Dr. Vonda Wright: Active Aging Through Lifestyle Habits to Remain Healthy, Vital, and Joyful at Any Age

Dr. Vonda Wright
Active Aging Through Lifestyle Habits to Remain Healthy, Vital, and Joyful at Any Age

Dr. Vonda Wright is a double-board-certified orthopedic surgeon, internationally recognized researcher, and elite team doctor specializing in optimizing performance at any age. Her pioneering research in mobility and musculoskeletal aging is transforming how we approach aging. Dr. Wright is also an expert in cutting-edge Orthobiologics, including PRP for arthritis. She has extensive experience caring for athletes of all ages and skill levels, including Division I teams, Olympic athletes, and professional ballet dancers.

Dr. Vonda is such an expert in so many areas and her background and work as an orthopedist gives her such a unique perspective on the state of the population. She has dedicated her career to treating the whole person, active aging, and in particular focusing on women’s health and research which is historically lacking. A must listen for raising healthy kids, aging well, and remaining active into older age.

For more information on Dr. Wright, check out her website and follow her on Instagram.

Points of interest in the episode: 

03:50  Dr. Vonda’s background
06:15  In 2012 Vonda added a women’s health focus to her practice
07:50  Dr. Vonda frames her work as ‘joint longevity’
08:20  70% of all ACL injuries happen in women
13:05  “There’s more variation in waltzing than there is in sprinting” – Frans Bosch
16:28  Recurrent ACL rupture post-repair is pretty common
17:30  Raising a Healthy Youth Athlete, by Dr. Vonda Wright and Mark Miller
18:45  We are skilling our children to death
21:30  Arthritis after an ACL repair down the road is almost a given
22:40  Dr. Nick Dinubile said on our podcast that he no longer needs to use drills to get through the bone during ACL repairs because adolescent bone density is so compromised
23:45  Dr. Vonda’s observations in young patients
25:00  RED-s, bone health
29:00  The decade between 35-45 years old is the critical decade, time to learn, time to start walking, get progressively healthier, fix your sleep, dial in nutrition
36:55  If you want healthy kids, people, can we please be healthy ourselves
41:55  Rejecting commonly held notions on aging
42:43  Dr. Vonda believes we can be healthy, vital, active, and joyful through the aging process, and this is proved to be true if you remove sedentary behavior
44:05  1 in 3 women will end up in a nursing home because of their frailty; 1 in 2 women will have an osteoporotic fracture
45:08  If your doctor says “it’s just part of aging”, Dr. Vonda invites you to find a new doctor
45:30  There is never an age or skill level where your body will not respond to the stress you put on it
46:40  The “eat and exercise to be thin” mentality, and how to reframe it
48:16  Body recomposition doesn’t mean bulky, it means having the luxury of having muscles be your Spanx
51:00  How do we define ‘heavy’?; Dr. Stacy Sims
52:30  Dr. Vonda’s lifting Rx: 4 power lifts – 4 reps x 4 sets
57:14  Dr. Mary Claire Haver
58:00  Frozen shoulder
58:40  “Musculoskeletal Syndrome of Menopause”
61:13  Recommendations for perimenopause: lift heavy weights, stop high intensity aerobic exercise (adopt base training and sprinting), nutrition (protein, whole foods, carbs), sleep and recovery
63:45  VO2 max independence line
64:30  Longevity: VO2 max and grip strength
66:35  Dr. Vonda’s socials

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