"Use it or Loose it."| EP Physio Plus

Have you noticed that you’re losing your strength as you get older? Are physical tasks that used to be easy, now feeling like a challenge? Are those muscles that once felt firm and toned beginning to feel squishy and soft?

It’s not uncommon for people to lose muscle mass as they age. Age-related muscle loss (medically termed ‘Sarcopenia’) can be due to hormonal changes, reduced metabolism and many other potential age-related changes within your body.

However, this muscle loss is not completely inevitable! The image below is proof…

This top image shows a cross-section view of a 40-year old triathlete’s leg from an MRI. The dark portion is the quadricep muscle, and the white portion is adipose tissue (fat).

Now, compare the two images below this…

The middle image shows what can happen to your muscle mass when living a sedentary lifestyle. There is far less muscle and much more fat tissue.

The bottom image proves that even at the age of 70, if you continue to be physically active and exercise, then you can maintain a large amount of your muscle mass!!

The moral of the story is “use it or lose it”- if you remain active and engage your muscles on a regular basis, with adequate recovery and nutrition, then you can maintain your muscle mass and continue to be healthy and active moving forwards.

However, if you’ve decided that you’re getting old and you need to slow down a little bit because of your age, then think again! The best way to combat the age-related loss in muscle mass is to remain active as much as you can. Don’t let minor niggles and injuries keep you from being active, because the longer you leave them, the harder it is to regain the strength and conditioning you once had.

If this is sounding familiar, don’t worry, not all hope is lost! Resistance training has shown to be effective in increasing muscle strength, muscle size and functional capacity in older adults. It’s never too late to begin, just give us a call on 08 8682 6665 to arrange a consultation with one of our Physiotherapists or Exercise Physiologists to begin your journey.

"Use it or Loose it".