Taking a 4 Dimensional Approach to Your Health
“Don’t let perfection be the enemy of the good… Aim for consistency, not perfection.”
Overview
For starters, I want to acknowledge that there is no silver bullet when it comes to living a long, fruitful life. However, research suggests that improving one's cardiovascular, strength, cellular structure, and recovery can significantly improve one's metabolic health. Several academics, researchers, physicians, and scholars have mentioned these themes in one form or another as salient for improving overall health; my goal is to contextualize the research and findings discovered and provide the everyday person with tangible and tactical strategies to apply in their life. First, I want to provide a high-level definition and description of each theme and its relevance.
Defining 4 Dimensional Health
As a pure definition, Cardiovascular refers to the system of organs and structures that circulate blood and transport nutrients, oxygen, hormones, and waste products throughout the body. It primarily encompasses the heart, blood vessels (e.g., arteries, veins, capillaries), and blood. The cardiovascular system plays a vital role in sustaining equilibrium in the body by delivering essential substances to cells, removing metabolic waste, and supporting various physiological functions (e.g., temperature regulation and immune response).
While each of these themes should be of importance, undedicated attention to your cardiovascular system can present a myriad of life-altering and threatening outcomes, including Cardiovascular Disease (which remains one of the highest causes of death globally), obesity, and high blood pressure, to name a few.
Strength refers to our ability to exert force against resistance, which can be measured across various aspects, including muscular strength, endurance, and power. Each of these contributes to what we commonly know as strength and plays a critical role in our physical functionality, from completing daily activities like lifting, carrying, pushing, and pulling objects to participating in team sports or team activities.
Maintaining and improving strength is essential for long-term health. Doing so enhances bone density, joint stability, and functional mobility. Neglecting to train and focus on improving this area can result in a sharp decrease in efficacy over time.
Structural refers to the foundational characteristics of our human anatomy that are commonly derived from our genes and cellular foundation and are influenced by a wide array of external factors. This theme aims to take a closer look at the individual and provide a more personalized wellness strategy that fits the individual based on their risk exposure to certain conditions.
For example, one individual may have an elevated risk of cholesterol balance compared to their peers thus they will need to account for this in their overall health strategy. We will dive into how to test, evaluate, and mitigate one’s risk to key areas imperative to healthy metabolic function.
Last but not least, Recovery refers to the process by which the body returns to a state of balance by repairing and regeneration from physical exertion, illness, or stress. Recovery focuses on improving your body's ability to restore its physiological, psychological, and emotional functions to optimal levels.
Our focus will look into recovery strategies across four primary vertices: (1) physical, (2) psychological, (3) sleep, and (4) nutritional, as well as other nuances regarding recovery (e.g., good stress vs. bad stress).
What’s Next?
Over the next few weeks, we will explore each of the themes above in more detail to illustrate their individual value. In the next post, we will dive deeper into our first theme, Cardiovascular, detailing its importance and strategies for improving and maintaining performance. We will also outline “what good looks like” for each theme, which will vary depending on each individual's long-term health goals. For example, “good” will look different for the individual who aspires to run multiple marathons at the age of 50 plus compared to the individual who wants to be able to go on occasional hikes with their friends and family.
This process will be dynamic, meaning there will never be a silver bullet strategy. Like anything, making adjustments when new information is provided is essential. As more research is discovered and life events occur, your approach should change as needed. DI4D intends to incorporate the most recent findings into its blogs to ensure its readers are abreast with the most current information for optimizing their health.
If there are any topics or questions you’d like to discuss, please feel free to reach out to info@doit4dave.com. Recommendations and feedback are always welcome.
Sources Referenced
Principles of Anatomy and Physiology (2017)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Leading Causes of Death (2021)
Outlive: The Science & Art of Longevity Peter Attia, MD with Bill Gifford (2023)
Disclaimer
The information provided in this blog post is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional before starting any new health regimen or making any changes to your diet or lifestyle. The author and publisher of this blog post are not responsible for any adverse effects or consequences resulting from the use of any suggestions or recommendations discussed herein.
