To Lift or Not to Lift
Your muscles can start to deteriorate as young as 25, putting you at risk of injury and more. The neurons that control muscles in both genders are programmed to die off with age. It’s also more difficult for women to replace lost muscle than it is for men.
Women have less muscle than men to begin with so they can’t afford to loose it. With exercise, older women can build up muscle and achieve “net muscle gain” so building muscle is like a retirement savings: The more you invest in your muscles now, the larger the base you have to function longer in your later years.
Building muscle helps build stronger bones, burns fat and supports your whole bodies infrastructure. The other bonus is it doesn’t take long to do.
For women there are three key areas we can focus on where we can build muscle for a strong and healthy body.
1. The upper body
As we get older we tend to not lift or push things as much. Strong trapezius, deltoids, biceps and tricep muscles could really make a difference later in life.
Our legs are stronger, we walk around all day carrying our body weight but our arm, shoulder and neck muscles could someday make a difference doing basic tasks such as carrying groceries or your grandkids. They are all interconnected and the weaker they are, the more prone you are to neck strain.
Exercise to do: To maintain upper body strength, push-ups are the best. Wall push-ups (the farther away your feet are from the wall, the tougher the push-up) and floor push-ups (on knees is fine). Do 10 on the wall and 10 on the floor daily.
2. The core
The core muscles are not only the rectus abdominis (the muscle that makes up a “six-pack”), there are deeper muscle layers, including the internal and external oblique, transversus abdominis and multifidus muscles, that need to be strong avoiding extra strain on our lower back.
To target all the core muscles, activate them during a workout. A way to do this is to engage all your core muscles like you're preparing for someone to punch you in the stomach.
Exercise to do: Forearm plank which strengthens and builds endurance in key core muscles. Lie face down on the floor, resting on your forearms with your elbows tucked into your sides. Raise your body on your forearms and toes, and hold it in a straight line for 30 seconds, being careful not to let your knees or hips sink, look down at the floor so your head is in line with your back. Gradually build up the duration until you can hold for a full minute. Do four daily.
3. The pelvis
Pelvic floor muscles are the muscles that connect the pubic bone and tailbone and are responsible for maintaining sexual, bladder and bowel function, supporting organs. They also facilitate the actions of the spine and legs. Women are susceptible to weakness in this area, particularly after childbirth.
Exercise to do: two exercises for pelvic muscles, including the coccygeus and levator ani: Lie on your back with bent knees, feet on the floor, and then smoothly draw in lower belly muscles as though you are trying to button a low rise pair of jeans. Hold for a count of five, then slowly release. Do 10 of these twice daily.
For a second exercise, lie on your back, and lift the internal pelvic muscles in and up (your hips don’t actually come off the floor) for a count of five, then slowly lower for a count of five. Do three sets of these a day.
In addition to exercises, eating lean protein helps women with muscle protein synthesis which is the process that breaks down food to build muscle. Women need power and endurance in addition to muscle to help perform daily activities and reduce the risk of falls.
These target zones you should exercise now, so that as you age you will stay strong and be able to travel whether it’s to the grocery store or around the world.
I don’t know about you but feeling strong makes me stand taller and feel more confident. For me there’s something great about being able to build muscle. I know it does my body good.
XO, Unstuck Girl