As an Indian, I sometimes find myself observing two things at once – a post discussing muscle strength in the context of resistance training, and an elderly man walking down the road.
And that makes me wonder how I can make this old man walk into a gym. Then I think of my hometown, villages, and tier two cities where weight lifting is either not there at all or is meant for athletes.
It seems we are trying to create a life which hypothetically claims that we all should be able to lift weights into our 90s or run on treadmills until we die.
While the advice is genuinely good that one should exercise and do resistance training, I am not sure if this can be applied universally. There are many civilizations where gym is not a part of the culture. And to build such a society worldwide will take many generations.
So this research is a good start to highlight the importance of resistance training, however I just wish influencers, instead of pushing everybody to weight rooms, also tell other ways to work on their muscles.
Another argument is that yes, there are outliers who maintain big muscles into old age, but not everybody can do that. One thing which I have seen consistently, and I am sure you must have noticed too, is that the human body can thrive on extremes but sustaining extremes is not easy.
Appreciate the muscle focus, but let’s zoom out. As a sports scientist, I’ve seen this narrative overhype one organ while ignoring the ecosystem. Thread on why it’s not “lift or bust” for metabolism/aging:
1) Muscle mass doesn’t cause illnesses, it’s often the victim. Chronic IR and inflammation erode it first, creating a cascade. Fixing movement before chasing hypertrophy makes anatomical and metabolic sense. Data shows IR precedes sarcopenia by years, not vice versa.
2) 1% muscle loss post-50? In healthy folks, it’s negligible and liveable because appetite balances it, function holds. Good health – dodge pharmacology, meaning keep yourself healthy and under check without needing a doctor’s visit. For most, that’s the cliff, not a few grams of quad.
3) Gyms aren’t the only path. Daily movement (chores, walks, arm circles, stretching) sustains mass via myokines without injury risk. Seen 80+ thriving without weights? If we come out of research labs and play it out in the real world, then we realise it’s NEAT not barbells. Preserving function is what should matter most.
4) Muscle mass advantages – sounds brilliant on paper. No scientist can argue. But would you rather be at 1600 calories at 80 and moving just fine to do your work without any medical intervention, or be at 3000 calories just because you have huge muscle mass which also comes with fat because they are maintaing 9% fat? I think the stress should be to maintain muscle mass for as long as we can, and posts on muscle mass must emphasise other ways to do it. Just lifting doesn’t cut it because we don’t see healthy bodybuilders at 80 and also it is not for everybody because of liking, culture, environment, or financial status.
5) Maintaining big muscle mass in older age often leads to higher intramuscular fat accumulation due to aging physiology, requiring more calories to sustain the bulk which directly conflicts with proven longevity benefits of calorie restriction.
The longevity sweet spot isn’t maximal muscle it’s sustainable function at lower caloric demand, as seen in thriving elders who age well on natural NEAT rather than extreme training or high-volume eating. The researching community unanimously maintains 2 session of resistance training a week is good to maintain muscle mass which is an excellent news. Its nothing.
However, what’s problematic for many is going to the gym.
My take: Protect the system, not just the engine. Muscle is as important as the heart, liver, or brain. But it is not as devastating as inflammation, insulin resistance, or poor organ health. So exercise regularly, 7 days a week. It should not be a discipline anymore, it should become an integral part of your life. Find ways to train your upper body. If you cannot go to the gym, there are many floor exercises through which you can do resistance training for your upper body.
As for the lower body, if nothing else, just get up and sit down many times during the day, along with your daily walks, breath work, and other light exercises. Do not worry too much about the muscles, they will do just fine as they do their work.
Umesh Chhikara 