Episode 27: The Benefits of Weightlifting for Seniors with Dr. Andrea Wilkinson (Part 1)
Introduction
According to the Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines, adults (aged 65 and older) should be getting “at least 150 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity per week, in bouts of 10 minutes or more”
But, we know that many older adults are not engaging in enough physical activity to reach these prescribed guidelines. In general, but especially for seniors, inactivity and a sedentary lifestyle can be damaging – increase risk of heart disease, stroke, obesity and diabetes (to name a few).
Inactive adults experience a 3% to 8% loss of muscle mass per decade, accompanied by a reduction in their resting metabolic rate and an accumulation of fat.
But, from the research, we know that weightlifting (strength training or resistance training – whatever you want to call it) can be widely beneficial for an older adult population. However, many older adults are afraid of weightlifting - often because it has never been a part of their regular routine. But, we know that muscle strength is so important to maintain with increasing age. It enables people to keep performing activities of daily living (e.g., lifting heavy bags of groceries or moving a big pot of stew). Maintaining muscle strength in adulthood is especially important because muscle mass and strength are known to decrease with age.
In fact, from age 50, muscle mass begins to decrease by 1-2% annually and from age 60 and on muscle mass begins to decrease by 3% annually.
Today, I want to talk to you about an incredible article I read on RunRepeat.com called the “78 Science Backed Benefits of Weightlifting for Seniors”. The author – Nicholas Rizzo researched and read over 200 studies in order to write this article; so, today, I want to share with you some of the key information he uncovered. If you are interested – the article can be found on the “runrepeat.com” (click here to access the article).
Before we get started - let’s talk about safety. As with people of any age, there is a level of danger that comes with lifting weights. So, if you have never done it before, I suggest that you consult with a trained professional before taking on any new exercise habits. But, as we will cover today, there have been hundreds of studies where the research volunteers are aged 60+ and weight training can definitely be safe if done properly.
Some key tips are to always use safe equipment and always warm up before you start lifting weights and cool down afterwards. As would be expected, using the correct form is extremely important; so, as I mentioned, please consult with an expert before you get started with any new resistance training. You also want to start small and only increase the intensity of your workouts as you build up your strength.
Weightlifting & Age-related Muscle Loss
We have already talked about the fact that our muscle mass begins to decrease with increasing age; but, it is estimated that around 5-13% of adults aged 60-70 years old and 11-50% for those aged 80 or above suffer from sarcopenia (or age-related muscle loss). This issue can lead to an increase in frailty and a significant increase in the risk of falls.
Lifting weights can help to improve muscle mass, muscle quality and general strength overall.
If you start to include some resistance training into your exercise routine, you will not only be building muscle, your overall endurance will have a boost as well.
Research shows that weightlifting can improve endurance of the muscles themselves, aerobic conditioning, and walking speed. Study participants also demonstrated an increase in the amount of oxygen used during exercise.
In fact, research shows that long-term lifting is the best way to prevent age-related muscle loss from ever becoming an issue.
But what if you haven’t been lifting weights long-term? What if you’re just getting started? How much weightlifting do you have to do to see the benefits?
One group of researchers found that doing one set of strength training exercises three times a week (for 12weeks) was enough to demonstrate an increase in strength and skeletal muscle mass, as well as a decrease in body fat in older women. The researchers also showed that by increasing the number of sets from one to three; so, doing three sets of exercises three times a week resulted in a dramatic boost in these already incredible results.
Weightlifting & Your Metabolism
As you age, your hormonal levels begin to change, your muscle mass decreases (as we just talked about), and your metabolism begins to slow down. If you combine these natural changes with less physical activity on a daily basis (which happens to some adults as their mobility changes with age), the result is an increase of fat mass, which can damage your metabolic health.
But did you know that lifting weights not only improves muscle strength, but it can also help you to burn fat. Research shows that strength training can decrease both total and intra-abdominal fat (aka the fat found between your internal organs) in older individuals.
