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Many people discover the life extension philosophy after experiencing a life-threatening event or seeing a friend or family member face one. They decide to transform their diet, lifestyle, and supplement regimen to slow the aging process. But Scott Radow discovered life extension at an early age.

“When I was younger, I recall thinking that I was on this train in life that no one could ever wander from,” he says. “I thought I was being carried down a set of tracks that consisted of all the things I ‘should’ do in life, but I wanted to get off the train and look around. Of course, there are risks inherent in such a move, since opportunities are lost with the passage of time. The solution became obvious: I needed to tack on more years to the end of my life to be able to do everything I wanted to do. This realization led me to a long-term commitment to life extension.”

An Early Start
Scott’s parents subscribed to a few health and longevity newsletters over the years, so he was introduced to the principles of good health at an early age. He also “got off the train” to visit libraries and explore various interests, eventually focusing on health and nutrition, as well as engineering and product design. This gave him valuable advantages when he started to compete in sports.

Radow took up alpine ski racing at age 15 when his family moved from New York to Lake Tahoe, an area where most kids are skiing before they enter grade school. Despite the late start, his attention to diet, strength, and conditioning enabled him to place second in the slalom at the Nevada state finals during his senior year of high school. He continued to improve at the University of Nevada at Reno, and after graduating college, he competed on the US Pro Ski Tour. Radow then switched to Nordic ski jumping, entering and winning a regional competition in Lake Tahoe. Unfortunately, his tendency to jump beyond the landing zones took a toll on his knees. At the advice of his orthopedist, he retired from competition, though he continues to ski for fun.

Radow then took his competitive spirit into the business arena, where he developed business plans for several corporations. “A business plan establishes a strategy for the future,” he says. “I took equity positions in the companies I did plans for, so I was able to profit when the companies prospered and were sold. This helped me establish the financial independence and freedom to become an inventor.”

As an athlete, Radow was keenly aware of the kinesiology (the principles of mechanics and anatomy) of muscle movement. Additional research in the design of exercise equipment and applied physics led him to conclude that the exercise bikes and elliptical trainers then available on the market suffered from a fundamental design flaw. The flaw was that they failed to generate momentum as they pushed electrons through their electronic resistance mechanisms, thus forcing the user to increase the level of exertion required to complete a circular motion. In 2002, he received a US patent for a technology that duplicates the Newtonian laws of motion with a force feedback control system with corresponding Newtonian algorithms. Because momentum is maintained through each rotation of the pedals, users can exercise at higher intensity levels and therefore burn more calories. The method, called POWERbahn®, can be used with electronic exercise equipment, including treadmills and electronically controlled weightlifting machines. This technology was recently licensed to one of the leading manufacturers of exercise equipment.

Personal Life Extension Philosophy
Radow believes that the fundamental principles of life extension are the same for everyone, with three primary components: preventing premature aging, impeding natural age-related changes, and extending both life span and “health span.” This has led him to develop his own longevity “business plan.” He avoids lifestyle practices that age prematurely, while taking steps to counteract common age-related declines in hormones and other biomarkers. Radow also takes an engineering approach to beating the odds with respect to his own longevity.

“The human body is a system, and certain rules apply,” he says. “The most basic of these rules are analogous to the laws of thermodynamics, which state that energy can be added to a system and that all systems tend toward greater entropy (disarray) and lower energy over time. What can be derived from such fundamental laws is that you have to find ways to maintain order in your body and add energy to it. Orderliness can be rendered through exercise and by providing your body with vital nutrients. Energy can be added through nutrition and supplementation. But if you’re missing just one of the 60 or more chemicals that your body can’t make, or doesn’t make in sufficient quantity, you throw a wrench into the machine. That’s why Live Extension’s ‘12 Most Important Steps for Achieving Optimal Health and Longevity’ [see Directory of Life Extension Technologies] is a such great contribution to anti-aging.”

Radow knows that patience is a virtue in both business and life extension. Recognizing that it can take three to six months to see reasonable signs of improvement from a comprehensive anti-aging program, he cautions people not to have false expectations. Vitamins, minerals, proteins, and essential fats, for example, do not work like (or as fast as) drugs, but they do not have the negative side effects associated with drugs, either. He also believes that individual nutritional needs can vary based on disease condition and activity level, requiring proper attention to detail and, in some cases, blood testing to determine the proper level of supplementation.

Regarding hormone replacement, he believes that prudent blood testing is essential. Radow notes that hormone levels can vary widely among people of the same age, so blood concentrations of these hormones should be tested as early as possible. This enables you to determine your hormone levels relative to the reference ranges, and even more important, to avoid exceeding the the normal physiological ranges as you age. Exercise, nutrition, and sleep can affect blood levels of testosterone and other hormones, so all these factors must be taken into account when determining an appropriate regimen.

He also urges people to avoid overeating. “Caloric restriction has been shown to extend life, so you should never consume more than your caloric requirements,” he notes. “Body fat slows you down physically and negatively affects your health in several ways.” To determine the correct number of calories, you need to know your basal metabolic rate and activity level, and eat accordingly. At the same time, it is possible to consume too few calories. If you are losing body weight and do not have the energy to enjoy your daily activities, then you are overdoing caloric restriction. Keeping your body in a constant catabolic state is not the way to lengthen your life span; taken to extremes, such behavior could actually shorten your life span. The pursuit of balance and quality of life are key aspects of life extension, Radow emphasizes.

Supplementation is also important because it is difficult or even impossible to eat enough of certain foods. Most people, for example, cannot drink enough milk to get their calcium requirement. Not even the best of diets can provide enough of nutrients such as CoQ10.

But, our knowledge of nutrition and its role in wellness is constantly evolving, so it is important to keep up with the latest information as scientists discover it. “If you’re going to be committed to a philosophy of life extension, lifelong learning is a good prescript to follow,” says Radow. “Life Extension magazine is a great place to start. From there, you can try your hand at a few good books. I went back to school at night and took college classes in nutrition and basic sciences, just so I could get a good handle on this stuff. I met a lot of interesting young people, too, with whom I could share the importance of starting young on their longevity strategies. This lifelong commitment to life extension is truly the wave of the future.”

Rebel with a Cause
With a career that has included sports, corporate planning, and physics-related patents, it is obvious that Radow’s path in life has been far from ordinary. He has gotten “off the train” many times, explored different avenues, and has not only survived but also prospered from the experience.

“I realized I had a lot to do, and reasoned that I had to add years to my life to achieve what I wanted,” he says. “There’s still a lot of stigma associated with age, so I had to be confident that at the chronological age of 39, I could still be biologically like a man in his twenties and be able to do whatever I wanted when I became successful. So here I am at 39, ready for even more challenges. And with the ever-increasing understanding of the scientific mechanisms of aging and the tools for promoting longevity, I’m sure I’ll be able to savor many more experiences in my life.”

Scott Radow lives in Miami Beach, FL, and can be reached by e-mail at powerbahn@yahoo.com.