Strength Training for Seniors Important For Future Mobility

Author: Ian C. Langtree - Writer/Editor for Disabled World (DW)
Published: 2011/06/13 - Updated: 2024/06/10
Publication Type: Informative

Contents: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Related Publications

Synopsis: Maintaining muscle strength in old age is important in order to maintain mobility and manage everyday tasks independently.

In the coming decades, the importance of maintaining the ability to work and to make a living will increase, as will the need for independence in everyday life and leisure activities.

Introduction

Did you know that most people lose 30% of their muscle strength between the ages of 50 and 70 years? Maintaining muscle strength in old age is enormously important in order to maintain mobility and to be able to lead an independent life and manage everyday tasks independently.

Main Content

Frank Mayer and colleagues from the University of Potsdam conclude that progressive strength (resistance) training counteracts muscular atrophy in old age (Dtsch Arztebl Int 2011; 108(21): 359-64).

The authors investigated the extent of the effects that can be achieved by strength (resistance) training in elderly persons and which intensities of exercise are useful and possible in persons older than 60 years. They found that regular strength (resistance) training increased muscle strength, reduced muscular atrophy, and that tendons and bones adapt too.

Findings Included:

• These successes in turn had a preventive effect in terms of avoiding falls and injuries.
• Greater intensities of training yielded greater effects than moderate and low intensities.
• In order to increase muscle mass, an intensity of 60-85% of the one-repetition-maximum is required.
• In order to increase rapidly available muscle force, higher intensities (>85%) are required.
• The optimum amount of exercise for healthy elderly persons is 3 to 4 training units per week.

In the coming decades, the importance of maintaining the ability to work and to make a living will increase, as will the need for independence in everyday life and leisure activities.

The increase in the retirement age to 67 years from 2012 means that one in three adults of working age will be older than 50 by 2020, and by 2050, the proportion of people older than 60 in the population will rise to an estimated 40%.

Currently, the proportion of elderly persons who practice strength (resistance) training is only about 10-15%.

Author Credentials: Ian is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Disabled World, a leading resource for news and information on disability issues. With a global perspective shaped by years of travel and lived experience, Ian is a committed proponent of the Social Model of Disability-a transformative framework developed by disabled activists in the 1970s that emphasizes dismantling societal barriers rather than focusing solely on individual impairments. His work reflects a deep commitment to disability rights, accessibility, and social inclusion. To learn more about Ian's background, expertise, and accomplishments, visit his full biography.