The longevity conversation online is full of expensive tests, complicated protocols and confident claims. The research behind long, healthy lives is much plainer. Five habits come up again and again, and all of them can be built into expat life in Bangkok.

1. Walk more than you think you need to

Daily step count is one of the strongest predictors of health in later life, and the benefits continue well beyond the famous 10,000. Bangkok is not a natural walking city, but it is getting better. Skywalks between BTS stations, park loops and air-conditioned malls all count. Taking the stairs at the station instead of the escalator adds up over a year.

2. Keep your muscle

Muscle mass and strength fall with age unless you work to keep them, and low strength is closely linked to frailty, falls and loss of independence. Two or three sessions a week of resistance training is enough for most people. You do not need a fancy gym; bodyweight work, resistance bands and a pair of dumbbells at home will do.

3. Train your heart and lungs

Cardiorespiratory fitness, often measured as VO2 max, is one of the best single markers of long-term health. A mix of easy steady exercise, like brisk walking or easy cycling, and occasional harder intervals improves it at any age. In the heat, swimming is an excellent option, and many condos have pools.

4. Protect your sleep and your social life

Consistently short sleep and loneliness both carry health risks comparable to well-known factors like inactivity. Expat life can be socially rich but also transient, with friends leaving every year. It is worth deliberately investing in a few steady relationships, a club, a running group or a regular class, rather than relying on whoever is in town this month.

5. Get the boring checks done

Blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol, cancer screening appropriate to your age, dental care and vaccinations. Bangkok's private hospitals make this easy and relatively affordable, with annual check-up packages that can be done in a morning. Bring results from home if you have them so trends can be compared.

Skip the shortcuts

Be sceptical of anything promising to reverse ageing in a bottle or a single test. The habits above are less exciting but have decades of evidence behind them. If you want to try something new, talk to a doctor you trust first and look for independent evidence rather than marketing.

Small and consistent beats dramatic and short-lived. The best longevity plan is the one you are still following in ten years.