How to Improve Muscle Strength As You Age

You may think losing muscle mass is inevitable, but these things help keep muscles stronger.

As you age, your body loses muscle mass. It typically begins around age 30 and continues over time, usually speeding up after age 60. At first, you may not notice changes in your strength since the decline occurs gradually. But at some point, it may become obvious that you aren't as strong as you used to be.

Although muscles inevitably weaken as you get older, you don't have to simply let it happen without doing anything about it. You can take steps to slow down the rate at which muscle mass declines. This can improve your quality of life and may even increase how long you live since stronger muscles make it less likely you'll fall.

5 Tips to Improve Muscle Strength

Your daily habits help keep muscles stronger as you age. Here are 5 things you can do to improve muscle strength, balance, coordination, flexibility and mobility:

• Move more – Aim to exercise at least 30 minutes on five or more days per week. If you're not used to exercising, every little bit helps. Take a walk, clean your house, pull weeds or attend an exercise class. Aerobic exercise, like walking, biking or swimming, increases muscle strength. Strength training exercises using light weights, resistance bands or your body weight should be done at least twice weekly. Flexibility exercises like stretching, yoga and Pilates help maintain balance, coordination and mobility.
• Eat properly – Make sure your diet includes enough protein to build and repair muscles. High-protein foods include poultry, lean meats, fish, eggs, legumes, beans, tofu and dairy. Also include plenty of calcium and vitamin D for strong bones and muscles, which you can get from dairy, leafy greens and fortified foods.
• Stay well hydrated – There are many important reasons to drink enough water. Keeping your muscles strong and healthy is one of them. When you're dehydrated, it can affect how your muscles contract. It also makes it harder to deliver nutrients to your muscles and to remove waste.
• Prioritize habits that make muscles stronger – Getting enough sleep and managing stress are habits that can help you stay healthier overall. They may also help keep your muscles stronger. Sleep regulates hormones important for muscle growth. Your body also does most of its rebuilding and repairing while you sleep. Stress makes muscles tense and reduces flexibility and mobility so reducing stress is good for muscle health.
• Avoid habits that diminish muscle strength – It may seem unrelated, but habits like smoking or drinking alcohol may make it harder for muscles to work properly, repair themselves or grow.

Signs Your Muscle Strength is Declining

Since most people gradually lose muscle mass, these signs of decreased muscle strength may not be very obvious:

• You're weaker than you used to be – It may be harder to lift or carry objects, climb stairs or do things you used to do, like jumping or bending.
• You don't have as much stamina as before – You may find it harder to perform physical activities as long as you used to because your muscles get tired.
• Your metabolism isn't as robust – It may be harder to maintain your body weight because your metabolism slows as muscle mass decreases.

Although changes to your exercise habits and diet may help improve muscle strength, talk to your doctor before starting any new exercise routine or diet, especially if you have any chronic health conditions.