F*ck, I’m Still Evolving! Health, Genes & Owning Your Longevity with Dr Mary Revelas

SEASON 2 > EPISODE 1

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In this episode of F*ck, I’m Nearly 50!, I’m joined by longevity doctor, founder of AgeVantage, and all-round genius when it comes to decoding the science of ageing, Dr Mary Revelas.

This felt like the perfect way to kick off Season 2.

Because let’s be honest… something shifts in your 40s.

What used to work doesn’t.

Your energy changes.

Your body feels different.

And suddenly you’re asking bigger questions about how you want to age.

Mary brings a completely different lens to that conversation.

She takes genetics, hormones, lifestyle and everything in between and makes it feel clear, empowering and actionable.

✨ If you’ve ever thought, “I don’t feel like myself anymore, but I don’t know where to start” — this episode is for you.

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This episode gets into:

🧬 The truth about your genes and why they’re not your destiny

🧠 How biology, mindset and environment shape how you age

⚡ Why the “health hacks” that used to work suddenly stop working

🔍 How to take a “total view” of your health (instead of chasing quick fixes)

😴 What’s really behind low energy, poor sleep and midlife shifts

💡 How to move from information overload to clarity and action

🔥 The biggest myths about ageing well that need to go

📈 The 3 most important things to focus on after 45

What I love about Mary is that she doesn’t make health feel overwhelming or clinical.

She makes it feel like self-awareness.

Like understanding your body instead of fighting it.

Like having agency again.

Because here’s the truth:

✨ You can’t change your genes.

✨ But you can change how they behave.

And that’s where everything shifts.

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🎯 The “Try This Before 50” Challenge

If you could stop guessing… and actually understand what your body needs - what would change?

This episode is your starting point.

Because this isn’t about chasing youth.

It’s about owning your next decade with clarity, energy and intention.

Because f*ck… we’re nearly 50. And isn’t it amazing that we still get to evolve?

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LEARN MORE ABOUT DR MARY REVELAS

🌐 Learn more: https://www.agevantage.com.au/

📲 Follow: https://www.instagram.com/agevantage_livebetter_longer/

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🔥 Let’s keep the conversation going! 🔥

📺 Watch the episodes on YouTube – Subscribe here! 

💬 Join the community – Follow me on Instagram @fckimnearlyfifty and share your thoughts on this episode. Or connect with me on LinkedIn.

🎧 Never miss an episode – Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

📢 Spread the word – If you loved this episode, share it with a friend (or 10). Because midlife is better when we figure it out together.

Because f*ck, we’re nearly 50, and isn’t that amazing? 🚀

Transcript

Season Two And The Big Shift

Dom Hind 0:00

Welcome to season two of Fuck I'm Nearly 50. I just turned 48, and on my 48th birthday, we hit 5,000 downloads. 5,000, which honestly feels outrageous, and I'm so, so excited about it. Season one was huge. 17 episodes, 14 brilliant guests, two raw solo episodes where I process life in real time. And our most listened to episode, the incredible Shanna Kennedy, who joined me twice and clearly struck a nerve with all of us. What I've loved most isn't the numbers though, it's the messages, the DMs, the I thought it was just me moments. And that's why we're back. Hi, I'm Dom Hind, and fuck, I'm nearly 50. Actually, I am now 48. And this next stretch feels different. Less panic, more power. I'm not trying to rewind to who I was at 35. I'm trying to understand who I am now. My body, my energy, my brain, my patterns, and how to make this decade my strongest yet. Because let's be honest, our 40s are confronting, our bodies shift, our tolerance drops, our hormones have their own agenda. And suddenly the hacks that used to work don't. We've tried the diets, the detoxes, the discipline, but what we actually want is clarity. What matters, what's noise, and how do we back, take back control of how we age. Lately I've been thinking a lot about that. How much is mindset, how much is biology, and how much is written in our DNA, which is exactly why today's guest feels like the perfect way to kick off season two. Dr. Mary Ravellis is a longevity doctor and founder of AgeBantage. And she has this rare ability to make genetics feel empowering instead of intimidating. Because here's the truth you can't change your genes, but you can change how they behave. This episode is about owning your next decade. It's about understanding your body instead of fighting it. And it's about realizing that nearly 50 isn't an ending. It's a recalibration. Because fuck, we're nearly 50. And isn't it amazing that we still get to evolve? Dr. Mary Revelis is a longevity doctor, founder of Age Bantage, and an award-winning academic researcher. She's cringing. Who bridges microbiology, genetics, and the science of aging. She's a Dean's Award recipient for outstanding PhD thesis titled, this is a very long title, Mary, The Genetic and Epigenetic Factors Associated with Human Exceptional Longevity and Successful Aging. Her research explored why some people not only live longer but age better, uncovering what their genes, environment, and everyday choices can teach the rest of us about resilience and vitality. No, don't. It's great. Before launching AgeVantage, Mary spent years in labs and research centres from studying antibiotic resistance in South Africa to investigating healthy brain aging at UNSW's Centre for Healthy Brain Aging. Wow, who would have thought that it was called that? She's taken all that science and translated it into clear, human-centered approach that helps people see the total view of their health. What I love about Mary is that she makes complex simple. She's not the kind of doctor who hides behind jargon or quick fixes. She's deeply curious about why we feel the way we do, physically, mentally, and emotionally. And she's passionate about helping people take control of their health span, not their lifespan, which is what I love. This episode is for anyone who's ever thought, I don't feel like myself anymore, but I don't know where to start. We also talk about genes, hormones, stress, energy, and the science of aging well, but also about self-awareness, agency, and the art of taking responsibility for your own evolution. Dr. Mary, welcome to Fuck I'm Nearly 50.

Dr Mary Revelas 4:43

Thank you for having me, Dom.

Dom Hind 4:46

If someone met you at a dinner party, how would you introduce yourself?

Dr Mary Revelas 4:52

Um, I'm not allowed to use the word doctor.

Dom Hind 4:54

No, you don't, you can't. Look, for you, I you can.

Dr Mary Revelas 4:57

You can. Um I would say that I am passionate about helping you live better for longer. My focus is on health span and joy span. Oh, joy span. Joy span. So I want to add life to your years, not just years to your life. And there was this quote by this amazing sent uh octogenarian that I used during my speeches or during my PhD. And her quote was the aim is to die young as late as possible.

Dom Hind 5:31

Yeah, I love that.

