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By Jason Greenspan
After the age of 50, adults typically lose about 1% of their leg strength and 0.5% of their bone mineral density (Gourlay et al. 2012) every year.
At Silver Stars one of our biggest focuses is lower body training. Training the lower body is often forgotten about (especially if you’re a male) and easier to get away with when you’re in your twenties or thirties, but when you’re over 50, training the lower body is a must. It’s important to first address the real foundation, which is the foot & ankle. If the foot and ankle are weak and tight, joints like the knees and hips and even the lower back can be affected. We then work on strengthening the front and back of the thighs, the hips and buttock.
Training the lower body will help you get up from a chair and the floor, climb steps with ease, walk, jog, run, play sports, avoid a fall and even help you to put your pants on. So training the lower body will help you to maintain and increase your mobility for life.
Science tells us that in order to build strength there needs to be a challenge when performing exercise. This doesn’t mean that you need to be exhausted after each set, but the last couple of repetitions should be somewhat hard in order to build strength. To increase strength as opposed to endurance, you should be challenged by the twelfth repetition. If you can perform an exercise for more than twelve repetitions, then you are buiding more endurance- not strength.
We typically incorporate functional movements to increase leg strength such as squats or sit to stands, all different types of lunges and step-ups, which is stepping up and down a step. Silver Stars trainers also work on isolation exercises to build stability, which is usually our first step. Bridges, clams specifically for the buttock (the most important muscle) because the buttock stabilizes your hips, knees and low back. Inner and outer thigh work and straight leg raises are also included.
So lower body strength is obviously very important as we age, but let’s not forget about muscle POWER. Muscle power is your ability to do something fast. Studies actually show that power will fade faster than strength and is more of a crucial aspect of fitness that will determine a high quality of life as you age. Although strength is needed to perform any activity fast, if you don’t practice performing movements at faster speeds, the body will not be trained to do things at a faster pace. Power is very much a part of real life.
Think about how you stand up from a chair or push or pull a door opened or climb steps. We perform these activities quickly, unless we’re not strong enough to do so. Being able to produce a force quickly will also help avoid a fall as your reaction time will also improve, which will possibly help to catch yourself and recover from slipping on a piece of ice or a crack in the sidewalk.
Silver Stars Can Help YOU:
- Lose Weight, Burn calories & Increase Energy
- Improve Cardio Endurance, Balance & Posture
- Increase Core & Overall Strength & Power
- Help You Move, Feel & Look Better
Schedule Your Free Fitness or Nutrition Consultation Now & Feel Better Later.
Info@silverstarsfit.com
www.silverstarsfit.com
646-573-9724
Special Trial is for new clients only and as space permits.
