Use it or lose it.

This year I hit the big 4-0. While I never thought that reaching a certain age would bother me that much as age is just a number as much as a milestone, it has focussed my attention on what I do and why I do it. My great-grandmother lived independently in her own home until 104, while my maternal grandfather is still going strong at 91, having been extremely active throughout his life. He still manages to cut his own hedge (don't tell my mum). However, my grandmother suffered a series of strokes which robbed her of independence in the last decade of her life, while with my paternal grandparents, my grandmother died of a heart attack at 72, and my grandfather suffered from vascular dementia in his later years. As I have gotten older, aspects such as these in my family tree have become much more prevalent in my thinking and my approach to, not only my own health and fitness, but how I work with clients.

This way of thinking has also become the focus of my approach since reading Peter Attia's Outlive twice in the last 18 months. I would highly recommend this as reading material for everyone, and without going into too much detail, the key takeaway from this for me was not, how to live as long as possible? It was how to live well and independently as long as possible. This is significant. I want to do what I do now for as long as possible, and help others do the same. And the role of strength training, as well as exercise more broadly, in this is critical!

Have you ever come across the term 'physiological plasticity'? If not, then don't worry. Basically, this covers the ways in which we can experience muscular decline as we age, and the impact that this can have. It encompasses two terms: Sarcopenia, meaning the age-associated loss of muscle mass; and Dynapenia, the age-associated loss of muscle function. Therefore, as we age we will not only lose muscle mass, but also the strength of the remaining muscle. Between the ages of 30 and 70, the average person will lose 30% of their muscle mass. Although this will vary significantly among individuals. Muscle power will fall at a sharper rate, and both contribute significantly to our functional abilities as we age. 

However, there have been hundreds of studies over the last 30 years, which show that resistance training as we age can significantly and dramatically increase strength and muscle mass (https://www.fitpro.com/blog/the-plasticity-of-ageing/). To me this not only highlights the physical benefits of training for strength, and it's long term importance, but also that it is never too late to start! Focussing on becoming the strongest version of you has multiple crossovers. From everyday tasks that we take for granted such as getting up out of a chair and carrying shopping, to reducing our risk of falls and injuries, the crossover benefits of strength training as we age as numerous. 

This does not mean that everyone has to immediately start with complex compound movements such as barbell squats and deadlifts, despite the movement patterns themselves being important. When I work with older clients, or those who are starting from a background of limited physical activity or injury, then regressing the exercises down to their movements patterns has shown me the almost immediate benefits people can experience. Whilst purely anecdotal evidence, starting someone in their 50s, who has a history of little physical exercise, with a supported squat holding on to an anchor point, builds familiarity with the movement pattern. With this simple movement, the client is able to feel muscles working, and it helps strengthen the movement. This then allows much safer and effective progressions. 

I'll touch on the benefits of exercise to cognitive function in a further post, as these are just as important as the physical aspects, and I don't want to lessen this discussion. But to end here, My approach to training clients of all ages and abilities in the last year has been to focus on the long game. What do you want to be able to do in 5, 10, 50 years? And it doesn't matter where you are starting from, the important thing is that it is never too late to start!

If you would like me to expand on this discussion, or have a topic you think I should approach, then leave a comment below or get in touch. 

Thank you.