Dr Mary Revelas 5:32

I love that too. And she was dressed, she would, she just looked phenomenal when she said it. And I loved it and it stuck with me. And I use it in every single one of my presentations. And I'm particularly passionate about women in midlife because I want them to have clarity, energy, and I want them to feel younger than what's on their birth certificates.

Dom Hind 5:52

Yeah, I think that's great. I love Health Span and Joy Span together. Together, sorry.

Dr Mary Revelas 5:56

There's been a great um book release, Joy Span. I forget the lady, the author's name, but it's about how she helped her mother focus on joy.

Sleep And The Longevity Basics

Dom Hind 6:06

Joy. And joy is where it is all at. Okay, let's get into the questions. What's one moment in your own life where your body gave you a massive wake-up call?

Dr Mary Revelas 6:23

Oh, that's easy. Definitely during my um PhD, I was raising a young family, and we all know that that's happy chaos.

Dom Hind 6:32

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 6:32

My body was so dehydrated, and all I was doing was giving it caffeine. Um movement didn't really exist in my world. Yeah. And I remember at the end, at the end of my research, you have to synthesize everything together and to make a cohesive into this dissertation. It was late at night. I was sitting at my desk and I was so wired, but I was exhausted. And then I was just like, what am I doing? I'm reading about the science of longevity whilst actively compromising my own health. And I've done a stellar job of it. I was like, time for change. I think it was like when I was writing the summary, I was like, oh, I'm not doing that. I said, I'm not doing that. I'm not doing this. And did you start doing it though? I did. It was at that it I had a light bulb moment, I suppose, because it was it was at my desk.

Dom Hind 7:27

Yeah, and you weren't practicing what you were literally or researching.

Dr Mary Revelas 7:32

Uh no, definitely not. It was chaos. It was chaos. And what was the first thing you did? Um, I turned off my laptop because it was late. Yeah. Um, and then I went to bed, I got a good night's sleep, and the next day I incorporated some movement, and then I sat down and I took some time to reflect uh to what's how I'm going to readjust because it wasn't working.

Dom Hind 7:56

Is sleep really important for you?

Dr Mary Revelas 7:59

Sleep is one of the most important things you can do for yourself. So one of the signs of Alzheimer's disease is um a path is amyloid beta. It's like this protein plaque in your brain. If you have a bad night's sleep, it increases your chance of amyloid in your brain by 4%. Wow. So think of that now when you had kids. Yeah, yeah. Think of a shift worker. Ah, yes.

Wellness Trends Worth Avoiding

Dom Hind 8:27

Like so it's a big thing. Huge. Okay. I'm trying to get better at sleep. I really am. It's one of my things. 2026 sleep. Sleep hygiene. Um, I know what your answer is going to be to this one, but you've seen so many health trends. Which ones make you roll your eyes the most?

Dr Mary Revelas 8:49

Oh my word. Dom, definitely peptide stacking, peptide therapy. Yeah. Now I just want to classify GLP1 agonists. I'm not talking about that. I'm not talking about Azempic. They've been through human um clinical trials. Yeah. I'm talking about every time I open Instagram, there's some wellness or longevity promising women that they can feel better and the brain fog will lift and start peptide stacking. And I even had a DM from a prominence clinic in Double Bay. Um so there's things like BB, BBC157, TB500. Weirdest names. Just yeah, so difficult to remember. M TOC, and they are they promise things for like mitochondrial health, joint repair, yeah, anti-aging, and all a peptide is is it's a short chain of amino acids. But those gray area clinical peptides, they haven't gone through not one human clinical trial.

Dom Hind 9:52

Lots of rat trials.

Dr Mary Revelas 9:53

Rat trials, I think in Croatia.

Dom Hind 9:55

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 9:56

I have to confirm that. But from memory, I think there was just actually like one. And look, I'm excited about it. I'm not saying that it's not there, possibly it could be there, but let's just design the study, make sure that there aren't any after effects, make sure that it's safe because what you're getting for ordering is not regulated. So it is a massive no.

Dom Hind 10:17

Okay.

Dr Mary Revelas 10:18

Actually, can I add another thing? Yeah, yeah, go on. I have a pet peeve. Yeah. And I don't know, because this is a marketing background, but um, I'm sure I'm guilty of using the term biohack.

Dom Hind 10:29

Yeah, yes.

Dr Mary Revelas 10:30

But I remember I was listening to a podcast by Steve Bartlett, and he was interviewing um this one of the state's most prominent defense lawyers. Oh, yes. And they were talking about the art of conversation and the power of words, and then I thought about the word biohack, and it just irritates me now immensely. I think it's an insult to the complexity of the human body. It's just they're just trying to sell women a shortcut. You cannot hack your way to health. You have to understand your body, you have to support your body, you have to work with your body, and you have to do the work daily.

Dom Hind 11:04

Oh, I love hearing that because biohack, it just makes me go. It's clever. Whoever came up with the city. Oh, it is very great from a marketing background. It is amazing, but I think you you the way that you put it is there's no shortcut. There's no shit. You actually do have to do the work or do understand your body. You have to do the work. It's probably gonna make me unpopular, but you have to do the work. But that's what your, you know, what your background is. So was there a time that you realized you were doing everything right, but still not feeling great?

Dr Mary Revelas 11:39

Well, I don't think how life goes that you can always do everything right, but definitely, so that night at my desk when I was writing up, I did change a lot of things. Um, and one of the things I changed actually, because we were speaking about earlier. Have you heard of the term chronotype? So chronotype is when somebody says they are morning, um right, sorry, morning person or night. So that's actually got a genetic basis. There's a group of clock genes, and they are responsible for like your circadian rhythm, the onset of sleep and the duration of sleep. And I'm actually a morning person. So when I put the kids to bed and I was doing work at night, it didn't work for me. So I I changed that and it helped me tremendously. So you can actually tell that from your genes. You can. There's a few clocks, one per three. There's another one I can't remember. I think it's SIP one. The names are quite complicated too. But there's also interactions. Um, yeah.

Dom Hind 12:42

Wow.

Dr Mary Revelas 12:43

That's interesting. It's so interesting. And then actually, I've got another variant. Have you heard of MTHFR? It might be popular with a lot of nutritionists and naturopaths.

Dom Hind 12:52

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 12:52

I know it sounds like an expletive.

Dom Hind 12:54

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 12:56

But MTHFR is a gene name. It encodes this protein, which stands for methyl tetrahydrofolate reductase, very mouthful. Um, but basically what that does is it converts folate in your body to um homocysteine and methionine.

Dom Hind 13:14

Yes.

