Few performers have spent as long on stage as Mick Jagger, and fewer still move like he does at 83. His secret is not a miracle diet or a single exercise, but a training mix he has described for years, and one that researchers studying older adults have found surprisingly effective.
In short
- Mick Jagger, 83, has said he trains “five or six days a week, but I don’t go crazy.”
- His routine alternates between the gym and dancing, with sprints added in.
- An 18-month study of adults with an average age of 68 found that only the dance group improved its balance.
‘I don’t go crazy’
Born in July 1943, Jagger has been the frontman of the Rolling Stones for more than six decades. Asked how he keeps up, he once told Q magazine: “I train five or six days a week, but I don’t go crazy.” The goal, he explained, is simple: “I train to build endurance.”
The mix: gym, dance and sprints
The key is variety. “I alternate between the gym and dancing, then I do sprints and things like that,” he said, according to El Cronista. That preparation pays off on stage, where his shows run for more than two hours and he is often said to cover more than 12 kilometers through runs, jumps and dancing during a single concert.
What the science says
Jagger’s mix lines up with research on aging. In a study published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, Dr. Kathrin Rehfeld of the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases followed volunteers with an average age of 68 for 18 months. One group learned new dance routines every few weeks, while the other did repetitive endurance and flexibility training such as cycling or Nordic walking.
Both groups showed an increase in the hippocampus, a brain region linked to memory. But only the dancers showed a noticeable improvement in balance. “I think dancing is a powerful tool to set new challenges for body and mind, especially in older age,” Rehfeld said. In other words, endurance work builds the engine, and dance keeps the body agile, which is exactly the combination Jagger describes.
A routine built to last
His discipline has been tested. In 2019, Jagger underwent a heart valve procedure and was back on tour about two months later. Like Helen Mirren, 81, and her 12-minute routine or Sharon Stone’s ‘little and often’ habit, his approach is less about intensity than consistency.
The limit
Jagger’s quotes come from an earlier interview, and he has not shared a detailed weekly plan. The 12-kilometer figure is an estimate of how far he moves on stage, not a daily run. The dance study looked at healthy older adults over 18 months and does not prove that any single routine slows aging. Anyone starting a new program after 60 should check with a doctor first.
For more celebrity rituals that stand the test of time, see Amal Clooney’s daily breakfast habit.
The bottom line
Mick Jagger has never pretended to have a magic formula. He trains most days, mixes strength with dance, and keeps moving. At 83, that may be the most rock ‘n’ roll lesson of all.
