Does it feel like you are eating the same amount of food, but you put on more weight as you get older and it's harder to lose that extra weight? It's because we lose muscle as we get older and muscle loss slows down your metabolism. When you have a slow metabolism, you burn fat slower so that’s why you can’t keep on eating the way you have when you were younger without putting on the extra kilos.
When do we start to age? A steady decline takes place around the age of thirty, but the effects of this decline only become obvious around the age of fifty. Your muscles grow larger and stronger from birth to about 30, but at some point, in your thirties you start to lose muscle mass due to age related sarcopenia.
Inactive people can lose as much as 3% - 5% of their muscle mass each decade after age 30. Even active people still have some muscle loss.
After the age of 30 you will lose between 0.5% - 1% of your muscle mass every year unless you engage in regular physical activity to prevent it. Regular resistance training (strength training) and a healthy eating plan that includes adequate amounts of protein can prevent most of the muscle loss.
If you want to change this ageing downward spiral, you need to build muscle so that you can have a fast metabolism. That is why lifting heavy things are so important as you're getting older.
It will improve your quality of life, increase your strength, increase your muscle mass or replace lost muscle tissue, increase your bone mineral density, decrease arthritic pain, improve joint stability, reduce joint pain, and generally make you happier.
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