The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett

Cognitive Decline Expert: The Disease That Starts in Your 30s but Kills You in Your 70s

2088 snips
Feb 5, 2026
Louisa Nicola, neurophysiologist and performance coach studying Alzheimer’s prevention, walks through why midlife matters for brain health. She covers creatine for brain energy, how resistance training and leg strength protect cognition, why deep sleep clears toxic proteins, and practical hacks to counter sitting and menopause-related declines.
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Cognitive Reserve Explains Divergent Aging

  • Cognitive reserve explains why some people stay sharp despite amyloid buildup while others decline with little amyloid.
  • Building many neural connections via novelty, reading, handwriting and exercise increases reserve.

Break Sitting With Hourly Air Squats

  • Break up long sitting: do 10 air squats every hour to offset prolonged sedentary time.
  • Louisa Nicola says hourly movement can compensate for a sedentary lifestyle.

Do One Weekly VO2-Max Session

  • Do one weekly high-intensity session (e.g., Norwegian 4x4 at 90–95% HR) to remodel the heart and boost VO2 max.
  • Louisa Nicola cites a study where four hours/week of mixed training reversed heart age by ~20 years.
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