Princess Anne's secret to longevity as hardest working royal at 73
Princess Anne has once again been named the hardest-working royal, carrying out 457 engagements in 2023 – wow!
At 73, being so busy is no mean feat, and with the Princess Royal rarely taking a sick day, we wondered how she manages to stay so well while undertaking such a physical job, which sees her getting stuck into tree planting as well as meeting endless people each day.
The Princess certainly has ways she stays well, such as wearing gloves when she's shaking hands with people, but there could be another secret to her stamina and it comes in the form of weightlifting.
While Princess Anne has never spoken openly about her exercise routine, as a former Olympian (she competed in the 1976 Montreal Olympic Games), she likely trained hard and kept it up throughout her life, with weight training essential for staying well in midlife and beyond.
While we're not suggesting Princess Anne is bench pressing in the gym, adding gentle weight training could well be key to her stamina, as Inez Griffin, Senior Health and Wellbeing Physiologist at Nuffield Health explains: "The long-term, preventative benefits of strength training for your health and wellbeing are incredibly important.
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"Resistance training strengthens our muscles, and whilst this is happening the muscles are also pulling on the bones, stimulating them to maintain or improve their density and strength.
"This has a further knock-on effect in terms of our mobility, fracture risks and also reduces our risk of joint pain, which is more common as we age." This could explain why Anne always appears so nimble!
Weight training is also crucial in later life as it helps with heart health, Inez explains.
"For women in particular, our risk of heart disease increases after menopause, as hormonal changes mean our risk factors increase. After menopause, some women may experience changes in body fat distribution (more visceral fat), increased blood pressure, increased LDL (harmful) cholesterol and decreased HDL (protective) cholesterol.
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"Regular resistance training can help to reduce these risk factors, by lowering blood pressure, improving cholesterol profile and improving body composition."
Princess Anne appears to have a strong immune system, too. Over the years, she has rarely been reported as unwell – and even when her husband Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence caught Covid in December 2021, the royal didn't test positive – a testament to her strong immune system.
Her busy schedule could also be key to the royal staying well - the fact that Princess Anne is so active, regularly attending events, will help keep her joints supple and stop her muscles from seizing up.
Moving regularly is a key way to prevent muscle stiffness and tension, which are common as we get older.
That said, we hope Anne has some rest planned in for the festive period – she's certainly earned it after another busy year.