Dr Mary Revelas 13:15

And my variant doesn't function as well. So I simply switch that by making sure I have a lot of dark leafy green vegetables in my diet and I take methylated B vitamins. And if I'm really desperate, I've had injectable vitamin um B12 uh vitamins as well.

Dom Hind 13:33

Right.

Dr Mary Revelas 13:34

So it's like little, I have those. I think the chronotype was the biggest thing for me though.

Dom Hind 13:39

Yeah, just yeah, turning into a morning person. Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 13:42

Well, I do my best work in the morning. So if I haven't done it, it's not happening at night.

Chronotype And Useful Gene Tweaks

Dom Hind 13:48

Um, okay, let's rewind a bit. You began your academic journey in South Africa studying microbiology and antibiotic resistance. What drew you to that?

Dr Mary Revelas 14:00

Um well, growing up in South Africa, I saw how infectious diseases shape communities. And um I suppose microbiology just gave me a lens into the invisible world which drives disease. So it's funny how you'll never forget the simple things. My first practical at university, so I just started with a Bachelor of Science because I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. And they offer you microbiology term one, term two genetics, biochem. Um, and then not AI, we called it bio something else. Biohacking, no. And the first um, the first practical for microbiology, it was so simple, but it was so interesting. We were in pairs and they gave us a little nutrient A Gardesh, and they said, go to the bathroom and touch a surface, any surface. You want to be brave and touch the toilet seat square for your life. You want to touch the door handle, do it. Um, and then don't wash your hand, come back and do a little streak on the plate.

Dom Hind 15:03

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 15:04

And then go into a control where you touch the same spot and you wash your hands. And we incubated it and we see what grew the next day. And I will I'll never forget the simplicity of washing hands because I saw the difference.

Dom Hind 15:18

Yeah. Wow. I need to make sure my son listens to this.

Dr Mary Revelas 15:23

Oh, you could do it, you can do it at home with him. Okay. Uh fun I don't look generally uh in women's cubicles, the cleaner's cubicle tends to be the first one. Oh, really? Okay, great. That's it.

Dom Hind 15:33

Um that's what I'm going to now.

Dr Mary Revelas 15:35

I always go to the first one. I don't know, it's sunk in since then. Right. And then I suppose antibiotic resistance. Um, it was during the HIV AIDS epidemic.

Dom Hind 15:44

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 15:45

And a lot of people were dying, not from AIDS, but because they were immunocompromised. So they were dying from secondary infections. And I looked at tuberculosis and I was just amazed at how this little microorganism could outwit a drug.

Dom Hind 16:00

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 16:00

And it just, I don't know, it's showed me what's not giving up is.

Dom Hind 16:06

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 16:06

And adapting.

Dom Hind 16:09

Yeah, that's okay. That's a amazing way of doing it. Or thinking about it. Um at some point you shifted your focus to aging and longevity, earning your PhD. Um, what inspired the transition?

From Microbiology To Longevity Science

Dr Mary Revelas 16:26

Um well, I think there's two answers to that question. Um firstly, from a personal point of view, my husband Peter's been very good with his grandparents. Like he would always go and spend time with them and he'd always uh phone them whenever he could. His grandmother on his maternal side suffered from dementia. And I remember one Sunday we were at home and he had phoned to speak to her, and she didn't recognize him straight away. And he was explaining, it's Peter, yeah, yeah. And his heart was broken. And I remember him saying, you know, you you kind of lose that person in increments. And I haven't had um on my side of a family, I haven't had any dementia. So it was my first sort of exposure to that. We've had other things, we've got cardiovascular risk and cancers. And then um when I got here, I couldn't work because of my visa constraints. So I thought it would be great to do a PhD because then I could still stay current and then kind of upskill because I didn't have a job to go back to um after maternity leave. So I went online and then I started just researching and I came across the Center for Healthy Brain Aging, who, by the way, do you know our senior Australian of the year, um, prof Henry Bode, I don't think I pronounced he's um the co-founder. Oh wow. Yeah, so I was very proud to see his name up there. So he I started it with Professor Satch. And then I just emailed them and I went in for a few meetings, and they had a few um projects available. And then I just, I don't know, there was some that were quite heavily stats focused. I was like, no. And I just that's why I just wanted to see why some people age with vitality and youth and others fade away.

Dom Hind 18:19

Yeah, and what like is there a key?

Dr Mary Revelas 18:23

There's lots of things you can do. Actually, I know Prof. Brodete's on a mission um this year to raise awareness for dementia. He says that he we need a slip-slop slap equivalent for dementia because a lot of the risk factors are modifiable.

Dom Hind 18:40

And dementia starts early on because of the impacts or the way that you're living earlier in your life, doesn't it? Like it is something that doesn't just happen. It's a long-term impact or effect.

Dr Mary Revelas 18:53

Dementia is like the umbrella term, and underneath dementia, you get like Alzheimer's disease, you get Lewy body dementia, you get Parkinson's dementia, you get vascular dementia. But dementia is a disease of midlife with symptoms only appearing later on by your 60s or your 70s. So exactly what you said, midlife is not um, it's a great time for reset.

What Genetics Really Explains

Dom Hind 19:15

Yeah, right. Great. Just after like a knee surgery and a shoulder surgery, you start exercising again. Um you you received the Dean's Award for outstanding PhD thesis, which is amazing. Like it's unbelievable. What did you discover about why some people live so long and so well?

Dr Mary Revelas 19:39

That it's not just about genetics, it's also how your genes behave. But um, genetics definitely does play a role, and it's quite interesting. So, your first step in uh when you begin a PhD is to summarize what's currently known so you can find what's missing and you can um uh contribute new content. Um, so I performed this meta-analysis, which is a really big study. So, everybody around the world, whichever genes they associated with aging, you look at it and you do some stats and you see whether it is significantly associated with aging. So five out of the nine genes were associated with aging. Interestingly, your heritability of longevity is low, it's 7 to 15 percent. But twin studies show us that after the age of 65, that increases to 30%. Right. So that tells us that when you're young, your behaviors and your environment play a more predominant role, but something does kick in later on in life. We don't understand completely what it is, but there is a genetic basis. And then there have been like two other studies. There was a New England centenarian study and an Okinawan centenarian study, and they showed that if you had a sibling that reached 100 years of age, you were twice as likely as the next person to reach that. Oh, wow. So your genes definitely play a role. We just haven't managed to understand the mechanisms, I supp I suppose, as yet fully.

Dom Hind 21:14

Okay. Wow. Okay. So what I mean, if lifestyle is a factor for helping you live a better health span and a have a better joy span, are there three things that you can actually go, make sure you're doing this, make sure you're doing that, make sure you're doing this?

