The older you get, the more important strength training is. While you might envision young men lifting barbells loaded with weight when you hear the words strength training, it’s important for both men and women of all ages. Once you get past the age of 30, unless you participate in training, you start to lose muscle mass. It’s called sarcopenia and causes a three to five percent of loss every decade. When you see seniors that look frail, it’s often just the natural progression of sarcopenia.
It’s all about strength, not body, building.
Maintaining those six-pack abs may not be possible, but maintaining strength is. One study followed older people that maintained a weight lifting regimen for at least 15 years and showed that the workouts helped prevent muscle and strength loss from occurring. It’s never too late. While you might not be able to build large bulky muscles, you can improve your overall strength with training. You need physical strength to perform the activities of daily living, which allow you to live independently and makes a difference in the quality of your life.
Brittle bones and osteoporosis is avoided with strength training.
Part of the problem with muscle loss is that it causes loss of bone density. Muscles tug on the bone and it causes them to reinforce by stimulating the bone to uptake more calcium deposits and increase bone-forming cell activation. It’s not about how much calcium you have in your diet, although you do need calcium and vitamin D, it’s about how that calcium is used. If you don’t exercise, the bone doesn’t need reinforcement, so bones start thinning and then become brittle as the calcium goes elsewhere.
You’ll be surprised at how easy it is to do weight bearing exercise and strength training.
Walk faster and pump your arms when you walk. Walking is a weight-bearing exercise and you add to it with more intensity. If you’re out of shape and want to start working out at home first, use water bottles as dumbbells. Start with them empty if you must and lift. Add water as you get stronger. It’s all about consistency and pushing yourself a little more every day.
- Obesity is a huge problem in America today. Not only does strength training burn calories to help you lose weight, it also boosts your metabolism. You build more muscle tissue and the more muscle tissue you have, the more calories you burn.
- Strength training can actually help prevent joint pain or minimizes it. It builds the muscles around the joints to relieve pressure. It can help regulate blood sugar levels to avoid type 2 diabetes or improve the condition if it is already present.
- Both strength training and flexibility training can help relieve back problems. It can help build muscles that prevent future injury. It also helps maintain balance to help prevent falls. You’ll look and feel years younger.
- If you’re working out at home and don’t want to invest in equipment, bodyweight exercises are one option. For a small amount of money, resistance bands are another option.
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