Father Time catches up to everyone. Even the best of us can only avoid him for so long. Although this is a depressing topic, it is one that needs to be addressed As people age, their health and lifestyle generally decline. Although this is a depressing topic, it is one that needs to be addressed. The muscles weaken, the mass of the muscles melts away, and the bones become brittle. Reaching the age of 40 is when many people start to see the negative effects of aging.
Although it's not talked about as much, another thing that commonly happens around this time is the ‘mid-life crisis.' If done properly, it can be turned into something positive instead of being a joke. Instead of buying an expensive new car, use your money to do things that will make you feel young again.
Sarcopenia & Aging
The loss of muscle mass and function, known as sarcopenia, is one of the most discouraging things about fitness for many older adults. While it is true that many people begin to lose power and mass in their muscles as they get older, there are things that can be done to prevent becoming frail.
Researchers split sarcopenia and frailty because not every person who experiences muscle loss as they get older reaches a state where they can't do regular tasks. On average, 5-13% of elderly people are affected by sarcopenia, according to one study.
This estimate clearly shows that natural muscle loss should not stop people from exercising to build muscle strength.
Strength training provides the same benefits for 40-year-olds as it does for people in their 20s and 30s. Muscles naturally tend to decline once we turn 30, but the worst effects of this loss can be put off with a regular training program that keeps muscles strong and even growing.
Other factors such as previous injuries and discomfort in joints can impede what kinds of workouts one can do and how strenuous the exercise can be, but age by itself should not preclude anyone over 40 from participating in strength training.
No matter your age or how long you have been working out, it is never too late to get in better physical shape. In this guide, you will find strength training tips that will help you build muscle no matter what age you are.
How Much Muscle Do You Lose With Age?
This muscle loss surprisingly doesn't happen during middle age. From around age 30, humans can lose 3 to 5% of their muscle mass each decade. Diet and levels of hormones can affect how severe muscle loss is.
How much muscle you lose is also affected by your personal history. If you have been working out for a long time and then stop, your body will start to lose muscle mass. If that loss is not dealt with, it could get worse, especially if combined with other losses.
Physical activity usually causes your body to build more muscle, which can help reduce muscle loss as you age. Working out is the best way to maintain muscle mass. If you stop working out, your body will stop building muscle mass.
Workout Tips For Over 40 Lifters
Implementing these tips into your workouts and lifestyle can help maintain and continue building your body enough to make people have a hard time believing your actual age:
Stretching
This is one of the biggest mistakes people make because it is often overlooked by all kinds of people. Stretching should be done for five minutes or less before and after exercising.
Sprints
Sprints are a better form of cardio than treadmill or Stair Master machine. First of all, they work and work fast. A 20-to-30-minute session of vigorous activity will burn twice as many calories and fat as the aforementioned moderate options. Jogging can basically be done anywhere – you don't need a special location like a gym or running track. You can do it in your local park, on the street you live on, or anywhere else. Sprint 20 yards and then rest for 10 seconds. Repeat this. As your stamina improves, up it to 30 yards.
Machines Over Free Weights
Free weights like barbells and dumbbells build more muscle and strength than weight machines, but they can also be more taxing on your joints and muscles. Therefore, for certain exercises, it is better to use machines in order to avoid pain or other problems. You definitely don't want to get injured and have to miss out on playing for weeks.
Drop Sets
A good way to increase blood flow to your muscles and help them grow is to do tricep push-downs with 100 pounds for 12 reps, and then immediately reduce the weight to 60 pounds for another 12 reps. Include drop sets in your workout routine, especially with an isolation exercise.
Lighter Weight
Remember when you first started working out? The only thing that mattered was how much weight you could lift with your arms. Proper form? Amount of reps? Who cared; maxing out was key. The era of those days is over, and they never should have existed in the first place. Now that you are more knowledgeable, start by using a weight that you can lift 12-15 times with proper form. You don't always have to add more weight from set to set. If you are able to do the exercise while maintaining the correct form, make sure you can still do 10 repetitions. Anything less and you’re going too heavy.
Time Under Tension
The most engaging aspect of training is when your muscles are challenged. You will get the results you want if you keep the muscle you are trying to target (and any secondary muscle groups) tight the whole time you are working out. Not lifting a weight that is too heavy for you and stopping completely in between each repetition so that the weight can rest on a particular part of your body. An example of this would be performing a set of side dumbbell lateral raises and allowing the weights to touch your outer quad at the bottom of the rep. Controlling the weight better and stopping an inch before you touch your leg creates tension that taxes your delts.
