Strength training for longevity and quality of life

I’m an advocate of strength training. I’ve lifted weights pretty much my entire life. From the age of about 13, I’ve walked into gyms and lifted weights in some fashion, way or form. Mostly, I lifted weights like the bodybuilders of the 1970s taught us to lift them; 3-4 sets of 10-12 reps until failure. Most of the lifts were pretty straightforward. In those days we did bench press, lat pulldowns, shoulder press, leg press, hamstring curls, rows, bicep curls, tricep pull downs and some abs. Then a bit of cardio if you were so inclined and then we went out into the world feeling good about ourselves. These days, my workouts have changed enormously. The benefits I get from a workout have not.

In several ways, gyms have been my refuge. They have always been a place I felt comfortable in regardless of whether it was a suburban gym like the first gym I joined in South Hurstville in the 1980s, the council pool gym at Carss Park, a hardcore inner city bodybuilding gym, a glitzy CBD gym or a PCYC boxing gym. These were all gyms I was a member of in the 1980s and 1990s. By the 2000s, we saw the emergence of Fitness First and then Virgin Active- I’ve been members of both these globo gyms. More recently, I’ve trained at CrossFit gyms and Strength and Conditioning gyms. Every one of these places has been a home away from home. Gyms, of all shapes and sizes, have been spaces where I have lifted, sweated, reflected on the world and my life, and socialised. For me, gyms have been far more than just a place to flex my muscles and condition my body. Gyms have been a place where my body, mind and soul are aligned and nourished. But maybe this is not how you feel about gyms or about working out. If you don’t, there are still some very compelling reasons for you to undertake a strength and conditioning program. Read on and find out what they are. If, by chance, you share my sentiments on gyms and training, you might be better off spending your time doing burpees and bench presses but maybe read on anyway and find out a bit more on how strength and conditioning training improves your life and longevity.  

Weight Training and Age-related decline

The question of why some people age well and others don’t regardless of the science of anti-ageing is a mystery. Sometimes, despite doing what are considered all the right things, disease, injury or some  haphazard mysteriously strikes down a seemingly healthy and strong person prematurely. Other times, despite doing many things that are considered bad for one’s health, a person lives a long and healthy life. In these instances, fate or genetics or whatever we want to call it, reigns over lifestyle and science/medicine. But these cases are unusual. We might call them outliers. And, because they are unusual, we should not base crucial decisions on how we might best live our lives on them. For most people, lifestyle will play a huge part in how long they live and the quality of life they have as they age. This post expounds the benefits of resistance training for living longer and living a better quality of life.

As we age, there are certain physiological changes that occur that impact muscle mass, bone density, and heart health that weight training does a great deal to de-accelerate. Unfortunately, these changes cannot be stopped. But, they can be slowed.

1. Muscle Mass: As we age, especially once we hit the age of 50, muscle mass, strength and function deteriorate. The rate that this happens has a lot to do with one's fitness, nutrition and overall health. It won't surprise anyone that people with poor nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle suffer the most rapid decline in muscle mass, strength and function. As we say in the fitness industry, "use it or lose it". Furthermore, while forms of exercise that increase the heart rate are very good for us and need to be a part of the exercise regime of all people, lifting weights, including body weight, is the best known way to reduce the loss of muscle, strength and functionality that occur with age. As I've heard from people working in the geriatric health space, what is the one exercise that most elderly people need to be able to do the most: the push up. Why, if they fall over, they'll be able to get themselves up if there is no-one else around. Sadly, the vast majority of people 60+ lack this basic movement capacity.

2. Bone Density: Following straight on from the last point, if an elderly person falls down, low bone density heightens the chances of a fracture or s broken bone. A push probably won't help much if they have broken their hip. That said, if they could do a push up, maybe their bone's would be strong enough to withstand a fall. One more, weight training strengthens the bones and protects them by building muscles around them helping to withstand impacts and falls. Additionally, weight training done properly protects the health of the joint, ligaments and cartridges by moving the joint in a full range of movement.

3. Heart health: Weight training also helps with heart health especially when combined with exercises focused on improving VO2 like running, low load, high volume weight training and callisthenics. Conditioning training, along with strength training improves health more than just either on its own.

4. And, metabolic changes, inflammation, cognitive and emotional decline: There is a long list of changes that occur to the body, mind and soul that weight training can have a positive impact on. Studies are coming out all the time that demonstrate that grip strength is a measure of a range of other health issues such as Alzheimer's and depression. Who thought that staying strong of body would have positive consequences for the mind and the spirit.

The key to longevity

In a new study published in The British Journal of Sports Medicine, researchers found that while doing either aerobic exercise or strength training was associated with a lower risk of dying during the study’s time frame, regularly doing both — one to three hours a week of aerobic exercise and one to two weekly strength training sessions — was associated with an even lower mortality risk. The results are quite startling- over the 17 year period, people who consistently performed 3hrs of aerobics exercise a week had 27% less chance of dying than those in the study who did no exercise. But here’s the really interesting part of the study. Those involved in the study who performed 1-2 strength sessions a week died 40% less than those that did not exercise. This study took in to account age, gender, income and a range of other factors found that people who did strength training died much less frequently than people who did not exercise and significantly less than people who did aerobic training only. So, no doubt about it, if you want the chance to live longer, then strength training should be a part of your weekly schedule.

It's worthwhile adding that strength training is not only a major contributor to longer living, it is could be the major contributor to healthy and happy living. A study of elderly people found that higher grip strength correlated to lower levels of depression. Another study concluded that a higher grip strength lowered the risk of acquiring Alzheimer’s. The weight of the evidence that physical health has a direct impact on emotional and mental health is increasing dramatically in recent years.

image: courtesy of wix

I personally find this trend very interesting and long overdue. But still incomplete. For too long there has been a tendency to separate physical ability from intellectual ones. The Ancients knew very well that a healthy body = a healthy mind and vice versa. In recent decades, this has changed with the stereotype of a hulky guy, or woman, often framed around them being body beautiful but dim. Arnold Schwarzenegger speaks of suffering from this prejudice. I can say, and I’m nowhere near the size Arnie was in his heyday, that I too have felt this happen to me in my life from time to time when people have seen my muscularity as a signifier of my intelligence, or lack of it. In reverse, the thinking goes those with brains had no brawn.

The extent that the separation of mind and body has happened in recent decades, I believe is the result of a pernicious combination of the conditions and ideology of a system that has been structured to promote economic gain, debt, consumerism, tenuous employment and protect the privileges of those that benefit most from this system. Keeping the population over-worked, pre-occupied with infotainment, in debt, and seeking to exclude those people who they are told will come and take it all from them is a great strategy for holding on to the privileges and benefits of the status quo. With so many people’s bodies and minds, slow and diseased, so many are a long way from the happiness and health that the Ancients knew came from combining physical prowess with intellectual curiosity and knowledge. As Aristotle said, “There is only one good, knowledge and one evil, ignorance.”

At this point, you might be thinking that say that I am peddling some anti-corporate, anti-capitalist, conspiracy. Maybe I am. The decision about how you view this is up to you. Read on a daily basis, work out by doing some weights and conditioning and then judge the world. Regardless, of whether you find sense in my argument or not. I implore you to eliminate your ignorance and from physical decay. You will feel very different and maybe you’ll also see the world differently. That’s THW. Until next time, be Herculean.