Dr Mary Revelas 21:35

Um, it's lots of things because aging is cumulative, it compounds. So I love that.

Dom Hind 21:42

It is, it does compound. And it it's interesting. Even now I go, which is why I stopped running. I need to think of my 80 year old body. Yes or my 80 year old self because what I do today actually impacts myself down the track.

Dr Mary Revelas 21:55

I love that well, Danton. Hey plus There's lots, there's lots of things that we can do. Um lifestyle choices, sleep, uh uh diet, exercise.

Dom Hind 22:08

What about alcohol?

Dr Mary Revelas 22:10

Alcohol is a no generally, but you can't negate so let's try and talk about joy span. Yeah, yeah. If you're meeting a friend and you're having one aproil split spritz and you're catching up with your best friend, I think that negates Yeah, yeah, okay. You know, because there's that interaction.

Dom Hind 22:27

But it's not to excess.

Dr Mary Revelas 22:29

No.

Dom Hind 22:29

Okay. Not that I drink, but just for anyone listening. Okay. Your research at the Center for Healthy Brain Aging, which I think it that's like that that would be just fascinating to see. It looked at genes, lifestyle, and environment uh over time. What did that teach you about what really influences uh the way that we age?

Exercise As Brain Fertiliser

Dr Mary Revelas 22:57

Um again, that it's cumulative, so it's your genetic makeup, but your genes play a bigger role later on in life. And it's other things on how we can express those genes, choices that we make with our food, with our exercise. Exercise is the most bang for your back when it comes to anti-aging. Because when you exercise, you release these myokines.

Dom Hind 23:23

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 23:24

Um, one specifically like irisin and IL6 goes, it transfer, it goes through the blood brain barrier, crosses the blood-brain barrier, and it activates another gene called BDNF, which is brain-derived neurotropic factor. Yeah. This is like fertilizer for your brain. And the best way we know to tell your body to express it is through exercise.

Dom Hind 23:45

And is that hardcore cardio exercise or is it just anything that gets your heart rate off?

Dr Mary Revelas 23:51

So I believe variety, I think you need to hit everything. So not just um, look, they definitely zone five VO2 max training. Definitely there's um studies with strength training as well. But I think you you have to take a step back and look at everything holistically because you need your lean muscle mass, you need strong bones, you need mobility and flexibility. So I don't think there's I don't think it's just one thing. I think you have to split it up and hits everything.

Dom Hind 24:23

Yeah. Um, it was fascinating. I did a DEXA scan a couple of months ago, and it was great just to be able to go. I didn't realise about bone density, and thank goodness mine's actually okay, but bone density sort of topped out at 30s, and then you're left with whatever you've set yourself up with for the rest of your life.

Dr Mary Revelas 24:43

Bone density, you must read uh Dr. Von der Rice. Um, and she's got a book Unbreakable and she's uh yes, that one, yeah.

Dom Hind 24:49

That one is yeah, I parents we need jumping. Yeah, I did uh because I always buy hope. Um, and I do have a rebounder at home. So buying hope. Maybe some pep plates too, but um peptides.

Dr Mary Revelas 25:05

No, peptides, Tom. Not until they're regulated.

Taking A Total View Of Health

Dom Hind 25:11

Um, you often talk about the total view of health. What does that look like for someone listening right now who feels stuck or overwhelmed?

Dr Mary Revelas 25:21

I think it's always very hard when you're stuck because you're in that position, but it's being able to take a break and take pause and step back and then seeing not just the symptoms, but seeing the patterns and the trends, and then try and joining the dots and understanding what your body needs as a whole, because it doesn't work in isolation.

Dom Hind 25:43

I totally agree with that right now. I'm feeling very like I've got to go back to basics for the next 48 years of my life based on knee surgery, shoulder surgery, eye surgery. Like I just feel like everything I need to take that total view and take a step back and start from the basics.

Dr Mary Revelas 26:02

Basics are the best. And especially like also I I know women feel dismissed a lot of the time when they go to the GP and they said their bloods are normal.

Dom Hind 26:10

Yeah. And I understand, but it is also finding a great GP as well.

Dr Mary Revelas 26:14

It's finding a great GP, but it's also, I think you also need to go in prepared. I agree. And I think you need to um take control of your own medical health dashboard and you need to go in and you need to say, right, okay, personally, my father's had a heart attack. So I want LPA and APOB testing with my lipid panel. We have cancer on my mum's side of the family. I want not just the general thyroid panel.

Dom Hind 26:38

You have to, I'm sure you How would someone how would a normal person know what to ask for?

Dr Mary Revelas 26:43

Just help use chat to just be able to say these are the types of things that if family history Well, family history, you kind of have an idea before, even if you don't have a genetic test, you kind of know what your mom or what your dad had or what happens in the family. And then just go and don't book a 15-minute appointment with your GP if you really want to delve in with it. I mean, they're also human, they also, it's their job, they're seeing so many people during the day. You can't expect the clinician to know Mary's here, oh Mary's dad has the you've got to be able to speak up for yourself and say, I'm worried about this, it's a stressful period of my life. Can we check? I don't know, inflammation markers.

Dom Hind 27:22

Yeah, I think that it is it's so important for you to own your own health. Like I literally just took all of my health records from Medicare, from my health, from every from all of the imaging and have just created one master summary so that I can actually go when a doctor says, What have you had done? What surgeries, when, what, and I can just go, the ego. I don't know how to do that.

Dr Mary Revelas 27:44

Everybody should do that. I haven't done that.

Testing That Guides Action

Dom Hind 27:46

I'll send you mine and you'll be like, or I'll send you the prompt and you can do it. Um how do you help people move from the information overload to clarity and action?

Dr Mary Revelas 28:02

Okay, so I try and simplify.

Dom Hind 28:04

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 28:05

Um, I've developed, so I'm very proud of my Greek heritage, and um, with agevantage, everything that I've developed has like a Greek word in it. So I've developed this agape framework, and agape is a Greek word for love.

Dom Hind 28:18

Okay.

Dr Mary Revelas 28:19

So I it goes, how do we activate what we have, guard it, absorb it, protect, and integrate. And then depending on the result or depending on what it is. So for example, I know everybody knows that VO2 Max is one of the greatest predictors of longevity, but what's not out there yet is that it's actually affected by your genetic heritability.

Dom Hind 28:39

Oh, really?

Dr Mary Revelas 28:40

40 to 60 percent. So you might be a high respondent, I might be a low responder, and then you might be getting fantastic results, and my results might not be that great, but at least you know, I need to worry about myself and stay in my own league and be like, it's fine, I'm still improving, but I might not be able to get there.

