Marc Middleton: Combatting Ageism, Pro-Aging, and Longevity | HFYH #115

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (0:03)
Hi, I'm Dr. Vonda Wright, and this is HOT For Your Health. Join us for conversations on the bleeding edge of science, health, and culture as we bring you tech innovators, thought leaders, and the movers and shakers who are transforming science fiction into your new health reality.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (0:36)
Welcome back, everybody, to HOT For Your Health, where I talk to innovative people, scientists, physicians and movers and shakers. And today, I'm going to introduce you to Marc Middleton. Now, I have known Marc for more, a couple decades now, which is amazing to me. But I first met him in his role as founder and CEO of Growing Bolder, which is the leading voice in active lifestyles. Not only is he an innovative founder, but he has had an Emmy Award-winning career as a broadcaster. And to put his money where his mouth is, in 2006, I believe, you left broadcasting to develop this broadcasting technology, to tell the stories of how we can be healthy, vital, active, joyful, and really change the conversation about what it means to be Growing Bolder as we age. So, Marc, I'm so excited to have you here on HOT For Your Health.

**Marc Middleton** (1:42)
Well, thank you, Vonda. Yeah, I love thinking back about it, because we actually met when I sought you out. Yes, I was a sports anchor and a news anchor in Orlando. I got frustrated with the ageism in broadcasting, with the fact that we didn't want to produce any content that attracted older adults. We didn't want to produce any content after a while that celebrated the opportunity of aging. And before I left, I kind of started paying attention to everybody that was proposing a different and an alternative narrative to how we age. And I read about stuff that you were doing. And I was hired by the Lake Nona Impact Forum one year to interview, record interviews with all of their top keynote speakers. And I had just happened to look at the list. And there was Dr. Vonda Wright. So I sought you out because I wanted to chat with you. And we sat down and had a great conversation. And we've been friends ever since. So yeah, thank you. You know, Growing Bolder is, you know, I always say we're not idiots. We don't deny the reality of our mortality.
We don't present some Pollyannish view of aging. But we do choose to look at aging through a prism of opportunity and possibility instead of loss and limitation. And when you do that, and when you learn the power of mindset, when you learn the power that we all have to control the way we age, it gets pretty darn exciting.

**Dr. Vonda Wright** (3:13)
It really does. And I'm sure you have a lot to say about the way even aging is spoken about. You know, in some camps, we talk about it as longevity at all costs. At some camps like yours, you talk about opportunity and growing bolder, and it doesn't actually matter chronologically. And in some camps, they are firmly stuck in the anti-aging. How do you put that all together? What is their vocabulary that we can... that really describes the process as you've seen it, as you experience it? I certainly know how I've experienced it. You know, I'm closer to 60 than any other number. And listen, I see it as an opportunity myself. So what are your thoughts surrounding all this language? Because we cannot change a narrative if we don't have words for it, right?

**Marc Middleton** (4:06)
It's a great question. And to me, it's really pretty simple. And I've always really tried. You know, I always say that I want to be able to defend the ground that I stand upon. You know, from the beginning, we've thought very carefully about, you know, how we talk about aging, you know, pro-aging, anti-aging.
And, you know, I know I'm speaking to the choir, Vonda, when I talk to you, because you are one of the very few people who can translate the science and the technology and the common sense, you know, better than anybody. But, you know, older adults, it's the most diverse group, the most diverse demographic cohort that has ever existed. And there is no one solution for everybody. There is extreme illness, extreme disability, extreme morbidity, and extreme opportunity. And, you know, the way I talk about it is simply the fact that there are no guarantees. You're an idiot if you're looking for a guarantee. But, we do know science has backed it up. And the stories that we tell prove that we do have a large degree of control over how we age by the lifestyle choices that we make. And as you know, and as I love to say, I think the number one most important lifestyle choice that we make is our mindset about how we age. And if we make the right kind of lifestyle choices, we can dramatically age in a way that is different than our ageist culture has led us to believe. So we just tell a different story. And it's a story that we defend and back up with by sharing the stories of ordinary people. You know, we avoid the genetic super freaks. There are people out there. And, but you know, there's, we've interviewed more active centenarians than any media group in the world. And I say, prove me wrong if you can. And there's none of them that don't have a litany of issues that they face each and every day, but they still enjoy their life. And that's to me is where the game is played. You can't pretend that you're not gonna have challenges and they're not gonna have struggles, but how can you figure out a way to extract joy out of your daily life, no matter your current condition, your current age, your current opportunities, abilities with disabilities?