Light weight training for middle-aged people: live longer with muscle

As we reach middle age, many people begin to notice muscle weakness, loss of strength, loss of balance, and decreased mobility. Even light weight training can help mitigate these effects.

Strength training, also known as resistance training, helps develop and maintain muscle mass, slows down the aging process of the musculoskeletal system, maintains motor function, reduces the risk of falls and loss of self-care ability, according to the health website Livestrong (USA).

Light weight training not only helps middle-aged people have a healthy body but also prolongs life - PHOTO: AI

The National Institute on Aging says that when middle-aged people maintain muscle mass and strength, they are able to perform daily activities more safely. They are less dependent on others, which improves their quality of life.

Weight training has also been shown to help reverse or minimize negative age-related changes, such as muscle atrophy, decreased bone density, impaired metabolism, and increased risk of chronic disease. If heavy lifting is not possible, middle-aged people can still do light exercise. Light weight training or low-load training is a safe, effective option that provides many health benefits for middle-aged people.

Studies show that weight training increases neuromuscular strength, improving the body's ability to withstand physical stress. This directly affects longevity, helping people live longer, healthier, and reducing the risk of early death from causes such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and physical weakness.

Light weight training is often understood as lifting weights of about 20-60% of the maximum weight that can be lifted in one time. Many clinical trials have shown that light weight training, but if the number of lifts per set is reached at the maximum, to the state of mechanical limit, this training method still helps increase muscle effectively equivalent to heavy weight training.

Therefore, if middle-aged people lift light weights, lift a high number of times per set, and have short intervals between sets, they can still effectively increase muscle mass. This way of training requires endurance instead of strength and minimizes the risk of injury.

When starting to lift light weights, middle-aged people should choose a weight level of about 40-60% of the total maximum weight. They need to maintain 2-3 sessions per week. The training schedule needs to ensure that important muscle groups such as chest, shoulders, biceps, legs, back and core are stimulated evenly. Each set of exercises should be maintained from 12-20 times. When the body gets used to it, it is necessary to gradually increase the volume or difficulty of the exercise, according to Livestrong .

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tap-ta-nhe-cho-nguoi-trung-nien-song-lau-hon-nho-co-bap-185250920183529243.htm