Higher Reps
This follows the advice to both use lighter weights and increase the time the weight is under tension. Use your control over the weight to your advantage by doing more reps per set, up to 15 if you feel capable. You will get more out of the workout by pushing yourself to your limits and not just cheating for a few extra reps.
Vegetables
The greener, the better. My mom was always telling me to eat my veggies, even if I didn't like them. She said that I should try to eat at least two cups of them every day. A few forkfuls of steamed vegetables are not going to harm you and they are an essential part of a healthy diet.
Multivitamins
People should be cautious about believing everything they hear about these things, and should instead check the source of the information before deciding whether or not to believe it. You will not experience any negative effects from taking one multivitamin daily, and can only reap positive benefits. Even though you may eat a healthy and balanced diet, there are still nutrients that your body needs that you may not be getting from the foods you eat. Why take a chance?
More Protein
This is probably the easiest one to adhere to. The best options for protein are chicken, turkey, and fish, but you can also enjoy a big, juicy steak once a week without fear. If you increase your intake of fat while working out hard, it's not going to have a significant impact on your program.
Planks
One of the benefits of this movement is that it can be done easy and virtually anywhere. You should do four-to-five sets of plank hold, each for 60 seconds. This is a great way to start. These exercises will strengthen your lower back, abs, legs, and even your arms if you use the correct form.
Water
Drink lots of water, even if you don't feel thirsty. Although you may have to visit the restroom more frequently, drinking water is the healthiest option for your body. Always have plenty of water on hand while training and drink a 20-ounce glass 20 minutes before, during, and after every meal.
Golden Rules for Strength Training Over 40
No matter how old you are, it's always a challenge to build muscle mass. But lifters who are over 40 have some specific difficulties that they need to overcome. Here are 10 guidelines to ensure that your strength training workout routine meets your requirements.
Use Progressive Resistance Training (PRT)
No matter what your level of experience is, a PRT program is the best way to maintain your muscle mass. PRT operates on a logic common to many bodybuilders: when your muscles arearger and stronger, increase the difficulty of the workout by adding moreweight, reps, or sets.
Avoid magical cure-alls like testosterone supplements. The more you use your muscles, the stronger they will become. The human body is adaptable and will become accustomed to the level of strain you regularly put on it. To continue making progress, you must consistently increase the level of difficulty.
PRT can help improve your body's overall performance by building muscle strength. The study found that lead reduced pain in participants with osteoarthritis. Although it may seem intimidating, working your muscles until they are exhausted is an effective way to build strength in different areas of your body.
If you organize the exercises in your PRT routine, you can work your muscles to their fullest potential, so they gain as much strength as possible. You can build muscle and strength by working out more intensely with rest days, or by doing more reps more frequently at a lower intensity. Either way, you will see considerable health benefits.
Spare Your Joints
Working out without proper form can lead to injuries in the joints. When you injure yourself severely, it not only causes stress, but can also stop you from working out.
The bench press is a classic bodybuilding exercise that helps build strength in your core and upper body, but it can also be tough on your joints. If you want to avoid injuries to your shoulder joint or painful conditions like rotator cuff tendinitis, it's a good idea to incorporate a variety of exercises into your training plan, like the shoulder press. Bodyweight exercises usually require less pressure on your joints than other types of exercises.
If you want a more challenging workout, try adding a resistance band to your bodyweight exercises. Banded exercises involve using a band to keep your muscles activated throughout the entire exercise, as opposed to traditional weight-training moves, which only activate muscles in certain sections.
Focus on Functional Strength
While many people aspire to have a fit and toned body, it becomes increasingly difficult to achieve as we age. This is because our muscle tissue changes as we get older. The reason it is more imperative to do workouts that increase the amount of strength your body needs to do regular things like walking, jumping, holding weight, and going up and down the stairs. To build the best functional strength, use exercises that are similar to activities you do every day.
The Stairmaster is a doozy of an exercise machine that helps you build some seriously useful strength. If you use the proper form while doing stair-climbing exercises, you can protect your knees from pain and reduce your risk of knee injuries in the future.
Functions exercises that improve your balance and walking, as well as overall strength are the best for functional strength. These simple exercises are great for warming up or for those new to fitness. The following exercises are some of the best for more experienced lifters: single-leg Romanian deadlifts, front squats, and full-body workouts like deadlifts.