One of the reasons that resistance training leads to weight loss is because it helps to speed up your metabolism.
Research has found that as little as 10weeks of resistance training can increase your metabolic rate by 7% and decrease fat weight by 1.8kg (just about 4 lbs). So, not only does lifting weights lead to weight loss and muscle gain, it also increases the number of calories your body is burning.
Weightlifting & Risk of Falls
I know - you want to stay independent for as long as possible; but, one major risk factor that can compromise your level of independence is a fall. So, you want to avoid experiencing a fall as much as possible and weight training has been associated with improvements in balance, which ultimately reduces your risk of falls.
Specifically, resistance training helps to improve your neuromuscular function – which is your body’s ability to control your movements through knowing where your body and your limbs are in relation to one another and your environment.
Another important component of reducing the risk of falls is flexibility. Having flexibility in your joints allows you to function in the most optimal way. Research indeed shows that strength training leads to improvement in flexibility across many important joints in your body, as well as improves flexibility in your hip flexors.
Interestingly weightlifting has also been shown to reduce the fear of falling in older adults who have both experienced a previous fall, as well as those who have not.
Weightlifting will help reduce your risk of falls by improving your balance, flexibility, neuromuscular function, which ultimately supports you to live an independent life for as long as possible.
Weightlifting, Osteoarthritis & Bone Health
Over 30 million adults in the US, and nearly five million Canadians, struggle with osteoarthritis. This diagnosis is associated with a great deal of stiffness, loss of flexibility in the joints and pain during movement.
Research shows that weightlifting is associated with a reduction in pain and improvement in function for those affected by osteoarthritis.
Resistance training also improves the health of your bones. In fact, research shows that adults who do not perform resistance training may experience a 1% to 3% reduction in bone mineral density every year of life.
Exercise interventions that promote muscle gain also increase bone mineral density. For example, we see a significant increase in bone mineral density following 4 to 24 months of resistance training. In fact, evidence shows that these types of approaches to exercise can prevent or even reverse about 1% bone loss per year in older women. Of note, the research also shows that a termination of the resistance training program leads to a reversal of the bone mineral density gains.
So, weightlifting has been demonstrated to have a positive impact on reducing osteoarthritic pain and improving bone health by increasing bone mineral density!
Weightlifting & Cardiovascular Health
Aging can cause changes in the heart and blood vessels. These changes may increase your risk of heart disease. Heart disease (or cardiovascular disease) generally refers to conditions that result in the narrowing or blockage of blood vessels (often due to the buildup of fatty deposits over many years), and this can lead to heart attack or stroke. But, there’s good news! There are many things you can do to reduce your risk of heart disease. One of them is – you guessed it – weightlifting!
Weightlifting has been shown to improve many factors related to cardiovascular health – one of them is blood pressure. Lifting weights can help to lower your blood pressure in the long term. But, you shouldn’t be lifting weights if your blood pressure is high or uncontrolled. Talk to your doctor to discuss any precautions or special considerations!
Research also shows that weightlifting can lead to decreases in bad cholesterol and increases in good cholesterol among older adults.
These findings strongly support the importance of weightlifting in healthy aging – not just to lose weight and build up the muscle in your arms and legs, but also to strengthen your most important muscle – your heart, and also helps contribute to the health of your cardiovascular system overall.
Conclusion
All of the information covered in this episode is from an amazing article written by Nicholas Rizzo on RunRepeat.com. To learn more about the “78 Science Backed Benefits of Weightlifting for Seniors” you can access his article by clicking here.
I hope that this episode taught you about the special benefits you can get from weightlifting when it comes to reducing age-related muscle loss, increasing your metabolism, reducing your risk of falls, improving your bone health and optimizing your cardiovascular health.
Don’t forget to tune in next week (episode 28), where we’ll be sharing part 2 of this series on the benefits of weightlifting for seniors. Specifically, we will discuss the impact of weightlifting on cognition, mental health, mortality rates, how your body processes glucose (or sugar) and your sleep!