The 2023 study that put a clean number on the eight life habits for a long healthy life came from more than 719,000 U.S. veterans. People who adopted all eight habits by age 40 lived about 24 years longer for men and 21 years longer for women compared with people who adopted none. The evidence was presented at the American Society for Nutrition's NUTRITION 2023 meeting, and the list is less about extreme training than about repeated daily choices.

One of the habits is physical activity. Most runners already cover that one. The other seven cover smoking, stress, diet, binge drinking, sleep, social connection, and opioid use. That wider view matters because a training plan by itself never shows up on the list.

The Research Behind the Eight Habits

The data came from the Veterans Affairs Million Veteran Program, a long-running health study that pairs lifestyle survey answers with medical records. Researchers compared mortality outcomes by how many of the eight habits each person reported. The full set produced the largest gains, but each habit still counted on its own. The physical activity standard used in the research mirrors current CDC guidelines for adults: at least 150 minutes of moderate activity per week or 75 minutes of vigorous activity. Four easy 30-minute runs meet the moderate target, and one faster session adds vigorous minutes.

The study population was U.S. veterans, so the exact year counts may not transfer perfectly to every runner. The direction is what matters. These eight habits influence cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and other leading causes of death, which also determine how long a runner can keep entering races.

The Eight Habits, One by One

• Not smoking. Smoking narrows blood vessels and reduces oxygen delivery to working muscles. Runners who quit often notice easier breathing within weeks. In the longevity data, never smoking was one of the strongest single habits.
• Physical activity. The study does not demand speedwork. Consistent movement matters. If you are injured, walking or swimming keeps the habit alive. If you are training, protect one full rest day each week so the habit does not become overtraining.
• Managing stress. Chronic stress keeps cortisol elevated, which can disturb sleep and slow recovery. Running helps, but a runner who runs hard on top of high life stress without rest can create more total stress. A daily walk, slow breathing, or five minutes away from screens is a habit, not a reward.
• Healthy diet. The research did not promote one named diet. Higher diet scores in the study came from eating more whole grains, vegetables, fruit, legumes, fish, and nuts, while limiting processed meats and sugar-sweetened drinks. For runners, that pattern supports training with enough carbohydrates before long runs and protein after hard sessions.
• Avoiding regular binge drinking. Binge drinking is five or more drinks for men and four or more for women within about two hours. The habit under study is a regular pattern, not one drink after a race. Regular heavy sessions disrupt sleep and delay rehydration. They also make muscle repair harder for days after a hard workout.
• Good sleep hygiene. Adults generally need seven to nine hours of sleep. During deep sleep, the body releases growth hormone and shifts into tissue repair. Consistent bedtimes, a cool dark bedroom, and limiting late caffeine all fall under what the Sleep Foundation calls sleep hygiene.
• Positive social relationships. Social isolation and loneliness are linked to higher all-cause mortality. A running club or weekly group run offers both aerobic training and social connection. That may be the most practical longevity habit on this list for a City Runner.
• Avoiding opioid use disorder. The study looked at opioid use disorder, not short-term pain relief after surgery. Runners with persistent pain should see a sports medicine professional before long-term medication becomes the default. Strength work and physical therapy often help, and a careful return to load addresses the cause rather than just the symptom.

What to Change First

If you score seven of eight, do not rebuild your whole life at once. The study's pattern suggests the total set matters more than any perfect score on one item, so start with the habit closest to good. If you sleep six hours a night, move your bedtime 30 minutes earlier before adding another interval session. If you smoke, quitting changes both your running and your longevity more than any new shoe or workout.

Runners commonly reach for more mileage when progress stalls. The longevity research points in a different direction first: fix the habit that is most worn. A runner who drinks heavily on weekends and sleeps five hours cannot outrun that with a fifth training day. A runner who eats poorly and skips sleep will not recover from the training they already do.

One Week of Small Changes

Try one of these during the next seven days rather than all at once. Pick a consistent wake-up time and keep it for a full week. Replace one post-run beer with water and a protein snack. Invite a friend or club member to your Saturday run. Add a serving of fruit or vegetables at lunch. These are not dramatic, but the research says that small daily habits stack into years.

Longevity is not a race-day purchase. It is built the same way running base is built: one repeated, ordinary action after another. Tell us in the comments which of the eight habits you are working on first, especially if it is not the running one.

Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash