Stronger By the Day
Aug 03, 2022
Muscles respond to strength training at any age. (1)
What does this mean?
It’s absolutely never too late to get stronger!
I’ve read the science, and felt inspired, but still secretly figured that I would probably plateau in a few years, and be all washed up before long—hahaha–limiting beliefs, right?!
But then I keep on running into stories like this:
In her mid 60’s, Nora (@noraliftsheavy) struggled to walk up a flight of stairs. Tired of being so weak and out of shape, she found a trainer, and began lifting weights. Now, 13 years later, she holds the power lifting world records for her age, and continues to make strength gains and break her old records.
I found myself speechless when I heard her, at age 78, claim:
“Yeah, with another year of training, I should be able to beat that”
Her trainer, an old timer himself, nods confidently at her side.
What?! She's pushing 80!
Is Nora, and others I read about, an anomaly? I say no way. I am seeing my clients make considerable gains in their 70’s, with no end in sight.
And, those of us in our 50's? If we keep setting inspiring goals, and refuse to give up, we can harness all kinds of gains!
Let’s be clear though, as we get older, we need to get smarter too.
Quite simply:
As the mileage on our bodies increases, we get away with less.
Stuff we routinely used to get away with, such as…
…majoring in lousy food, skipping warm ups, partying too much, making a dent in the couch for months on end…
…will bite us hard in middle age.
To keep our bodies strong as we age, we need to:
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Choose motivating goals!
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Eat a solidly good diet, most of the time
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Warm up properly
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Maintain our joint integrity
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Strengthen our weak links
A supportive community will give us the edge we need!
Let’s make friends who inspire and encourage us!
We will also need to enlist experts along the way, people like trainers and physical therapists, who will help fill in the missing links in our knowledge, and keep us going.
When training for my last power lifting meet, as I began testing my heavier weights, my lower back began spasming, and all kinds of fear buzzers (and limiting beliefs) went off in my mind! You know the gunk:
“Who do I think I am to get strong!”
“This is stupid, I will hurt myself!”
My trainer saw it for what it was, some weak links! My hip flexors and parts of my core needed more attention. He gave me new exercises to add into my warm up and strength routines, and I am now stronger than ever!
As you move in the direction of your motivating dreams, your body will likely need help at times working with weak links, such as:
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Lagging parts of your body
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Mobility challenges
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Old injuries
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Dietary gaps
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Lifestyle blind spots
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Mindset challenges
If you are willing to learn, make small improvements as you go, and blaze on…
You go girl! Be prepared to amaze yourself!
Reference:
Younger Next Year for women, by C Crowley and H Lodge, MD. See chapter 11, The Biology of Strength Training.
