Beginning at age 30, the body naturally starts to lose 3–5% of muscle mass per decade. If muscle loss worsens, it can advance to a condition called sarcopenia (saar-ko-pee-ni-uh). Sarcopenia is the loss of muscle and strength that can happen when someone gets older and does less physical activity. This may cause trouble with daily activities like standing from a chair, walking, twisting the lid off a jar, or carrying groceries. Over time, loss of strength can lead to falls or other injuries. Currently, it is estimated that 10–20% of older adults have sarcopenia, although it could be even more prevalent because diagnosis and treatment of sarcopenia is not yet common.

Aging can come with some great benefits, like wisdom, experiences, and memories. But one challenge can include muscle loss, also known as sarcopenia. Losing strength as you age can make daily tasks harder and cause you to become less independent. Can it be stopped?

By keeping your muscles strong and able, you can stay independent longer and continue doing the things you love without needing much help from others.

Things that accelerate muscle loss

As you age, your body can change in ways that surprise you. One of the most noticeable changes is weakness and less ease of motion. Your lifestyle and overall health play a key role in how fast those changes occur. Factors that can increase muscle loss include:

• Inactive lifestyle

• An unbalanced diet, low in proteins

• Inflammation or swelling

• Medical conditions that cause muscle loss

You can control many of the factors linked to muscle loss. Managing your health conditions and making the right lifestyle changes can help you build and keep your strength.

‘Motion is lotion, rest is rust’

We can’t stop ourselves from aging, but we can slow down some of its effects. While increased physical activity is important to maintain your overall health and well-being, engaging in strengthening exercises at least 2 to 3 times each week is your best defense against muscle loss. By continuing to use your muscles, you’ll be working to keep them strong.

You don’t need expensive exercise equipment, a personal trainer, or even a gym membership. Common forms of physical activity and exercise that can help build strength and keep you mobile include:

• Walking, stair climbing, and biking

• Strength training with resistance tubes and bands

• Yard work (mowing, gardening, and planting)

You start losing muscle at age 30. However, the rate of decline really starts to increase around age 60. That’s when you might notice changes in your ability to get around and function. Exercise and strengthening your muscles are beneficial for people of all ages but are especially important as we get older to help prevent sarcopenia and other health complications.

Although sarcopenia is believed to be quite common—especially due to inactivity during the pandemic—it is currently estimated that 10–20% of older adults have sarcopenia. It could be even more prevalent because diagnosis and treatment of sarcopenia is not yet common. 

Common symptoms include falls, muscle weakness, slow walking speed, and difficulty doing everyday tasks. 

Ideally, there would be a universal way to screen for sarcopenia. There are different ways to determine your risk of sarcopenia. The important thing to remember is that if you are finding everyday activities difficult, like opening a jar or getting up from a seated position without using your arms, or if you notice increased muscle weakness, a conversation with your health care professional about these changes is important to preserve health and independence and to prevent falls.

There is no medication to cure Sarcopenia, but some supplements may help. While more research is needed, protein, amino acids, fish oil, vitamin D, selenium, magnesium, and omega-3 supplements have shown promising effects to prevent muscle loss, especially in conjunction with exercise. Talk to your health care professional to get more information. 

Is strength training the only way to prevent sarcopenia?

More research is needed to fully answer this question, but strength training shows the most promise in preventing sarcopenia. Doing exercise that moves and uses your muscles, like lifting weights or doing push-ups, and eating a healthy diet can help you stay strong and reduce your risk of getting sarcopenia. 

What is the best exercise to prevent sarcopenia?

Exercise can help your overall health. Specific focus on muscle strengthening and resistance training is the best way to maintain your strength. As added side benefits, doing this kind of exercise will give you more energy and may even boost your mood by reducing stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol.

I play tennis regularly. Is that enough for prevention?

Playing tennis definitely works some of your muscles, and it is great to have a regular routine. That said, cardio activities are not enough to prevent sarcopenia. Adding strength training exercises shows the most promise in preventing sarcopenia.

I don’t really feel interested or fit enough to exercise. Is that the only way to keep my muscles strong?

You can start with simple exercises that you can do in your chair or scooter and slowly build up repetitions as you feel stronger. Even then, sometimes it is hard to feel motivated, especially if this is a new part of your routine. Try a manageable routine that you think you can stick to—maybe two or three times each week with a friend. By having a partner in this effort, you can help keep each other motivated.

You’ve likely heard that exercise can help you live a longer, healthier life. When you hear the word ‘exercise,’ you might think of going for a run or hopping on a bicycle. Or maybe playing soccer with your kids or basketball with your friends after work. But these activities don’t include all the types of movements that are important for your health.

The examples above are endurance exercise. Also called cardiovascular exercise, activities like these increase your breathing and heart rate. They can keep your heart and lungs in good shape and help prevent many chronic diseases. But exercises to maintain flexibility, balance, and strength are also important.

