Many adults over the age of 50 mistakenly believe that only young and fit people can do resistance training with weights. They don’t realize that seniors can benefit from resistance training, too! Resistance training offers a multitude of important health benefits for people of all ages.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published a writing titled The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, and they stated the following:
“Adults should also do muscle-strengthening activities of moderate or greater intensity and that involve all major muscle groups on two or more days a week, as these activities provide additional health benefits. As part of their weekly physical activity, older adults should do multicomponent physical activity that includes balance training as well as aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities.”
No matter your age or fitness level, it is important to not feel intimidated by the idea of weight training. Start slow, with a lower amount of weight. Just stay consistent and try to increase the amount of weight once you feel it’s getting too easy. This is how you increase your endurance, muscle strength, and overall physical health.
Some of the Many Benefits to Resistance Training
Below are six reasons why you should consider adding more resistance training to your fitness routine, especially if you are over the age of 50. Seniors can benefit from resistance training in all of these ways:
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Focus on training for strength:
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- Some people train to increase their muscle size (hypertrophy), but those over the age of 50 should focus on training for strength instead. One can improve muscular strength by lifting more weight. If you do fewer repetitions with heavier resistance, your muscle strength will be enhanced without increasing its size too much.
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Resistance-training machines are a handy tool:
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- Resistance-training machines are great for seniors because they allow you to safely use more resistance. They provide a sense of security that you will not drop the weights and get injured, so they’re safe for everyone.
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Try compound, multi joint exercises:
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- Some examples of these are the leg press, seated row, shoulder press, chest press, and lat pull-down. These are great exercises that can improve muscular coordination, training many muscles and joints to work together and handle high levels of force.
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Resistance training can help elevate levels of muscle-building hormones:
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- No matter your age, strength training can help your body increase efficiency when producing hormones that help build and repair muscle.
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Lifting heavy can make you smarter:
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- An article by ACE Fitness states that “lifting heavy weights increases the hormone IGF-1, which is related to the production of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). This protein is responsible for stimulating the growth of new neurons in the brain and enhancing communication between existing pathways.” So, lifting heavy weights could boost levels of brain-building chemicals and make you smarter.
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You can improve your self-confidence:
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- Resistance training on a regular basis will give you confidence in your daily life, knowing you can lift heavy items without getting injured. You will feel confident the next time you have to place luggage in the overhead bin on an airplane, or move some heavy furniture.
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The Guidelines to Resistance Training
At any age, one can reap the greatest benefits if they are lifting enough weight to cause fatigue after 6 to 12 repetitions. When your muscles are no longer able to complete another full repetition, they’re fatigued.
Stay consistent with this in order to get the best results, and increase the amount of weight once you realize you can do a lot more than 12 repetitions with the initial starting weight.
All forms of exercise provide benefits to your health, but resistance training on a regular basis is one of the quickest ways to achieve the specific benefits listed above.
Seniors Can Benefit From Resistance Training at Body Balance
If all of this seems intimidating to you, don’t worry. This is where Body Balance comes into play. We are a unique small business that is different from many other gyms, especially the big fitness centers with rows and rows of fitness machines and 100 lb dumbbells. It is easy for anyone to feel intimidated or out of place when entering a gym like that.
Our goal is always to make you feel comfortable in our atmosphere, and to help you gain confidence in yourself so that you realize that you can lift weights, too! So many of our clients come to our business for the first time feeling unsure that they would be able to achieve their fitness goals.
We love witnessing our senior clients surprise themselves when they lift an amount of weight they never thought they would be able to lift again. And the best part is when they ask if they can try lifting even more.
So give it a shot, you never know how much your body can handle until you start training. There is nothing more motivating and confidence-boosting than realizing that you can lift more weight than before, and still do multiple reps!
McCall, Pete. “Benefits of Resistance Training for Seniors.” ACE Fitness, 5 Jan. 2024, www.acefitness.org/resources/everyone/blog/7308/benefits-of-resistance-training-for-seniors/.
