Strength Training and Protein, the Keys to Maintaining Muscle

I'm often asked how I maintain my strength and muscle mass being that I am in my fifties?  My reply is that strength training is the foundation of my fitness program, and I always get the proper amount of protein in my diet to maximize muscle growth and repair.  Scientific research is now proving that strength training and proper protein intake are two of the best ways to build and preserve your muscle mass as you age.

Severe muscle loss called sarcopenia affects nearly 4 million people in the United States resulting in weakness, fatigue, frailty, falls, fractures, disability, and even death.  While most people associate muscle loss with old age, sarcopenia can begin as early as your 30s.  Left unabated this condition accelerates with time as your body starts tearing down old muscle faster than it can build new muscle tissue.  The good news is you can slow and in some cases reverse muscle loss as you age via regular strength training (also known as weight lifting), and getting the right amount of protein in your diet.

Scientific research is showing that weight lifting is one of the most effective ways of building and maintaining muscle mass as you age and here's why.  Strength training is a method of overloading your body with a resistance that you are not accustomed to lifting.  In response your body adapts to this overloading process by building stronger muscles to accommodate the new load.  Research says that by the time you reach middle age you should start lifting weights at least 2 times per week to retain your muscle.  I lift weights 4 times each week to maximize my  muscle mass and strength.  I recommend you get with a properly trained fitness professional and let them design a safe and effective weight lifting program for you.

The second key to building and maintaining your muscle mass as you age is getting the proper amount of protein in your diet.  There has been much debate on how much protein you need daily.  While 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight (0.36 grams per pound) has been the normal recommendation for daily protein intake, new studies show that 1 to 1.5 grams of protein of per kilogram of body weight (0.45 to 0.68 grams per pound) may be more beneficial in building, maintaining, and reducing muscle loss as specially as you age.

Not only is getting the proper amount of protein in your diet important to supporting muscle growth and repair, but also the timing of protein consumption.  The goal of protein consumption and lean muscle mass is to optimize muscle protein synthesis (the biological process by which muscle cells are regenerated).  Research shows consuming 25 to 30 grams of high quality protein at each meal is necessary to stimulate protein synthesis.  So, if don't get the proper amount of protein at each meal optimal muscle growth and repair does not happen.  I always make sure I get 25 to 30 grams of protein with each of my meals.

Try incorporating regular strength training and consuming the right amount of protein in your fitness plan and I assure you that you will see a gain in muscle mass and strength.  Then people will ask you how do you stay so muscular and strong as you age.

Make Strength Training the Foundation of Your Fitness Program

It's the first of the year and I already see my gym flooded with people eager to get healthy and fit for the New Year.  Most of the new comers spend most of their time on the cardio equipment, then they spend a few minutes lifting weights, and then they go home.

While cardio is a very important component of your fitness program, it shouldn't be where you spend the majority of your time in the gym.  I recommend you build your fitness program around strength training, also known as weight lifting and here's why:

Strength Training builds and helps to maintain your muscle mass.  Muscle tissue is always active and thus burns calories even when you are at rest.  Thus, by building and maintaining your muscle mass you  increase your resting metabolism, which means you burn more calories even while you are sleeping.

Muscle is key to long-term weight loss and body fat reduction.  As a personal trainer I often hear statements like this "ever since I tuned 40 I can't seem to lose weight and I've developed these areas of fat that I can't get rid of either."  Muscle loss is the primary reason for this scenario.  Beginning as early as your 30s you start to naturally lose muscle mass, and this process accelerates with age if you don't do anything to stop or slow it down.  As I previously mentioned, muscle is that active part of your body that burns calories even when you are resting.  Thus, as you lose your muscle mass your metabolism decreases, and consequently your calorie burning capacity also decreases.  Additionally, body fat is the fuel of choice for your muscles while you are at rest, and also for low intensity activities such as casual walking, cleaning house, and yard work.

Strength training increases your bone strength and makes your joints stronger.  Regular strength training has been proven to decrease the risk of developing osteoporosis, and also to make the activities of daily life easier to perform.

Strength training helps reduce blood sugar, and thus, reduces the risk for developing Type 2 diabetes.  Strength training plays a particular role to in reducing blood sugar and improving insulin sensitivity because when you lift weights the main fuel used is that stored as muscle glucose. Building extra muscle also provides a larger storage area for glucose, so the combination of these two factors -- increased muscle and regular emptying of these muscle stores -- improves the body's glucose processing, a factor crucial in preventing and managing type 2 diabetes.

Hopefully you can see why I think strength training should be the foundation of your fitness program.  If you are new to weight lifting, I suggest you find a nationally certified fitness professional to help you develop a strength training program, and to teach you the proper form and lifting techniques.