Dom Hind 28:59

It's interesting because even like from a VO2 max perspective, I've got like mine's quite good, but my heart resting heart rate is so high as well. And it's always I always joke with Justin saying I've got a budgy heart because it just it just beats all the time. I'm just yeah, it just constantly goes. But I'm like, you know, the one way of getting your VO2 up is by reducing your resting heart rate. And it's like it's just me.

Dr Mary Revelas 29:25

I think it's hard for women in general because I think I don't know, my heart rate variability score is woeful and my wearable. Yeah. If what I struggle with the most, but I think I don't know, we've just been trained to be in parasympathetic mode. So we're always under stress and we're always on the go, and there's always something to do, and kids always need something. Yeah, always like go, go, go. So I understand why the heart rate is on, okay, what are we doing?

Dom Hind 29:54

Um, so with your doing your the the five things, what do you actually do? So what tests do you actually need to go? So when someone comes to see you, what do you get them to do?

Dr Mary Revelas 30:08

So as simple as swap and then we send it off to the lab four to six weeks, and then we get a whole lot of genetic information. If they have a DEXA scan, that would be great. Yes. Um, a DEXA scan VO2 Max would be great as well. And grip strength would be also great. And then um I talk to them because everybody will have different strengths and weaknesses. So you have to maximize your strengths and work on your weaknesses.

Dom Hind 30:35

Group strength is one that I'm just I'm terrible.

Dr Mary Revelas 30:38

I had um when I had kids with the Pram, I've had cortisone injections in my wrists.

Dom Hind 30:43

Ah, right.

Dr Mary Revelas 30:44

So my grip strength isn't what are you doing to uh I'm trying to hang. So when I take my kids to Lyme Park, I'm on the monkey bar. And I'm like, go me, come. How long do you get? I haven't, I think my score wasn't great. I'd say 45 seconds, but I'm working on it.

Dom Hind 31:03

You know what? It's funny, I've just swapped gyms because I can't do strength training. I've literally got to go back to basics. And every time I leave the gym, I literally just hang on the bars in between the big gym bros, and I'm just there hanging. That's good. That's great. That's great. I do think they look at me and go, can you just get out of our space? But I don't care. Um, a lot of women hit their 40s and feel like their bodies have betrayed them. Their energy has gone, their sleeps all over the shop, the mood, the weight. How do you help them get back control?

Mindset Versus Biology In Midlife

Dr Mary Revelas 31:42

Um, through education and compassion. So knowledge is power and knowledge is agency. So when they come and speak to me, we unpack everything that's happening biologically. So hormones, inflammation, diet, perimenopause, because I think that once you understand it, it moves away from fear to empowerment. Yeah. And that as soon as it just takes a little bit of a change and then it has a knock-on effect, and then you get better.

Dom Hind 32:12

Yeah, and I think it that you are so true. The knowledge does help to open doors and help you to see and have an awareness of what you should and you shouldn't be doing as well.

Dr Mary Revelas 32:22

Because I think it's just natural we always fear the unknown.

Dom Hind 32:25

Yes. Yep. And how much of what we experience at this stage is biology versus belief?

Dr Mary Revelas 32:33

I love that question. I love that question. Okay, so biology definitely sets the scene, but mindset directs the story. Um amazing. There was a study in super ages. There's a part in your brain, I'm just trying to see if I can remember the name. People have dubbed it the willpower gene. And in these super ages, it's larger. And you know how it grows? It grows when we do hard things. So when you don't give up and when life throws problems at you, and it's how you deal with those adversities, and how you get up and dust yourself off growth mindset, it's probably in the growth mindset. Yeah. Um, I I'll put in the notes after the names escape me now. I think it's a and oh no, I forgot any.

Dom Hind 33:18

Anyway, you know what? I think the more important thing is it's that resilience and grit to get back up and do it. Definitely.

Dr Mary Revelas 33:25

Mindset, mindset matters. And even if it's just daily, even if it's like trying your best to hold the plank, and even if you collapse the two seconds before, as long as you could try the next day, yeah. Just as long as you keep on pushing yourself.

Prevention And Putting Women First

Dom Hind 33:39

Yeah. Okay, good. I like that. Uh, what's the biggest myth about aging well that you wish could be debunked forever?

Dr Mary Revelas 33:48

That it's about looking younger and that it's about a number on a scale. So when you said you went for a DEXA scan, you made my heart happy because I'd rather know your bone mineral density, I'd rather know your lean muscle mass. I don't care about the kilograms.

Dom Hind 34:03

Yeah, oh, I don't care about the kilograms either. I just want to make sure that it's all in right proportions. And I was really worried just about the bone density.

Dr Mary Revelas 34:11

But I think I don't know, growing up, we were taught to care about the kilograms, and I don't want um, I've got a little girl and I don't want to I want them to worry about the right things.

Dom Hind 34:23

Oh, and being strong. And um I mean I've dealt with my mum having anorexia for 55 years, and it's horrific because all of that is about a number on the scale rather than it about her being healthy. Hope being healthy or strong. Strong. Yeah, which is what it's all about. Because I think the number on the scale, that would have a massive impact on your health span as well, and your mindset with that, rather than, you know.

Dr Mary Revelas 34:51

Well, there's a bit of that's a bit tricky because there's um there's published papers that say caloric restriction helps extend. Oh really? Yes. But that that I would argue and say where's the where's the joy span in this? Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Life is messy. Yeah. So you have good days, bad days.

Dom Hind 35:15

Yep. Um, which at the everyone is talking about longevity at the moment.

Dr Mary Revelas 35:21

And it's become when I started studying, nobody knew what I was doing. So I did it part-time while having kids, and everybody's like, What? Now there's like a longevity buzzword. You can't open up Instagram without there's a wellness influencer talking about biohacking every two minutes. I know, but so you really are the original longevity researcher. I don't know if I'm the original I'd say the rules.

Dom Hind 35:41

One of the Prof. David Sinclair. Yeah, probably. Probably. But you have been doing it a long time, and it hasn't just been something that you've added on to your bowl of achievements or your string of things that you're doing. It is something that has been ingrained in really everything that you've been doing. Yeah. You're like, yep, uh, what do I need to say? Okay. Um, so you are now opening a new chapter for you. Um what draws you to that now?

