Should you try strength training?

Strength training isn’t what you think it is, and should be embraced at all ages.

When people hear the words "strength training" or think about lifting weights we often think of massive muscles, throwing heavy dumbbells around or chucking barbells above our heads.

It can sound intimidating, right?

In reality strength training can be something different altogether.

If you participate in strength training it helps preserve your muscle mass as you age (beginning around 30 years old, men and women begin to lose muscle mass at a rate of 10% per decade until the age of 50 where that loss increases to 15% per decade).

BUT, strength training not only helps to prevent/slow down this loss but more importantly it is the very thing that builds more muscle mass, and muscle mass is one of the healthiest things we can have. (Worth noting that "toning up" is simply seeing the muscle outline through your skin, you need to build the muscle in the first place to see the "tone").

Not only is muscle mass essentially what we see when we look "toned" it also plays a huge part in strength.

A base of strength can mean being capable of performing daily activities, keeping our bones strong and (the big one for us) is it helps us to stay independent/capable as you age. It means that things like falls are less likely and if we do fall, we have stronger bones so breaks are less likely, recovery will be faster and our quality of life will be better.

Not only that, but activities like walking & climbing stairs or getting up & down from chairs and generally staying independent and mobile as we age will be way more likely. That stuff matters.

Again, it's something that seems very pie in the sky and far away.... until it's not.

One of our favourite quotes :-

"Older adults are not fragile; fragility occurs when we stop challenging our bodies to move well and move strong with appropriate training programs.”

So to answer the initial question "should you try some strength training?" our answer would be ABSOLUTELY.

Its never to late to start. It can change your body and change your life. We promise.

Team APEX Kilmarnock.