There are a lot of aspects of health and fitness that are important, but the single most important thing you can do for your health is build muscle.

There has been a lot of debate over the years about how to improve quality of life, longevity, disease resistance, insulin sensitivity and the like. The evidence repeatedly points to the same thing. The most important aspect of your health and wellbeing is building and maintaining a healthy amount of muscle mass.

At this point it’s important to say that I’m talking strictly from a general health point of view, and not a pure sporting one. If you want to run marathons, there’s little need for a lot of muscle!

The need to build and maintain muscle mass increases as we age. The research shows that there’s an alarming rate of muscle mass loss past thirty years of age…

‘Muscle mass decreases approximately 3–8% per decade after the age of 30 and this rate of decline is even higher after the age of 60’.

Thankfully, this can be arrested and even reversed when you apply strength training principles and adequate protein into your diet. Research into the benefits of strength training in older adults by Churchward-Venne in 2015 provided an interesting conclusion…

‘We conclude that there are no nonresponders to the benefits of resistance-type exercise training on lean body mass, fiber size, strength, or function in the older population. Consequently, resistance-type exercise should be promoted without restriction to support healthy aging in the older population.’

The research showed that the longer the strength training went on, the greater the impact on the muscle mass and health of the participant. We can reliably say then that long term strength training is a worthwhile endeavour regardless of the age of the participant.

Importantly, the need to build and maintain muscle mass isn’t just an opinion either. It’s heavily-supported in the research. We know that research from 2009 focussing on muscle mass in care home residents concluded that…

‘The present study suggests that among community-dwelling old–old subjects muscle mass may be positively related to functional performance and survival.’

The evidence that muscle mass is important for longevity is huge. We don’t just want a long life span, we want a long health span. Your ability to enjoy old age is largely determined by your health and fitness level. Maintaining muscle mass is key to this process.

Building and Maintaining Muscle Mass in Older Age

In this section we’re going to outline the broad principles of building and maintaining muscle mass in older age. We’re going to look at the exercises you should be doing, the frequency and the repetitions. This is a very basic programme, but one that will serve you well.

It’s 5 exercises long and will take less than 40 minutes. Repeat it 3-4 times per week. Supplement this daily walking or gentle cycling and you’ll great!

Make sure your diet contains 3-4 good sources of protein per day, such as lean meat, fish, eggs, dairy, nuts, pulses or a protein shake.

Perform 4 sets of 10 on each exercise.

Exercise 1: Squats

Exercise 2: Dumbbell Shoulder Press

Exercise 3: Trap Bar Deadlifts

Exercise 4: Dumbbell Bench Press

Exercise 5: Chest Supported Row

This is a very basic programme - you can add more to it as you see fit. It’s also important to make sure that you perform these exercises safely and effectively, which is where a personal trainer is so valuable.

At AdMac Fitness we have a personal training studio in Bow, and a personal training studio in South Woodford. We have a range of personal trainers with different specialities and approaches, so we can ensure we match you with the perfect personal trainer for you.

We don’t try to baffle you with useless information. Our approach is clear and simple, built over years of successful fitness instruction. We’ve worked with a huge range of personal training clients, so we can help you too!

If you want help with your health, AdMac Fitness is the place to go!

We help people using tried and tested fitness approaches. Our expert team of personal trainers, based in both Bow and South Woodford can help you get a grip of your health and fitness. With our guidance you can see your health and fitness reach new levels!

For more information on who we are, what we do and how we can help you achieve your health and fitness goals, contact us on… 07921465108 or email us at admacfitness@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!

Our locations are…

AdMac Fitness Bow: Arch 457 Robeson St, London E3 4JA

AdMac Fitness South Woodford: Unit 4 Marlborough Business Centre, 96 George Lane, South Woodford, London, E18 1AD.