Dr Mary Revelas 36:18

That's um that's quite difficult to talk about because um so my mum's recently been diagnosed with cancer. And um longevity, I think Dr. Peter Atia talked about it most in his book. So longevity medicine explains how there was medicine 2.0, which is where we wait for the heart attack to happen and it's all reactive. Longevity medicine is about, you know, understanding your genetics, looking at your biomarkers, mitigating your risk. So I think you can sum it up by saying it's preventative and it's proactive. And what I wouldn't give um to go back for, you know, a screening test, because prevention is really priceless. And I think um, especially for women, you know, you always put yourself last because you're busy. Women are actually leading the longevity race, but we spend more time of that um suffering chronic disease and disability. Apparently, we don't complain as much and we just get things done. Isn't that like the grit coming out again? We make um the appointments for everybody else. And I'm actually like I'm frustrated myself as well because Peter and I are overdue for our skin cancer checkup. Oh my goodness, man. I know, I know, and I got um my children spend a lot of time in the sun, and normally the dermatologist never wants to. I want the dermatologist to assess each of my kids properly so I can take them. So I had two appointments and I've gotten them for my kids in April, and I'm like, Pete and I also need appointments. But it's on my list, and I will do it, and I'm not gonna leave it. But that's a perfect example.

Dom Hind 37:59

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 38:00

But it's hard, I don't know. With women, it's just you always you never prioritize yourself.

Dom Hind 38:06

Do you know what? It that used to be the case for me as well. But when I started owning my medical history and my medical record, I now make it a priority.

Dr Mary Revelas 38:18

I think I need to learn that from you.

Dom Hind 38:21

Yeah, like well, because if you're not healthy, you can't take you can't take care of everyone else. Yeah. So it has to be a priority. And I'm going to make you after we leave here.

Dr Mary Revelas 38:35

Yeah, as I made the book, I knew, and I I went, I got my referral and I was like, yes, and I'm like, but it is hard, like you do have to do the referral.

Dom Hind 38:42

But I mean, I always go and see my doctor who I love, uh, she's the best, in like the first week of January. And I'm like, okay, first week of January, I need all of these referrals for all of these doctors that you've referred me to. I also need to get all of my bloods done and anything else you need, think that I need to get done. And we do it all then, so that then I'm set up for the rest of the year.

Dr Mary Revelas 39:05

Well then I think I need to. January is a good time to do it.

Dom Hind 39:08

Well, it's not that busy and everyone's away. So if you are here, it's a perfect time to be doing it.

Dr Mary Revelas 39:13

True.

VIOS Framework For Daily Longevity

Dom Hind 39:14

There you go. Um, so longevity sounds really intimidating or elitist, or actually, you know what? I think biohacking just sounds very elitist now. Oh, how can everyday people make longevity and good health span and joy span achievable?

Dr Mary Revelas 39:36

Okay, so you have to fix your fundamentals. Um, and I've got another little acronym, a Greek one. Yeah. So it's um VIOS, it means life. So B stands for brain fitness.

Dom Hind 39:49

Uh-huh.

Dr Mary Revelas 39:49

So your brain's got like four cognitive domains. It's got um executive function, which is basically like the CEO and structures and reorganizes everything. It's got processing speed, it's got um attention, you know, as you get older. If you want to, do you lower the volume on the radio so that you can reverse into a car park? Yes.

Dom Hind 40:11

Not yet. I turn up the volume when the kids are in the car so I can't hear them.

Dr Mary Revelas 40:16

Is that uh what else? Do I say processing speed memory, attention, and executive function?

Dom Hind 40:22

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 40:23

So ideally, you want to be training your brain as well. I actually bought a brain grain. Okay, go on. Let's do it. Okay, let's do it.

Dom Hind 40:32

So hang on, and what does so training your brain, how do you do that every day? And is that like luminosity, like all those things, or is it can I do like Seduca or like what is training your brain every day?

Dr Mary Revelas 40:44

All of that helps. There's a study, um, there's published studies for reading and writing. So we uh writing's actually huge, and that's uh quite a big worry for our children because they have a lot of online things. Um I think the study was in Japan, in the Japanese centenarians, it sh it was for writing. And and just as in journaling or just writing? Just writing, creative writing. Writing, because we aren't writing anymore. Yeah, right. It just fires up different neurons. Um, because every it's like your retirement fund, every sort of little thing you do, it's a training it for later in life. Um, what else is there? Um, even just novelty. So it loves if you not everybody can go out and has the time to learn a new hobby or learn a new language, but if you even just taking a different route home and seeing something different or changing your walking route is good for you.

Dom Hind 41:42

Yeah, wow, that's actually really interesting, isn't it? Like every yeah, or starting a podcast or something. Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 41:47

So well done. This is actually, I think they call it it's the stroop challenge. Okay. So it's quite, let's see. I think um you've got to say the first time, you've got to say uh the word and not the colored cardboard.

Dom Hind 42:02

Okay. Okay, you ready? So what colour am I saying the word? You're saying the word saying the word. Okay, blue, green.

Dr Mary Revelas 42:08

What you're faster than I could turn.

Dom Hind 42:10

I can't even read that. Does that say yellow? Yellow. Okay, black.

Dr Mary Revelas 42:14

Well done.

Dom Hind 42:15

I'm too slow. Oh, I can't even. Does that say red? Red. Yeah, okay, great.

Dr Mary Revelas 42:20

Okay, now you've got to say, now you've got to say the colour of the cardboard, not the word.

Dom Hind 42:24

Okay, red, yellow, purple, white. Oh, come on, Mary.

Dr Mary Revelas 42:31

I know. Green. Well done. I was gonna say next you need to say, um, then you can improve this each time. You can say the in colour, and then you can say odd and even. But clearly I'm not as and then you keep on building. Okay, right. And then now you say like these um numbers, but you say them backwards.

Dom Hind 42:49

Okay.

Dr Mary Revelas 42:50

So 56 is 65. 822?

Dom Hind 42:55

228.

Dr Mary Revelas 42:56

741.

Dom Hind 42:58

147.

Dr Mary Revelas 42:59

I'm too slow for rotating this. My skills, that's 2080.

Dom Hind 43:04

2080, is it? It is 82. Uh two, hang on, because I can't see because my eyes are I have to do.

Dr Mary Revelas 43:12

So you are 80 would be 82.

Dom Hind 43:14

2080. Oh no, an 80. Yeah, it'd be 820, 802. 2080, because you don't say the zero. You don't say the zero. Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 43:25

3,764.

Dom Hind 43:28

4,670. What's that first letter?

Dr Mary Revelas 43:31

Three.

Dom Hind 43:32

Three?

