To avoid less effective muscles, an inevitable activity to continue after forty

“An imperceptible loss of muscle mass, due to reduced levels of normal activity, may be detrimental to our health in the long run,” Peta Bee, health and well-being editor at The Times, tells us, citing the words of Jamie McPhee, Professor Musculoskeletal Physiology at Manchester Metropolitan University said: "Normal muscle loss with age will turn into more neglected muscle wasting; without a commitment to exercise from middle age onwards, most people will become weaker in their 40s as a result."

When we watch the Olympics and professional sporting events that present the pinnacle of human athletic ability, we rarely see a competitor over 40, nor an athlete over 50;

"Because with each additional year we live, the body and muscles' response to sports gradually decreases."

As Roger Fielding, professor of medicine at Tufts University, USA, mentioned in an article published by The Conversation.

Fielding, who leads a team of scientists to study the health benefits of exercise and strength exercises for the elderly, confirms that "the decline in the body and muscle response to exercise after the age of forty is sufficient reason to continue exercising with age."

It's never too late and you can fight muscle loss by staying physically active for life (German)

Muscle and aging

As you do strength training, the difficulty you initially felt decreases, as your muscles increase in strength and size over time.

Lifting weights and doing push-ups and other strength exercises causes the muscles to grow in size and strength, until they reach the stage of "bulge".

It is "the stage in which your muscles gain more muscle fibers and cells, allowing you to lift heavier weights";

According to Fielding, "Continuing exercise enables you to gradually increase the weight until your muscles become bigger and stronger. The absence or lack of exercise will allow many biological processes to cause the muscles to become less effective."

This makes it difficult for older adults to build strength, unless they continue to exercise.

Fielding and colleagues found that "a little bit of exercise produces a strong signal to trigger many of the processes that lead to young muscle growth and strength; in older people, the signal that tells muscles to grow is much weaker."

These changes begin to occur when a person is about 50 years old, and become more noticeable over time.

Fielding and his team also used a technique that allows measuring changes in thousands of genes when they respond to resistance exercise, showing that "when young people exercise, changes occur in more than 150 genes, but in the case of older men there are changes in only 42 genes."

This difference in genetic change explains the difference between the response of young and old muscles to strength training.

The decline in the response of the body and muscles to exercise after the age of forty is sufficient reason to continue to exercise (German)

Sports is one of the most important activities after forty

Most experts agree that the imbalance that leads to muscle loss is a natural process called sarcopenia, and it can lead to weakness, increased risk of falls and loss of balance.

It occurs to everyone starting around the age of 50, although some studies indicate that it may start earlier, but they agree that "a sedentary lifestyle accelerates the deterioration process."

"After the age of 40, our muscles begin to lose at a rate of 5% to 10% for every 10 years of our life; this is more severe in men, because they have more muscle," says Beta B.

By the age of 80, "most people have about 40% less muscle mass than they did in their youth."

It is deterioration that increases when we are inactive, “even for short periods of time, even for two weeks.”

As for Fielding, "After the differences in the level of response of the elderly to strength training have been established, the conclusion becomes that they do not gain muscle mass as young people, but this should not discourage them from exercising, but rather encourage them to exercise more with age."

He stresses that "exercise is still the most important activity that older people should do for their health", as strength training can help maintain general fitness, "and allow you to continue to do the things you love as you age."

Exercising is still the most important activity that older people should do to maintain their health (Images)

Reconstruction is possible

Fielding's research showed that "older people who exercise have a 20% lower risk of disability, and a 20% lower risk of disability for physically frail people if they do the same exercise."

Which means, "Older people get amazing health benefits from exercise, including physical strength and reduced disability."

Therefore, Fielding advises everyone over 50, "When you sweat during exercise, remember that you are building muscle strength that is important for maintaining movement and good health over the course of a lifetime."

According to Professor of Musculoskeletal Physiology McVeigh, "Some strength can be rebuilt even in the eighties of age, provided that we are prepared to make some effort, as atrophic fibers can be increased in size with appropriate exercises, and additional pressure on the muscles, as the main catalyst that makes them adapt and actually increase their size. ".

Also making sure you get enough protein helps prevent muscle deterioration. A review by McMaster University in Canada found that getting enough protein (1.6 grams per kilogram of your weight per day) significantly enhances the effects of strength training, and that " Those who ate this amount improved their strength by an additional 10%, and gained about 25% of muscle mass.”

This is confirmed by physical therapist Gary Calabrese, saying, "Fortunately, it is not too late, and you can combat muscle loss by staying physically active throughout life, and consider nutrition as important," recommending patience, "the results may take 6 to 8 weeks."