock treatment for the body is proven to accelerate recovery and improve alertness through the day.

However, there are some things to be mindful of. Ice baths accelerate recovery to improve performance but affect muscle building. This is why athletes take ice baths during playoff season and not outside of it. Therefore, time these ice baths according to your exercise routine. If in performance phase, then dip in ice immediately after a workout, but if in optimization phase, give it 24 hours before the dip.

Coffee/Tea Mindfully

Consumption of warm beverages are commonplace but consuming them without distractions are rare. The simple act of spending the 2 minutes with a hot beverage looking outside the window as middle distances are great for the eyes, keeps the brain healthy, especially with age. If you can pair this with some meditation, even better.