Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee

Episode #588: How to Stay Mobile, Independent & “Unbreakable” As You Age with Dr Vonda Wright

Date: October 21, 2025
Guest: Dr. Vonda Wright (Orthopaedic Surgeon; Chief of Sports Medicine, Northside Hospital; Author: Unbreakable: A Woman’s Guide to Aging With Power)

Episode Overview

This episode features an insightful conversation between Dr. Rangan Chatterjee and Dr. Vonda Wright, exploring how to stay mobile, independent, and "unbreakable" as we age. Dr. Wright, renowned orthopedic surgeon and expert on active aging, shares evidence-based advice on bone and muscle health, aging myths, midlife transitions, menopause, and practical strategies for lifelong resilience—primarily through the lens of women’s health, though applicable to all. The discussion is rich with actionable takeaways, myth-busting revelations, and inspiration for both early and late life interventions.

Key Discussion Points

1. The Myth of Inevitable Decline

• Aging vs. Decline
  • Many people wrongly believe "aging means inevitable decline," which fosters a passive resignation to frailty ([00:00], [03:38]).
  • Dr. Wright: “Aging alone is the most natural thing we do… it’s how we handle the passage of time that matters.” ([00:00], [03:38])

2. The Power of Mindset and Social Context

• Belief and Behavior
  • “If we get the message that getting older means frailty... your behaviors are going to follow your beliefs.” (Dr. Chatterjee, [05:16])
• Neglect and Self-worth
  • Particularly for women, self-neglect is often a result of prioritizing others; investing in oneself is crucial ([03:38]).

3. The "Critical Decade" for Bone Health (35–45)

• Bone Loss: When and Why
  • Osteoporosis is not just a disease of old age—it starts much earlier.
  • “Osteoporosis is a disease of young ladies that manifests when you’re old.” (Dr. Wright, [43:22])
• Actionable:
  • Building muscle and bone strength, optimizing diet, and regular movement is especially important from mid-30s into 40s.

4. Gendered Differences in Aging and Hormones

• Estrogen vs. Testosterone Trajectories
  • Men experience a slow linear testosterone decline.
  • Women undergo a sharp, rapid loss of estrogen during perimenopause, causing drastic bodily changes ([13:40]).
• “I kiddingly say estrogen walks out the door, she slams the door, she never looks back.” (Dr. Wright, [19:23])
• Impact:
  • Estrogen influences more than reproduction—it's crucial for bone, brain, heart, mood, and muscle health.

5. The Forgotten Importance of Bone Health

• Bone: More Than Structure
  • “Without bones, muscle is just a heaping pile of metabolic tissue… Bone is a master communicator.” (Dr. Wright, [27:16])
  • Bones produce hormones (e.g., osteocalcin) affecting brain, metabolism, and hormonal health ([27:17]).

6. Societal and Cultural Pressures

• Women and the Don’t-Eat Culture
  • “Women are still taught to be teeny tiny and take up no space and not eat a lot of food.” (Dr. Wright, [43:22])
  • Sports, overexercising, underfueling, and digital sedentarism all compound to worsen bone density in younger generations.

7. DEXA and REMS Scans: Knowing Your Starting Point

• Testing Bone Health
  • Both DEXA (density) and REMS (quality) scans offer valuable early warning—Dr. Wright recommends baseline testing in the critical decade ([40:50]).
  • Many 20-something women are already osteopenic due to lifestyle factors ([42:58]).
• “What’s the downside of knowing where we stand?” (Dr. Wright on whether Dr. Chatterjee’s wife should get a DEXA scan, [56:50])

8. Fractures, Independence, and Social Impact

• The High Stakes of Hip Fracture
  • “The instant you break [your hip], you have a 30% chance of dying in the next year… and 50% will not return home.” (Dr. Wright, [34:24])
  • The consequences are not just personal but deeply affect families and society.

9. Movement: The True “Polypill” for Aging

• The FACE Acronym for Lifelong Movement

  • Flexibility/Mobility
  • Aerobic Activity
  • Carrying Load (Resistance Training)
  • Equilibrium/Foot Speed ([62:21])

• Jumping, Running, and Impact Matter

  • Weight-bearing and impact activities are key for bones; “To build better bone, we need 4 times body weight in impact—jumping off an 8-inch step, for example.” ([69:43], [70:11])

• Functional Strength and Power over Bulk

  • Focus: compound lifts, low reps, heavy weight, balance retraining (for falls prevention).

