![\"Strength](\"https:\/\/images.onhealth.com\/images\/slideshow\/s1-bill-health-facts.png\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Even very small changes in muscle size can make a big
\ndifference in strength, especially in people who already
\nhave lost a lot of muscle. An increase in muscle that’s not
\neven visible to the eye can be all it takes to improve your
\nability to do things like get up from a chair or climb
\nstairs.<\/p>\n
Your muscles are active even when you are sleeping.
\nTheir cells are still doing the routine activities they
\nneed to do to stay alive. This work is called metabolism,
\nand it uses up calories. That can help keep your weight in
\ncheck, even when you are asleep!<\/p>\n
To do most of the following strength exercises, you need
\nto lift or push weights, and you need to keep gradually
\nincreasing the amount of weight you use. You can use the
\nhand and ankle weights sold in sporting-goods stores, or
\nyou can use things like emptied milk jugs filled with sand
\nor water, or socks filled with beans and tied shut at the
\nends.<\/p>\n
There are many alternatives to the exercises shown here.
\nFor example, you can buy a resistance band (it looks like a
\ngiant rubber band, and stretching it helps build muscle) at
\na sporting-goods store for under $10 to do other types of
\nstrength exercises. Or you can use the special strength-
\ntraining equipment at a fitness center.<\/p>\n
How Much, How Often<\/b>
\nDo strength exercises for all of your major muscle
\ngroups at least twice a week. Don’t do strength exercises
\nof the same muscle group on any 2 days in a row.
\nDepending on your condition, you might need to start out
\nusing as little as 1 or 2 pounds of weight, or no weight at
\nall. The tissues that bind the structures of your body
\ntogether need to adapt to strength exercises.
\nUse a minimum of weight the first week, then gradually
\nbuild up the weight. Starting out with weights that are too
\nheavy can cause injuries.<\/p>\n
At the same time, remember that you have to gradually
\nadd a challenging amount of weight in order to benefit from
\nstrength exercises. If you don’t challenge your muscles,
\nyou won’t benefit from strength exercises. (The
\n“Progressing” section below will tell you how.)
\nWhen doing a strength exercise, do 8 to 15 repetitions in a
\nrow. Wait a minute, then do another set of 8 to 15
\nrepetitions in a row of the same exercise. (Tip: While you
\nare waiting, you might want to stretch the muscle you just
\nworked or do a different strength exercise that uses a
\ndifferent set of muscles). <\/p>\n
Take 3 seconds to lift or push a weight into place; hold
\nthe position for 1 second, and take another 3 seconds to
\nlower the weight. Don’t let the weight drop; lowering it
\nslowly is very important.
\nIt should feel somewhere between hard and very hard (15 to
\n17 on the Borg scale) for you to lift or push the weight.
\nIt should not feel very, very hard. If you can’t lift or
\npush a weight 8 times in a row, it’s too heavy for you.
\nReduce the amount of weight. If you can lift a weight more
\nthan 15 times in a row, it’s too light for you. Increase
\nthe amount of weight.<\/p>\n
Stretch after strength exercises, when your muscles are
\nwarmed up. If you stretch before strength exercises, be
\nsure to warm up your muscles first (through light walking
\nand arm pumping, for example). <\/p>\n
Safety<\/b>
\nDon’t hold your breath during strength exercises.
\nBreathe normally. Holding your breath while straining can
\ncause changes in blood pressure. This is especially true
\nfor people with cardiovascular disease.
\nIf you have had a hip repair or replacement, check with the
\ndoctor who did your surgery before doing lower-body
\nexercises.<\/p>\n
If you have had a hip replacement, don’t cross your
\nlegs, and don’t bend your hips farther than a 90-degree
\nangle.
\nAvoid jerking or thrusting weights into position. That can
\ncause injuries. Use smooth, steady movements.
\nAvoid “locking” the joints in your arms and legs in a
\ntightly straightened position. (A tip on how to straighten
\nyour knees: Tighten your thigh muscles. This will lift your
\nkneecaps and protect them.)
\nBreathe out as you lift or push, and breathe in as you
\nrelax. For example, if you are doing leg lifts, breathe out
\nas you lift your leg, and breathe in as you lower it. This
\nmay not feel natural at first, and you probably will have
\nto think about it as you are doing it for awhile.
\nMuscle soreness lasting up to a few days and slight fatigue
\nare normal after muscle-building exercises, but exhaustion,
\nsore joints, and unpleasant muscle pulling aren’t. The
\nlatter symptoms mean you are overdoing it.
\nNone of the exercises you do should cause pain. The range
\nwithin which you move your arms and legs should never hurt.<\/p>\n
Progressing<\/b>
\nGradually increasing the amount of weight you use is
\ncrucial for building strength.
\nWhen you are able to lift a weight between 8 to 15 times,
\nyou can increase the amount of weight you use at your next
\nsession.<\/p>\n
Here is an example of how to progress gradually: Start out
\nwith a weight that you can lift only 8 times. Keep using
\nthat weight until you become strong enough to lift it 12 to
\n15 times. Add more weight so that, again, you can lift it
\nonly 8 times. Use this weight until you can lift it 12 to
\n15 times, then add more weight. Keep repeating.<\/p>\n
Sarcopenia<\/b>
\nSarcopenia (pronounced sar – ko – PEEN – ya) is the word
\nresearchers use to mean not only the loss of muscle and
\nstrength but also the decreased quality of muscle tissue
\noften seen in older adults. It’s a word you are likely to
\nhear more about in the future, since sarcopenia is a very
\nactive area of research.<\/p>\n
We know that muscle-building exercises can improve
\nstrength in most older adults, but many questions remain
\nabout muscle loss and aging. Researchers want to know, for
\nexample, if factors other than a sedentary lifestyle
\ncontribute to muscle loss. Does age itself cause changes in
\nthe muscles of older people? Is muscle loss related to
\nchanges in hormones or nutrition? These are the kinds of
\nquestions scientists are examining now. The answers may
\nlead to ways of helping us keep our strength as we age.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Strength Exercises for Older Adults Even very small changes in muscle size can make a big difference in strength, especially in people who already have lost a lot of muscle. An increase in muscle that’s not even visible to the eye can be all it takes to improve your ability to do things like get […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4990,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[19],"tags":[70,72,67,71,68,66,69],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4989"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4989"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4989\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4989"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nctnc.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}