With every passing year, we expect another candle on our birthday cake. Aging is, after all, an unavoidable fact of life. But rather than worrying about the number of years adding up and more gray hair, consider instead how your daily lifestyle can support natural aging progression and promote general health to keep you active and thriving in the years ahead.

With age also comes wisdom. Which is why we turned to 3-time Super Bowl Champion and former NFL player James Develin and asked him to share his secrets for staying active, healthy, and youthful even in retirement.

James Develin’s Healthy Aging Approach to Fitness 

“While playing football I was really focused on two things: first, being as strong as possible, and second, being as healthy as possible,” James says. “Now I’m really focused on the latter – how can I stay healthy and active and fight back against the dings and dents I have from my time in the game.”

It’s why optimizing his aging process and prioritizing a longer health span is a central focus of James’s fitness and health routine.

“It’s especially important to maintain focus on healthy aging because as athletes, our time in our respective sport is often short-lived compared to the length of our healthy active life,” he says. “So, while we’re playing and everything is focused on performance and optimization for the sport, we have to remember we’ll also have a long life to live for different purposes after we’re finished playing.”

Teaming up with Thorne to achieve health goals 

From playing in the NFL to keeping healthy in retirement, James explains why he turns to Thorne to support his health.

“I first heard of Thorne and began to use products during my time with New England. The team nutritionist handed out samples of Thorne supplements to the team and spoke of their high quality and safety,” James says.

We believe it’s the safety and high quality of Thorne supplements that make the athletes across the NFL, NBA, MLB, and CrossFit big fans of Thorne products. Thorne’s entire NSF Certified for Sport® product line is tested for more than 200 banned substances. This certification offers professional athletes the peace of mind of knowing that nothing on the banned substance list will show up on a drug test. And while most of us aren’t getting tested for banned substances, knowing what you are putting into your body is essential for good health. In addition to having NSF certification, Thorne conducts four rounds of testing, including testing for 760 contaminants, to ensure that Thorne’s formulas contain only what you need for optimal body function.

“I’m most excited to partner with Thorne because they have products I truly use and believe in,” James says. “Thorne’s no BS approach, and their focus on potency and safety while identifying scientifically-backed areas to help individuals better themselves, is something I’m proud to stand for.”

“Having an old-school lifter mentality, I’ve always loved Thorne’s protein, creatine, and amino acid products,” James continues.

The three Thorne formulas that James uses are essential for any training routine:

  1. Protein promotes the repair and rebuilding of muscle tissue*
  2. Creatine monohydrate powder supports lean muscle mass and endurance*
  3. And the amino acids in Amino Complex are a key part of post-workout recovery and cellular energy production*

But now, James is also focusing on other aspects of his heath.

“I’ve recently tried to really emphasize nutrient deficiencies in my diet and address them supplementally. I’ve become a big fan of taking a daily multi-vitamin/mineral supplement, plus also EHA/DHA and Adrenal Cortex,” he says.

“And I’ve really become a big fan recently of NiaCel as I’ve come to the realization in retirement (and losing my hair) that I’m certainly not getting any younger, and that allows me to address my energy needs and my cellular health on a daily basis.”

NiaCel for healthy aging and staying active 

So what makes NiaCel James’s go-to formula for optimizing the aging process?

“I’m really interested in the NiaCel products because I think we can all benefit a bit from fighting back against Father Time. I think we all have a tendency to ask a lot out of our body on a daily basis and this product has some key components to help our body fight back on a cellular level, where things truly start,” he says.

“I think all athletes can benefit from NiaCel, given the fact that athletes are constantly breaking our body down either from gameplay, practice, or training,” James continues. “Our cells take a beating over and over, and NiaCel helps these cells stay healthy, while also promoting healthy aging. The assistance in the sleep-wake cycle is also very appealing as an athlete to help improve the time in which the body does its most efficient and effective recovery.  In that, I would recommend an athlete to start with NiaCel early and often.”

How NiaCel Supports the Aging Process

James mentions NiaCel’s cell-supporting properties for healthy aging. But what exactly does that mean? Let’s step back and explore a super important cellular component, known as nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, or NAD+. This coenzyme is found in every single cell in the body. Within cells, NAD+ is busy playing an integral role throughout multiple bodily functions, including DNA repair, cellular repair, and energy production in the mitochondria.

Unfortunately, NAD+ declines with age (as well as from other adverse lifestyle factors, such as increased stress, poor diet, and bad sleeping habits). A lower level of NAD+ can lead to a slowing down of vital body functions, resulting in many of the negative symptoms of aging and age-related conditions.

That’s where NiaCel comes in. It contains key ingredients that support NAD+ levels, helping keep your cells “young” – which, in turn, supports several aspects of healthy aging, including:

  • Cellular energy production in every cell of your body – helping you feel vibrant*
  • Supporting a normal sleep-wake cycle for better nights and refreshed mornings*
  • Helping protect the DNA in every cell from damage*
  • Assisting the body and brain in fighting the effects of chronological aging*

 Want to see if NiaCel is right for you? Take this healthy aging quiz to get a recommended healthy aging formula from our team of medical experts.

Testing for Your True Age 

If you’re looking for deeper insights into how well your body is handling the aging process, then consider testing for your biological age. Your biological age helps explain why some individuals of the same age have profound differences in capabilities – why some can run marathons and scale mountains, while others are riddled with health conditions and require around-the-clock care.

In addition, certain environmental exposures, dietary habits, exercise, physical or mental health issues, chronological age, genetics, and even social stimulation can all affect the “age” of your cells. Using an in-depth blood panel, Thorne’s Biological Age Test analyzes the rate of aging for your entire body and specific organs – so you’ll know if your liver is aging faster than your kidneys, or how "old" your immune system is compared to others. Your personalized recommendations are geared to help you reduce your biological age score and provide resources on how to slow or reverse your biological age clock.

Get started with your biological age test.