10. The Deep Cost of Inaction

• Financial and Personal Freedom
  • “What is the cost of me not doing a DEXA scan? It could literally save you tens of thousands of pounds.” (Dr. Chatterjee, [59:07])

Eye-opening Quotes & Memorable Moments

The Mindset Trap:

“If you believe there’s absolutely nothing you can do about the future, then you’re going to resign yourself to the first time you feel an ache or a pain, that’s just getting old. I guess I’ll just accept it.”
— Dr. Vonda Wright ([00:00], [03:38])

On Self-Neglect:

“Particularly for women, the neglect comes because we are not neglecting others… we invest all our energy externally.”
— Dr. Wright ([03:38])

Hormonal Realities:

“Estrogen walks out the door, she slams the door, she never looks back.”
— Dr. Wright ([19:23])

Bone’s Superpower:

“Bone is helping you build a better brain. …It is a master communicator.”
— Dr. Wright ([27:17])

The Stakes of Hip Fracture:

“The instant you break that bone [hip] you have a 30% chance of dying in the next year… if you live, 50% of the time you will not return to the home that you came from.”
— Dr. Wright ([34:24])

On the Impact of Early Interventions:

“Osteoporosis is a disease of young ladies that manifests when you're old.”
— Dr. Wright ([43:22])

Movement as Medicine:

“Movement baseline… treats everything. It is so critical in so many diseases that I wish I had made this up. I didn’t, but… [someone] coined the word sedentary death syndrome—33 chronic diseases we die from, directly impacted by how much we move.”
— Dr. Wright ([74:25])

MRI Visual Motivation:

“When we tested the strength… we did not find a statistically significant decrease until mid-60s. … The study was trying to answer, can we retain our lean muscle mass with recreational-type exercise across the lifespan? The answer is yes.”
— Dr. Wright on 40- and 70-year-old triathletes' MRI ([101:29–104:07])

The Emotional Case:

“You are worth the daily investment in your health. You are created and have value. Until you believe that, you will continue to neglect yourself.”
— Dr. Wright ([129:31])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• The Belief That Aging = Decline: [00:00], [03:38]
• Mindset and Social Circle Influence: [08:35]
• Critical Decade / Peak Bone Mass: [11:24], [38:21]
• Hormonal Transitions in Men vs. Women: [13:40] – [21:29]
• Perimenopause Effects (Bone/Brain/Heart): [17:11] – [24:39]
• Bone as an Active Organ/Hormone Producer: [27:16] – [30:13]
• Worst Outcomes of Fractures: [34:24]
• Temporal Disconnect in Health Investment: [37:52]
• DEXA and Baseline Testing: [40:50], [56:50], [58:33]
• Youth Bone Loss Causes (Cultural & Lifestyle): [42:58] – [48:09]
• Practical Family Movement (Show, Don’t Tell): [48:49]
• Pregnancy & Breastfeeding’s Impact on Bone: [51:06]
• Movement for Bone—Why Impact & Jumping Matter: [69:43] – [72:53]
• EXERCISE: Dr. Wright’s Typical Week: [81:07] – [97:14]
• MRI Motivation—70yo Muscle Retention: [101:05] – [104:07]
• VO2 Max, Frailty Line & Independence: [106:35] – [112:16]
• Hormone Replacement Therapy (WHI, Risks, Benefits): [112:50] – [119:21]
• Mindset, Vision, and Self-Worth: [127:08], [129:31]

Practical Takeaways

For All Ages:

• Challenge the belief that decline is inevitable—proactivity and mindset matter.
• Start building bone and muscle strength early (by mid-30s!). Baseline scans can be powerful motivation.
• Prioritize weightbearing, impact, and resistance activities—especially jumping or hopping, running, and heavy(ish) lifting.
• Train for balance and foot speed, not just strength and endurance.
• Movement is a non-negotiable “polypill” for life and independence; sitting is the enemy.
• If you can’t get specialist testing (like DEXA), movement, muscle-building, and impact/exercise is still profoundly beneficial.

For Women in Midlife:

• Watch for perimenopausal signs—don’t ignore brain fog, unexplained aches, or sudden decline in function.
• Consider bone density and muscle health as a core part of navigating midlife; don’t assume menopause symptoms are “just in your head.”
• Know that HRT (especially estrogen) can be transformative—make informed choices based on facts, not fear.

For Parents:

• Model movement—kids mimic what they see. Incorporate play, family-level activities, and impact/jumping.
• Don’t promote under-eating or the ideal of “smallness” for daughters—adequate nutrition is critical for their long-term bone and hormonal health.

For Everyone:

• Take initiative—health systems won’t do prevention for you.
• Invest in regular self-assessment (DEXA, self-tests, ability to rise unaided from the floor/chair, etc.).
• Create a personal vision statement: know your “why” for health and independence.
• “You are worth the daily investment.”

Final Inspiration

“You are worth the daily investment in your health. Until you believe that, you will continue to neglect yourself.”
— Dr. Vonda Wright ([129:31])

Listen to the full episode for deeper stories, context, and practical breakdowns of Dr. Wright’s recommended routines, self-tests, and the mindset needed to “age with power.”