Dr Mary Revelas 43:32

Well done. Um, so there's actually um in an ideal world uh where, you know, like elite athletes like Formula One drivers and tennis players, like they have gyms where they're working on their physical fitness, but then they have to do dual tasking with um a ball?

Dom Hind 43:53

Is that like where they use the ball?

Dr Mary Revelas 43:54

With the ball. Like they'll say you've got to maybe only hit the red light bulbs coming up on the wall. Uh yes, where they're on that screen and they're there playing that. Or if we did this now but we had to be lunging, like it would be a lot more difficult if you were lunging and you were like blue, blah. Not just sitting down, it would. Um okay. I stands for inputs. Um inputs uh is just whole foods, I suppose. Yes. Some pro Mediterranean whole food.

Dom Hind 44:22

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 44:22

Output would be your exercise. Yes. And S would be what you're gonna work on this year, your sleep and social connections. Okay. You don't need social connections.

Dom Hind 44:34

But you know what, sleep is hard because I get up so early in the morning to go to gym before you get the kids up from school, because it's really the only time for me. If I'm not going to bed at 9:30, which doesn't happen often. It needs to happen often. Why is it not happening often? Oh, just because I don't know, just things to do. Yeah, okay. I think it I just need to set leave the things to do.

Dr Mary Revelas 44:56

Yeah. You need to look at your priorities because your brain needs to hit different phases. It needs that deep sleep. They call it the gymphatic. Um, it's when it like, in essence, it takes out of it takes the trash out. Uh so it's clearing your brain out. I always like I tell my kids go sleep. Yes. It's good for you. Okay, good.

Dom Hind 45:18

Um, and I guess my next question is probably gonna be you're gonna tell me one of them is gonna be sleep better. Um, if we all did just three things differently after 45, what would they be?

Dr Mary Revelas 45:30

Number one would be sleep. Yes, thanks, Mary. Sleep, but like it's your longevity lever. Yeah, number two would be um strength train. Yes. So there's actually a study which was undertaken here in Australia and it's been referenced quite a lot.

Dom Hind 45:44

Oh, yes, I know that one.

Dr Mary Revelas 45:46

Lift long. Yeah. So they took a group of um 65-year-old women that had osteoporosis and they made them strength train two to three times a week and they actually increased their bone mineral density. So even if your DEXA scan, um your dexter scan you said was okay or average? No, no, it was great. Oh, great. That's great. So even now you get your DEXA scan, you still lift heavy because you're increasing your bone mineral density. Well, lift heavy in six months. Yeah. Uh and the third thing I think would be to get curious about your genetics because then it just gives you a little inside information.

Dom Hind 46:22

Yeah, I think and I think genetics, one of the things that scare like uh there has been a lot of talk of is getting your genes tested and then worrying about the data.

Dr Mary Revelas 46:34

Yeah. You can request to have it. I was quite it took me so long, actually, because I was very um uh my standards were quite high for the laboratory because I've worked in a lab before and I wanted to make sure it was I it had all the accreditations that um privacy, they don't sell your data. You can request to have your data destroyed afterwards.

Dom Hind 46:56

Right.

Dr Mary Revelas 46:57

Um but yes, uh because people sometimes ask me if I've tested my kids and I haven't yet, actually, because I think I don't know, I think a part of me see sees it as it's their choice to make.

Dom Hind 47:13

Yeah, right.

Dr Mary Revelas 47:14

Although another part of me thinks that in the future it'll just be what happens when you have a baby at the hospital. Like you know, your blood type, it got your genetic information as well.

Dom Hind 47:24

And your genes obviously don't change over time, or do they?

Dr Mary Revelas 47:28

No, well, you I try and explain you you're born with your genes. Yes. So if you are born with an inherit an inherited disorder, then you have a mutation on a certain gene, and this is the disease that you have. The genes that we're looking at are all of the stuff, the all of these studies have noticed um that this variant is associated with this ju uh disease. So it's looking at your risk. So it says that you are at a higher risk compared to the average person at developing diabetes. Right, okay. But it's not inherited. You can do that type of testing, but it's just two different forms of testing. Okay.

Dom Hind 48:11

And it does that mean that at least if you know, you can take those steps to make sure that it minimizes it or so. Yeah, okay. Yeah. Which is not a bad thing. It comes back to that knowledge is power again.

Dr Mary Revelas 48:23

And I mean, I don't know, you you follow a recipe before you start cooking. You do you?

Dom Hind 48:30

Maybe you maybe you do I'm like halfway through chat. Uh, what do I need to do? You don't, um, you don't just get on the road and start driving. Like Yeah, yeah. You need a plan.

Dr Mary Revelas 48:43

It's just minimizing your risk. You're not gonna go swimming if you can't swim. Yeah.

Switching Off And The Power Of Friends

Dom Hind 48:48

Unless you're on Bondi Bay. Um, how do you personally switch off and recharge? Oh my gosh, I struggle with that. That is what I have to work at the hardest. Um, you've got two things. You've got to prioritize you and you've got to learn how to switch off. Yeah, I can't. You've got a big year, Mary.

Dr Mary Revelas 49:10

My um, I I mentioned previously my heart rate variability is woeful. I think I'm on the bottom here. One of my gorgeous friends said, Come try yoga with me. Let me tell you yoga did not work. I was in downward dog, and I'm like, right, if I take the dog to the parlor, then I stop at Wheeze, and I guess the dog. Um I have okay, I've tried lately. Peter plays golf. Yes. So does my son. And on a Saturday, if we get the chance, if Saturday sports lines, yeah, we'll all go to the golf course and have lunch.

Dom Hind 49:42

Okay.

Dr Mary Revelas 49:43

And then um the kids are allowed on the golf course after half past three. So then we go and play the back nine, and then there's no phones. We're out in nature, it's pretty. And what I love about it is that every relationship gets some time. So eventually I have to drive the cart on the first hole and the last hole. I hope no one from the golf course is listening to me. Um, so then Catherine and I get to touch base if there's anything worrying her at school.

Dom Hind 50:10

Yeah, yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 50:11

Um, eventually Haralum Boss uh gets in the buggy with Catherine and they they fight or have a hard time. Um, Alan Kidd and I get to walk and chat, and then it's it's nice. I really I think that would be the one. And um the second thing is I really treasure my female friendships. And I think especially in midlife, you need to, I don't know, there's nothing like a good friend.

Dom Hind 50:38

Yeah. There if, yeah, you know what? It it does, it makes going through the shit so much easier when you've got someone you can talk to, or just go, I'm just not feeling it.

