Luckily, it turns out that we can do something about our future.  Remember that recent studies have linked more  physical activity & fitness to greater  life expectancy  and lower risk of  dementia & depression .  So it should come as no surprise that a longitudinal prospective cohort study was published last month in BMC Geriatrics  in which the authors concluded that greater daily physical activity is associated with less disability in the elderly.  To arrive at their conclusion, the authors followed for 3-4yrs 870 participants (average 82yo), basically healthy at baseline, and found that every 100,000 counts/day was associated with 25% lower risk of disability.  Notice that actigraphy was used to confirm activity, not a pedometer for which 10,000 steps/day has become the mantra.