Older Than 70? This Is the Number You Need to Know
August 26, 2024 | Balance
If you are over 70, one number influences your risk of disability, nursing home placement, and even how long you live. That number is your functional age. Unlike your chronological age, functional age over 70 is something you can actually control — and improving it can change your future in remarkable ways.
What Is Functional Age and How Is It Different?
Functional age is distinct from chronological age. It combines your physical, psychological, and social well-being into one meaningful number. In older adults, it reflects physical functioning, social engagement, and personal identity.
Human aging is a deeply individual process. In fact, with only two exceptions, no single test or lab value uniformly changes with time. Those two exceptions are kidney function and balance. Therefore, understanding and improving both is essential for healthy aging.
Why Balance Is a Key Measure of Functional Age Over 70
Balance is one of the most important indicators of functional age over 70. When you walk, you spend roughly 40% of the time on one leg. As a result, good balance is essential for daily independence and longevity.
Consider these specific benchmarks:
- Not being able to stand on one leg for 10 seconds doubles your risk of death from any cause within 10 years
- At age 75, standing on one leg for only 10 seconds equals a functional age of 83
- However, standing for 30 seconds lowers your functional age to 60
- The normal benchmark at age 75 is 18 seconds
These numbers show that small physical improvements can significantly lower your functional age.
The Sit-to-Stand Test: Another Key Functional Age Marker
Another simple measure of functional age is the sit-to-stand test. You count how many times you can stand from a chair and sit back down in 30 seconds. This test measures stamina, flexibility, and coordination.
For a 75-year-old woman, the normal score is 14 repetitions. However, completing only nine repetitions equals a functional age of 85. Therefore, building leg strength directly lowers your functional age.
Daily Activities That Affect Your Functional Age
Functional age also reflects your ability to perform everyday tasks called ADLs, or activities of daily living. These include personal care, climbing stairs, carrying groceries, and housecleaning. Struggling with these tasks raises your functional age significantly.
Furthermore, the old saying “you are as young as you feel” holds real scientific weight. Research shows that a positive self-perception of aging can increase life expectancy by up to 7.5 years. That is more than the benefit of treating high blood pressure and cholesterol with lifelong medication, which adds fewer than 4 years.
How Ageism Raises Your Functional Age Without You Realizing It
Negative beliefs about aging are dangerous. A negative self-perception of aging becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. It leads to social isolation and sedentary behavior. Both of these habits directly raise functional age.
In contrast, challenging ageist attitudes — both in society and within yourself — actively lowers functional age. Unlike genetics or biological age, functional age is within your control. Moreover, the benefits are especially significant for people with chronic conditions like diabetes, heart disease, or hypertension.
How to Lower Your Functional Age Over 70 Starting Today
The good news is that most people can lower their functional age with consistent effort. Even a simple daily walking program produces measurable improvements. Additionally, strength exercises like sit-to-stand practice can raise your scores quickly.
Here are three steps to start today:
- Begin a daily 30-minute walk to improve mobility and balance
- Practice standing on one leg to build stability and reduce fall risk
- Challenge ageist thoughts and replace them with positive aging beliefs
Finally, knowing your current functional age gives you a clear starting point. Take the free Resilient 80s Functional Age Test to find your functional age and healthy life expectancy today.