More Muscle, Less Problems

Avoid Sarcopenia

Sometimes we use Latin words to get people to take us more seriously 😉. Sarcopenia just means low muscle mass and reflects the normal aging process whereby we lose muscle over time. Multiple studies and research have shown that, in general, older folks with lower muscle mass do not live as long and are less healthy. Most of us in longevity medicine advocate for resistance (i.e. weights) training for everyone including women. Here are some tips to safely incorporate resistance training into your routine:

1. Exercising the core is the core of musculoskeletal fitness and strength. Even though the core is most often exercised with just body weight and not additional weights, the core is the crucial hub of all the limbs. Examples include: crunches, oblique crunches, supermans, and pilates exercises. Spending 5-10 minutes working the core every day or every other day is doable and very helpful.

2. Warm up — do a set of light weights to where you can do 10-20 repetitions without taxing yourself. Keep good posture to avoid injury and joint problems. Serious weightlifters lift heavy weights aiming for anywhere from 3-8 reps. This is not for us common-folk 😄 — we should lift moderately heavy weights and be able to accomplish 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps without losing our form. If in doubt, go lighter, and you can always increase slowly and gradually over time.

3. Use complex/compound/multijoint exercises — this gives you more bang for your buck and replicates natural movements and the coordination of muscle groups. Examples include: bench press, seated row, squats, and deadlifts. Non-weighted exercises include lunges, push-ups, and pull-ups. Spending 15-20 minutes doing weights 2-3 times per week is an achievable goal.

4. We encourage you to make strength training a part of your weekly exercise routine if it is not already. Remember this all works in concert with regular cardio and a healthy diet. 👍️