The Fountain of Strength (The New Fountain of Youth)

It’s been a minute since we did a blog post.  A looooong minute.  So, we figured it was time for a comeback with a post that’s bigger and better than ever by talking about strength training and longevity.  Let’s get started!

In the quest for longevity, we often come across various strategies, diets, and lifestyle choices that promise to extend our years on this planet. While some may prove to be fleeting trends, there's one practice that has withstood the test of time: strength training. Beyond its aesthetic benefits, strength training has been hailed as a key player in promoting longevity and enhancing overall well-being. In this blog post, we will explore the profound value of strength training and its connection to longevity and a better overall quality of life.

Before we get too far into the post, I wanted to share a couple definitions that need to be a fluent part of our daily conversations when it comes to longevity: lifespan and healthspan.

Lifespan is the how long your body is alive. In other words: how long you live.

Healthspan is how long your body stays in good health. In other words: it’s how long you’re able to live and do what you want/love to do with you’re most of your own independence.

Everyone is after longevity through the lens of a lifespan, but what good is living longer if you can’t do it healthily? What good is living longer if you can’t do what you want to do or love to do, how you want to? As Dr. Peter Attia describes in his book Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity, the topic of conversation needs to be focused on how we increase people’s healthspans.

That’s where strength training comes in.  That’s what this blog post is about.

Strength training involves engaging in resistance exercises, such as weightlifting or bodyweight exercises, to increase muscle strength and endurance. By incorporating this form of exercise into our routine, we lay the foundation for a healthier and more robust body as we age. With stronger muscles, bones, and joints, we can navigate daily activities with ease, reducing the risk of falls, fractures, and other age-related injuries while simultaneously increasing our healthspan.

This can be applied to ANY age! A study published in the Journal of Aging and Physical Activity found that older adults who engaged in resistance training experienced improvements in muscle strength, physical function, and reduced disability (Seguin et al., 2017). Additionally, a systematic review and meta-analysis published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, strength training was associated with a 45% lower risk of all-cause mortality and a 38% lower risk of cardiovascular mortality (Stamatakis et al., 2017).

Reducing disability, lowering the risk of cardiovascular mortality by a third, and lowering the risk of all-cause mortality by nearly half sounds like phenomenal benefits to us, right? I think we can all agree we would take those benefits!

But what if I told you there was yet another life-boosting benefit to strength training that dramatically improved your overall quality of life starting at age 30 for some adults? It’s the prevention of muscle loss. The body loses nearly 10% of muscle each decade after 40 for most, but it can start as early as 30 for some.

Muscle mass tends to decline naturally as we age, a condition known as sarcopenia. However, regular strength training can help counteract this process by stimulating muscle protein synthesis and preserving muscle mass. Maintaining muscle mass is crucial for maintaining a healthy metabolism, supporting weight management, and reducing the risk of chronic conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Ready for some cool research showing this is true?

A study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology demonstrated that higher levels of muscle strength were associated with a lower risk of mortality in both men and women (Ruiz et al., 2008). A randomized controlled trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that a combination of aerobic and resistance exercise improved physical function and reduced the risk of major mobility disability in older adults (Pahor et al., 2014).

Here we are again with more quality research not only supporting a lower risk of mortality, but also reducing the risk of a mobility disability as we age.

Strength training doesn’t just add years to life, it adds life to years!

I want to introduce another concept for you to ponder through losing muscle as we age as it is applied everyday life.  I want to adopt a new strength standard for 40-year-olds based on Dr. Attia’s idea in Outlive, which is that every 40-year-old should be able to pick up a 50-lb and perform a Goblet Squat/Front Loaded Squat (holding the weight close to your body at chest height and then squatting up and down) for a minimum of 10 reps.

(A Front Loaded Squat with 50-lbs)

Why is this important?

Well, let’s fast forward 40 years for this individual, putting them at 80-years-young. If this person wants to be able to pick up and hold their 30-lb grandchild, he/she will need to do so using the strength built from their body 40 years ago (based on the science of losing 10% of muscle mass and strength each decade we live after 40).