Dr Mary Revelas 50:50

Yeah, and it's like I suppose we all have to go through it. Like in the twin in your twenties and your 30s, you were out, you know, a lot of now you just want quality.

Dom Hind 50:57

Yeah, I think that is and the thing that I also think is you want experience as well. It's like you have to go and do things like go to the opera house tonight, or uh, you know, go and actually make memories with your friends rather than just doing the everyday.

Dr Mary Revelas 51:11

I think you have to schedule it in though, because if it's not in the calendar, it doesn't happen. So even with exercise classes, you just have to put it in the same way you schedule a meeting and you're like, nope, sorry, can't do it then.

Rapid Fire And Closing Takeaways

Dom Hind 51:21

Yeah, exactly. And it needs to be a priority to do that too. Um, what does health mean for you beyond test results?

Dr Mary Revelas 51:30

Oh, that's easy. It's definitely how you feel, definitely if you're happy, if you have clarity. Actually, there's another study.

Dom Hind 51:37

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 51:38

So this started in 1938 in Harvard. The only problem I have with it is that they didn't have women in Harvard at that time yet. So it was all started with men. I think um John F. Kennedy was originally in it. And it's the longest study on health.

Dom Hind 51:54

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 51:54

It's like the 80 plus study. And it later grew, it's incorporated their children and their offspring. And the number one factor that came out for if you have a healthy, happy life was not genes, was not epigenetics. Um, so your lifestyle factors, your exercise, your diet, and all of that. It was the strength and quality of your relationships. And I, yeah. It is I do think there's something to be said for that. And also, um, Prof. Bodretsi had organized a Living to 100 conference a few years ago. I I think I must have just started, I would have been like first year. And at the end, he had five um centenarians because we have our own, there's a Sydney centenarian study, and there's also an older Australian twin study, and I don't know where they came from, which study they came from, but they came onto the stage. And one woman, I'll never forget what she said, they were asking her about diets, and she has she survived the Holocaust, and she was explaining how I don't know how long she spent hidden in a room and how many days she hadn't eaten or something frightful. And she said, I will eat anything that sits still long enough on my plates. And I was just so you can't quantify everything. No, yeah. And then there was another man who played golf every Sunday with his son, and they had whiskey and a cigar.

Dom Hind 53:24

So it's not just it's everything, and this is the whole thing. It is holistic. Like it is a holistic health actually is holistic, and it's not just what you put in your body, it's the environment that you're into.

Dr Mary Revelas 53:38

I do think it's what you put in your body because I think, but you know, that was her life experience because she went through such a traumatic event. I I've been lucky enough to not have to go through that.

Dom Hind 53:47

Yeah.

Dr Mary Revelas 53:48

Um, yeah.

Dom Hind 53:51

Interesting. Is there a daily ritual that makes you feel grounded?

Dr Mary Revelas 53:55

Um, calling my mom and I try and get morning sunlights and have my morning coffee and peace. Yeah. 60 to 90 minutes only after I've worked it up, though.

Dom Hind 54:09

Okay, uh, rapid fire questions. Supplement you swear by. Okay, there's five. Oh, okay, great.

Dr Mary Revelas 54:18

And fish oils. Yes. Vitamin D and with K3, so the three tells it to stay out of your arteries, NMN and magnesium.

Dom Hind 54:26

Okay, good. Doing all those. Um, most overrated health fad? Peptides. Peptides dom. Yeah. Midlife mood in one word. Fears. Great. If your body had a playlist right now, what's the first song?

Dr Mary Revelas 54:43

I think I've been interested, I've been influenced by my Swifty daughter. I'd probably say shake it off. But there's sometimes you can try your best, but your hormones and your moods are not playing along, and you just need to dance it off and forget it.

Dom Hind 54:57

Um, your dream dinner guest for conversations about aging.

Dr Mary Revelas 55:02

That would definitely be my late grandmother, my mother's mother now, because um shh, all of her ancient wisdom, we can now sort of explain the science behind it. And I just uh I'm a Codelian, I love her very much. We've had only one girl in the family for seven generations, so it was very special.

Dom Hind 55:23

Right. Nice. Um, what's one truth about health, aging, or levit longevity that people need to stop ignoring and start believing?

Dr Mary Revelas 55:35

Um to stop ignoring and start believing that you have the power to start now and change your trajectory.

Dom Hind 55:45

Yeah, but to actually start.

Dr Mary Revelas 55:47

Start. The hardest part is getting started.

Dom Hind 55:50

Yeah, it always is taking that first step because people get scared or find other things to do.

Dr Mary Revelas 55:57

Yes, procrastination. There's a part in the brain of that as well that's escaping me. No, no, no.

Dom Hind 56:04

Yes. It's also a fear trigger as well. If you uh procrastinate, it means that you are a little bit scared to actually do something. Okay, last question before we wrap. Okay. If I could try something before I'm 50, which is now only in two years, what would you recommend that I do?

Dr Mary Revelas 56:25

Oh, that's easy, but I think I'm gonna give you a biased answer. I'm gonna say, get curious about your genes. Yeah, I think I'm de I definitely after today, are we you can use it as a roadmap not just to survive but thrive.

Dom Hind 56:41

I think that is it. Survive but thrive. And biased though. No, no, no, but I think if you've you've been doing the research for so long, so and it is that roadmap, it does give you the knowledge so that you can live a better, healthier, healthier, fun, more joyous life. I think so. Okay, great. All right, Dr. Mary. Thank you for bringing science, honesty, and heart to this conversation. You make health feel less like homework and more like self-discovery. You've taken something as complex as genetics, which it really is, and aging, and turned it into a conversation about possibility and what we can be doing and what is actually in our control, no matter our age or how we are actually feeling. And what I love most is that you reminded us that longevity isn't about chasing youth or a number on a scale, it's about owning this season of life, our choices, our energy, our mindset, and giving ourselves permission to actually evolve. You showed that living well isn't about doing more, it's about having more fun and being more focused on our health and letting go of what doesn't matter and building habits that thrive and not just let us survive. So if you've been listening and thinking, I'm tired, I've tried everything, I don't know where to start, maybe today is the reminder or the push that it's not too late to start again, smarter, slower, and move in tune with yourself. So if you want to learn more about Dr. Mary's work at Age Vantage or generics, uh generics. Genetics, I'll link everything in the show notes. And if you've enjoyed this episode, share it with a friend who's ready to take the next step and make sure that they are learning more about themselves. Uh, because the conversations that we have like this help us shift what aging looks and feels like for all of us. Because fuck, I'm nearly 50, and isn't it amazing?