EXERCISE: It’s never too late to start
September 18, 2019 • 1 min read
-- Don’t let a lifetime of inactivity stop you from starting exercise. Your body, regardless of exercise history, can build muscle just as prolifically as highly-trained “master athletes” of a similar age.
Researchers from the University of Birmingham (UK) looked at two groups of older men: master athletes who exercised regularly throughout their lives, and those of similar age in their 70s and 80s who were healthy but had not competed in any structured exercise.
The study put both groups through a single weights session and examined their muscles, using biopsies and an isotope tracer to track protein growth and development of muscle.
Researchers expected master athletes to demonstrate an increased capacity to build muscle, given their advanced fitness over many years. But that wasn’t the case – the study demonstrated that both groups had an equal ability to build muscle as a response to exercise.
The findings should give couch potatoes the motivation to start working out to enjoy what they’ve been missing out on: weight loss, improved cardiac function and glucose utilisation, reduced fall risk, stronger bones ……
Like Nike says: Just do it.