Skip to content

Stay Strong As You Age

3 min read

New findings published in the journal Age and Aging show that approximately one out of three adults age 50 and older suffer from sarcopenia, a progressive loss of muscle mass and strength. On average, adults lose eight percent of their muscle per decade starting at age 40. That rate speeds up to 15 percent per decade starting around age 70.

This affects one’s ability to walk, get up out of a chair, and grip or lift objects. But this can be fixed! Resistance exercises like weight lifting and an increased daily intake of protein with essential amino acids can improve muscle mass, strength, and function, say the researchers.

Diet for Sarcopenia

Sarcopenia prevention requires attention to your diet. To ensure you are getting enough protein, eat protein from a variety of sources; this will provide different amounts of the essential amino acids, so they balance out and give your body the materials it needs to build and maintain muscle. Rotate your foods so you don’t eat the same thing every day. Here are some of the best sources of protein:

  • Fish (see our guide to learn which are the best types of fish to eat)
  • Poultry
  • Grass-fed beef
  • Pastured pork
  • Greek yogurt and kefir
  • Pastured eggs
  • Legumes (lentils, chickpeas, black beans, kidney beans, aduki beans, mung beans, green peas, etc.)
  • Tempeh
  • Tofu
  • Nuts
  • Spirulina
  • High protein veggies (kale, broccoli, spinach, collard greens, etc.)

Many people think of protein mainly at dinnertime, but it’s actually important to eat protein at every meal so that it’s digested and absorbed well. A steady supply of protein throughout the day can be helpful for preventing muscle loss with age. Since most people seem to have the hardest time getting protein in at breakfast, here are some great ideas for high-protein breakfasts:

  • Mini muffin-tin frittatas with veggies and protein (like cut-up sausage)
  • Egg scramble with canned or smoked salmon, greens, cheese, and dill or parsley
  • Turkey bacon, egg, and/or hummus breakfast sandwich (or collard wrap for a low-carb, gluten-free version)
  • Smoothie with protein powder, greens, berries, chia seeds, and flax oil (or whatever you like in your smoothies, as long as there’s lots of protein!)
  • Greek yogurt with fruit and nuts/seeds
  • Overnight oats with protein powder, Greek yogurt, and/or nut butter
  • Breakfast hash with root veggies, greens, and a protein of your choosing (chicken, sausage, bacon, eggs, tempeh, tofu…)
  • Huevos rancheros (or tofu rancheros for vegans)
  • Homemade breakfast patties with leftover veggies (or quinoa patties for vegetarians/vegans)
  • Baked sweet potato topped with nut butter (plus a little leftover protein on the side)
  • Protein pancakes
  • Shakshuka (eggs cooked in a tomato sauce), may be served with socca on the side for dipping (make it the night before to save time in the morning)

Stay Strong As You Age: Exercises for Sarcopenia

The most important type of exercise to maintain muscle mass and reduce risk of sarcopenia is resistance training. Any type of resistance or strength training will help maintain lean muscle mass. If you have never strength trained before, start low and slow. Start with just 10 reps of an exercise with no weight or lightweight.

As you grow stronger, be sure to progressively increase the intensity of the exercise by increasing the weight or number of reps. Be sure to perfect the form for an exercise before increasing intensity. If you’re just beginning and have never tried these exercises before, start with easier modifications.

For people with more strength or experience, try the challenging modifications. Here are some examples of compound exercises that use multiple muscle groups at once, maximizing your benefits:

  • Lunges
    • Easier modifications: standing lunges (as opposed to walking lunges), reverse lunges (step backwards instead of forwards into your lunge)
    • Challenging modifications: walking lunges, clock lunges, lateral lunges, lunges while holding a weight extended over your head
  • Squats
    • Easier modifications: squat down as far as you can without rounding your back (which may only be a quarter or halfway down to getting your thighs parallel with the floor — that’s ok!), squat onto a chair, turn your feet out at a 45-degree angle, stand with your feet wider apart (sumo squat)
    • Challenging modifications: squat deeper than parallel, goblet squat, dumbbell squat, dumbbell squat to shoulder press, split squat (which is a kind of like a lunge, but with your back leg elevated)
  • Chest press
    • To make this easier or harder, just change the weight. We can do these with a barbell, dumbbells, or resistance bands. Dumbbells and resistance bands allow you to start with a lower weight and will also challenge your core stability
  • Rows
    • We can do these bent over, with a straight back, using dumbbells, or with a resistance band looped around a solid pole. If you have access to a gym, there are probably machines with different grips you can switch out to work different muscles

Look on YouTube for videos from personal trainers with tips about how to perform these exercises in proper form. If in doubt, book at least a few sessions with a personal trainer to learn how to perform exercises in excellent form.

Cruz, A.J. Prevalence of and interventions for sarcopenia in aging adults: a systematic review. Report of the International Sarcopenia Initiative [EWGSOP and IWGS]. Age and Aging. 2014; 0:1-12.

Article originally published in Good Health Lifestyles magazine, Winter 2017. Recommendations added by Peach Vitamins staff.

[wps_products product_id=”6543183052835″ html_template=”product.php”]