FIGHTING AGE WITH MUSCLE

 Anti-aging is big business in world today. Everywhere you look you see an ad for a cream, lotion, or a procedure, even clothing that can “make you look younger”. Defying our actual age has become a mainstream activity. I bet most of you either participate in some sort of “age defying” action or know some who does.

 I think it’s great. Who wants to look older than they have to? I sure don’t.

 Now here is the important question………………..How many of you, on the age defying wagon, know the most important component of the “age game” and are participating in it?

 What is the most important component of the age game? Surgery? Hormone balancing and/or replacement? Age-defying cream applied daily? Botox perhaps? The answer to all of those is no, however they each have their place in the quest to look younger.

 So, what is the “magic bullet”?………………..why it’s exercise, of course. More precisely, weight training. ……………Disappointed? My guess, is that if you are not participating in a weight training program, you are and if you regularly lift weights you are sitting there with a smug little smile on your face; good for you.

 The reality is that research in the science of anti-aging is moving at light speed. New results are coming out every week. And the overwhelming consensus by the leading researchers in the world is that you can fight age with muscle!

 I’m not just talking about looking good. Sure, that’s a huge motivator in this whole anti-aging game. What I am talking about is the fact that muscle mass can serve as the body’s armor against a host of age-related and inactivity-related diseases. I am talking about a key component in your overall health.

 Remember a few months ago, when I wrote an article based on the best selling book, “Younger Next Year”? The author of that book had a great quote. He said, “We all have to age, but we do not have to rot”. This is what I am talking about.

 You can get all the procedures done that your money can buy, but unless you are doing something to keep or increase your muscle mass, through regular weight training, you are continuing to “rot” on the inside.

 The science of all of this can be complicated, but I think it is important to at least understand the basics. Let me help you understand a little better what happens on the inside of your body, in relation weight training and your muscle mass.

 All of us, without intervention, will suffer from sarcopenia, or the loss of muscle mass. This occurs naturally with age……….it is inevitable unless you do something. After the age of 25 or 30, your body will lose muscle mass slowly; about a fifth to a half a pound a year. When you reach the age of around 50, that rate of loss picks up dramatically; a loss of one or one and a half pounds per year! Although the loss over a couple of decades can be significant, most do not notice it happening. This is because, in our society, lost muscle is most often replaced with fat.

 Don’t feel bad if you were not aware of the serious medical condition. It has not been on the front pages for long. Even many medical doctors are still “in the past” only recommending walking or other aerobic exercises to maintain good health. The truth is, the term “sarcopenia” has only been used since 1988. Before this there was no medical term for this age-related muscle loss.

 Since 1988 and the recognition of this condition, there has been much research done on the consequences of losing muscle. The results have been astonishing. In 2000, I attended a national conference for the American College of Sports Medicine; a collection of the leading doctors and researchers in the exercise field. And at that meeting, the key note speaker, Dr. Steven Blair, stated that, “the biggest disservices we (exercise physiologists, etc.) have done to the general public is UNDERESTIMATE the importance of weight training.

 Now there are many leading scientists in exercise physiology that are dedicated to researching this condition and all that can develop from it. They have seen their research point them in a direction that shows that over the age of 50, weight training is not an option, but a MUST if you want to optimize your overall health. A colleague of mine from the University of Illinois, Wojtek Chodzo-Zajko (I know, a mouthful) has been doing research on exercise and older adults for years. He has seen the change as science has learned more. In a recent article in “Best Life” magazine (Sept. 07), on this subject, he is quoted as saying, “we used to discourage older adults from lifting heavy weights. Now we’re telling them they can’t maintain overall health without it”

 So if it’s so important, why are we not hearing more about it? Why are we not being encouraged more by our doctors? Well, as some of said, the best antidote for sarcopenia, weight training, will never make a dime for the pharmaceutical companies.

 I don’t know if I am that cynical, but I do believe that the word needs to get out more. And the research showing all that can result from lack retaining your muscle mass will help.

 Recent research shows that diminished muscle mass is linked to a host of “age-related” diseases; heart disease, diabetes, atherosclerosis, decreased immune system strength, obesity, poor posture, stiffer joints, weaker bones. There have even been links between diminished muscle mass and cancer mortality.

 Studies have even shown relationships between muscle mass and the body’s cortical response to stress. Cortisol is a chemical in your body that is released by your adrenal glands when you are under stress. Long story short, it has been linked to obesity, because it cortisol that tells your brain to store abdominal fat. They even have infomercials selling pills to help you control cortisol (which do not work), but instead you could lift weights to combat that growing gut in later years. People with higher muscle mass show lower levels of depression and anxiety as well as lower recurrences of cancer. We are only at the beginning of realizing the relationship between muscle mass and disease, but we are learning so far is incredibly exciting.

 Another bit of physiology I would like to share with you is what happens to the actual muscle when you lose muscle mass. Your muscle does not just shrink. Tissue is actually destroyed. Your muscle is not a big blob; it is made up of tiny muscle fibers. These fibers, collectively, are your muscle. The work of the muscle (contracting and relaxing) is controlled by the motor cells of your nervous system. As I said, without intervention, you will begin losing muscle mass (muscle fibers) at about age 25. You can easily lose 10% of your total muscle mass by age 50. “Losing” muscle mass means you have let muscle fibers die………..not shrink, but die. In addition, when that muscle fiber dies, so does the motor cell it was attached to. So, you are not just losing strength, but you are losing control over your muscles. Think about the instability and rate of falls with older adults that have not exercised regularly. Do think this has to happen? I’m here to tell you, it doesn’t.

 There is more to this story, but I just wanted to give you a glimpse into this important aspect of your health and to remind you that you have a lot of control over how you age. Don’t just focus on the passive ways to deal with looking older………….GET PROACTIVE and be your own best anti-aging tool……………pump some iron! Get out there and challenge your muscles!