Strength Training and Sarcopenia
As life expectancy rises, one of the greatest challenges we face is not just living longer—but living stronger. Among older adults, sarcopenia—the age-related loss of muscle mass and strength—affects roughly 10–16% of people worldwide. This condition impacts mobility, independence, and overall health, increasing the risk of falls, frailty, and even cognitive decline.
What Exactly Is Sarcopenia?
Sarcopenia is a progressive condition marked by shrinking muscle fibers, loss of function, and reduced ability to repair damaged cells. Muscle mass naturally declines at about 1% per year after the age of 30, with a sharper drop after 70. Without intervention, this process accelerates, making daily tasks increasingly difficult and and can leave you feeling feeble.
While no drug currently exists to “cure” sarcopenia, one intervention consistently shows powerful results: strength training.
Studies show that:
Even people over 80 years old can build muscle and strength through supervised resistance training.
Training at 60–80% of maximum strength yields significant improvements in both muscle quality and function.
Pairing strength training with nutritional strategies, such as adequate protein(0.8-2.2g/kg bw daily), omega-3s, or creatine (3-5g daily), enhances results
It's about living the weight TODAY to take care of the TOMORROW you. The changes it will make to people around you are incredible and you can even get to still enjoy the fun things in life such as hiking, running with the children or basic things around home.
Take home: Aging is inevitable, but frailty doesn’t have to be.