Stretching gives you more freedom of movement and makes daily activities more comfortable. Balance practice helps prevent falls, which become a concern as you get older.

Strength training, also called resistance training or weight training, is particularly important. It brings many benefits. First, it makes your muscles stronger. That can help you keep up the activities you enjoy—at any stage of your life.

It’s not about getting big muscles, explains Dr. Wendy Kohrt, an aging expert at the University of Colorado. In fact, most people who do strength training don’t see much of a change in muscle size.

But at all stages of life, she says, “maintaining muscle mass and muscle function is really important for quality of life.”

Building Up Benefits

Building muscle can do more than make you stronger. Some types of strength training keep your bones healthy, too. Strength training can also improve the way your body processes food to help prevent diabetes and related diseases.

“And like endurance activity, regular strength training is associated with lower risk of cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases,” says Dr. Joseph Ciccolo, an exercise researcher at Columbia University.

But the main benefit of strength training, as the name suggests, is that it makes your muscle cells stronger. “That benefit is unique to strength training,” says Dr. Roger Fielding, who studies the benefits of exercise at Tufts University.

Experts recommend that children and teens do muscle-strengthening activities at least three days a week. For adults, they encourage strength training for the major muscle groups on two or more days a week.

The benefits of strength training increase as you get older, says Fielding. Maintaining strength is essential for healthy aging.

“Loss of muscle with aging can limit people’s ability to function in their home environment and live independently,” Kohrt says. “Just being able to get up out of a chair or go up and down stairs requires a fair amount of muscle strength.”

In a recent study, Fielding and other researchers tested a three-month weight-lifting program in older adults who already had difficulty walking. At the end of the study, participants who lifted weights improved at tasks like repeatedly bending their knees. Such movements are essential for activities of daily living. In contrast, study participants who only stretched at home did not see similar improvements in strength.

“As we age, I think it’s even more important to consider incorporating some strength training into our physical activity routines,” says Fielding. “We can either slow down the progression of age-related muscle loss or prevent it.”

Mind and Body

Research is starting to show that strength training isn’t just good for physical health—it can be good for mental health.

Ciccolo is studying the effects of strength training on anxiety, depression, and related conditions. His team recently found that strength training could reduce some symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in both women and men.

Endurance exercise may also help people with these problems, says Ciccolo. But some people might be more interested in strength training than aerobic activity. “We want to get people to engage in activities that they find enjoyable,” he says.

How strength training may benefit mental health is still under study. It might help lower certain hormones in the body associated with stress and depression, Ciccolo explains.

In addition, helping people get stronger may boost self-esteem and their sense of control over their lives. “You can feel that you’re being successful and accomplishing something,” he says.

Ciccolo is currently running a study to see if strength training can help relieve symptoms of depression in African American men.

“There’s huge stigma among black men with respect to counseling for mental illness,” he says. “We’re hoping this could be a nontraditional way to get at depression.”

Getting Started

If you want to get started with strengthening exercises, what should you do? Strength training may seem intimidating if you’ve never tried it.

“People naturally learn to walk as part of growing up. But you don’t necessarily learn how to lift weights,” Ciccolo says.

If it’s feasible for you, booking a few sessions with a personal trainer is a good way to get started, says Kohrt. “That can get you introduced to the types of exercises you could do,” she explains.

There are also many low- or no-cost classes available. Look for them at local gyms, recreation centers, senior centers, and community centers.

Like with any new activity, to make strength training stick, “you have to find something that you really like to do,” says Fielding. “Some people will want to exercise in a group, in a community setting. Others will be happy doing all their exercises in their home, by themselves.”

If you’ve never lifted weights before, talk with your health care provider before you start any home-based strength training routine.

Whatever you choose to do, “start slowly and build up very gradually,” says Kohrt. See the Wise Choices box for more tips on getting started safely.

Lifting Weights Safely

Get started building muscle safely by following these tips:

• Start slowly, especially if you haven’t been active for a long time. Little by little, build up your activities and how hard you work at them.
• Pay attention to your body. Exhaustion, sore joints, or muscle pain mean you’re overdoing it.
• Use small amounts of weight to start. Focus on your form, and add more weight slowly, over time.
• Use smooth, steady movements to lift weights into position. Don’t jerk or thrust weights.
• Avoid “locking” your arm and leg joints in a straight position.
• Don’t hold your breath during strength exercises. That could cause changes in your blood pressure. Breathe out as you lift the weights and breathe in as you relax.
• ​Ask for help. To get started, schedule a session or two with a personal trainer, or look for a group class at a local gym, recreation center, or senior center.

Making sure you have enough protein is the most important part of your diet in remaining strong. Eating more fruits and vegetables can also improve physical performance and help prevent sarcopenia. Having a discussion with your health care professional or dietician can help to determine the best dietary decisions to optimize your health.