Strength Training: The Key to Aging Strong with Freedom and Autonomy
But first, you need to own those weights.
As middle-aged women (wait, what?), we live in an exciting time.
Thanks to scientific research, we now have much more information about how to age stronger and break away from the association between being older and words like frail, weak, or useless.
We are mature and wise; we may get more wrinkles and grey hair, but frail? Not anymore. Today, being frail is often a choice (as long as you’re healthy).
I want to live longer but with my autonomy and freedom intact for as long as possible. One of the most powerful tools to achieve that is building muscle.
Our muscles keep us upright, support our bodies, maintain our metabolism, and help us stay balanced.
As we age, we naturally lose muscle. If we do nothing and watch, we risk becoming weak, losing balance, increasing our chance of falls and fractures, diminishing coordination, and maybe even struggling to open a jar.
The good news? With science on our side, we can combat this. Implementing strength training and consuming adequate protein at every meal prepares us for a bright future.
As we age, we must lift heavier weights to challenge and continue building our muscles.
This should be paired with sufficient protein to prevent breakdown and maintain our progress.
It’s crucial to eat protein with every meal, especially after exercising.
When you’re just starting, if you’ve never done strength training before, begin with light weights and many repetitions. This creates volume and prepares your body to increase weights safely, with good form and movement.
Once you’ve built a foundation in strength training, start reducing repetitions and increasing weights.
But don’t get me wrong: even in the beginning, you need to increase your weight gradually. The rule is: if it’s not challenging you if you can easily chit-chat during the exercise, the weight is too light for you.
How do you choose the correct weight?
Do the first round with a lightweight, then assess. If it feels too easy—increase the weight. If it feels too hard—decrease it. You should be able to complete the prescribed number of repetitions without losing form or quality of movement. However, you should struggle to finish when you have two reps left.
If you can easily keep going beyond the prescribed reps, your weight is likely too light and not challenging enough.
If you’re a total beginner, I highly recommend starting with a few professional personal training sessions. A trainer can help you understand your body and needs while developing a program that progresses safely and balances every muscle group.
