Why should I do strength training as I get older?
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Dr. Michael Roizen answered:As you get older, you are more prone to stiffness and orthopedic injuries. Your muscles become stiffer, and your tendons and joints become weaker and less elastic. Studies show that when you do strengthening exercises and become stronger, you are more likely to begin doing other exercises as well. We all lose muscle from our twenties on. That's one reason we gain weight as we age. On average, a pound of muscle uses 75 to 150 kcal of energy per day, whereas a pound of fat uses only 1 to 4 kcal of energy per day. Even marathoners lose muscle if they don't do strengthening exercises. If you do strengthening exercises regularly, you will counteract this attrition, and your body will burn more calories all day long, even when you're at rest. Strength exercises thus prevent aging from fat accumulation and weight gain. Stamina exercises, in contrast, don't build muscles. At age fifty-five, doing just twelve weeks of strength training six times a week for ten minutes at a time will increase the number of calories you burn by 15 percent.As you get older, you are more prone to stiffness and orthopedic injuries. Your muscles become stiffer, and your tendons and joints become weaker and less elastic. Studies show that when you do strengthening exercises and become stronger, you are... More -
Dr. Vonda Wright answered:Pushing and pulling weight around is vital for fitness after 40. If aging progresses unchecked, we lose 10 percent of our muscle mass between the ages of 25 and 50, and 45 percent more between ages 50 and 80. This loss of lean muscle mass (or sarcopenia) leaves us vulnerable to falls, poor bone health, and an inability to do the things we want to do physically each day. To stave off muscle decline, you must carry a load. There are also many other benefits to carrying a load as part of your exercise regimen. Not only does it make you look great but it keeps your bones strong, lowers your blood pressure, and may reduce the risk of stroke. In addition, it burns more calories during activities of daily living than fat. If you build up your muscles so that a great percentage of your body is muscle rather than fat, you will use more calories for simply living than you did when you had less muscle and more fat. Maintaining and building muscle is good for your metabolism, makes you strong, prevents falling, prevents injury, and lifts your mood. Because loss of muscle increases markedly after age 50, lifting weights after 50 is critical.Helpful? 1 person found this helpful
Pushing and pulling weight around is vital for fitness after 40. If aging progresses unchecked, we lose 10 percent of our muscle mass between the ages of 25 and 50, and 45 percent more between ages 50 and 80. This loss of lean muscle mass... More -
Jonathan Penney of National Academy of Sports Medicine answered:As we age certain things that we take for granted will start to decrease. Things such as your bone density, your flexibility, and your strength will start to decrease. Strength training is essential in preventing these issues from occurring. The more active you are and have been the less likely these things are to take place. Do you part and keep up with a strength training program. If you do not have a program then meet with a certified trainer and get a program designed for your goals and objectives to help you stay young.
As we age certain things that we take for granted will start to decrease. Things such as your bone density, your flexibility, and your strength will start to decrease. Strength training is essential in preventing these issues from occurring.... More