Let’s take that 50-lbs object and do the math: 50-lbs minus a 10% loss for the first decade would equate to a 5-lb loss (50 x 0.10 = 5; if we subtract 5 from 50 we get 45), dropping your strength to “45-lbs”. Following this pattern for the next decade, we lose another 4.5-lbs of “strength”.  Then another 4-lbs to 36.45-lbs of strength as we get to age 70, and approximately another 4-lbs of strength is lost over the next decade, bringing our strength total down to 32.8-lbs.

In this example, we went from 50-lbs at age 40 to 32.8-lbs at 80 from muscle mass loss (sarcopenia) through 40 years. 

Strength training reverses this exact process.

It is true that is more difficult to build muscle as the human body ages but preventing a 10% loss of muscle each decade is just as (if not more) valuable than building lean muscle mass since the body is genetically wired to lose it.

Alongside muscle mass, strength training has an incredible impact on bone health. By subjecting our bones to the stress of resistance exercises, we trigger a response that leads to increased bone density. A systematic review and meta-analysis published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research revealed that resistance training was effective in increasing bone mineral density at various skeletal sites, including the lumbar spine and hip (Kelley et al., 2013).

This is particularly crucial for women, as they are more susceptible to osteoporosis (a condition characterized by brittle bones) that is more prevalent in women post-menopause. Another study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research showed that postmenopausal women who participated in a resistance training program experienced improvements in bone mineral density and reduced bone turnover markers (Vincent et al., 2002).

Now that we know how strength training affects the body physically, let’s look at what it does to the body physiologically, particularly the remarkable effects it has on our metabolism. Unlike aerobic exercises that burn calories predominantly during the activity, strength training has two unique effects: the first is the g-flux phenomenon and the second is known as the after-burn effect known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC).

The g-flux phenomenon was coined by Dr. John Berardi, the co-founder of Precision Nutrition, and it’s based around the theory (and science) of the flow of energy, particularly towards the energy required through that strength training. Over time, it teaches our body to partition nutrients more efficiently for energy purposes, specifically glucose.

When we consume carbohydrates, the body breaks them down into glucose so it can be used as energy. If the energy is not needed, glucose can be taken to two places to be stored as glycogen: the muscles OR to the liver. Glycogen in the muscles is stored for later energy use while glycogen stored in the liver is stored as lipids in the fat tissue.

The premise of the g-flux phenomenon says the body will send more of the glucose (which is converted to glycogen) to the muscles because the body will need to use it for energy for strength training. This makes sense due to glycogen being used as the primary fuel source for muscle contractions and required force for strength training. This doesn’t happen overnight, but rather through the course of approximately 6 months of a regular routine of strength training.

Through the process and consistency, the body’s metabolism also improves by using more glucose in the body for energy (think of it like a more efficient engine) which also helps combat metabolic dysfunction, thus other benefits of strength training include managing insulin, other hormones, and improving other blood markers recognized as having a better metabolic function. A study published in the American Journal of Physiology: Endocrinology and Metabolism demonstrated that individuals who engaged in high levels of physical activity exhibited better metabolic health markers, such as improved insulin sensitivity and lipid profile, compared to sedentary individuals (Church et al., 2006).

Furthermore, another research article published in the Journal of Applied Physiology found that resistance training improved insulin sensitivity, promoting better glucose control and reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes (Ivy et al., 2002).

Long-term, this means if we engage in strength training to help improve overall health and weight loss, we are setting our body up for success for years and years to come. Not only do we create a more metabolically-charged body that helps combat future weight gain from an increase in lean muscle mass, but we’re also continually progressing our body to better physical, physiological, and mental health. Research published in the Journal of Obesity found that higher levels of physical activity were associated with better weight maintenance and reduced weight regain after weight loss (Jakicic et al., 2008).

This second known phenomenon called EPOC isn’t talked about nearly enough anymore in our industry.  It’s something I learned about nearly 12 years ago and has become a mainstay in how I program for clients and my own training programs. EPOC causes our metabolism to remain elevated for hours after the workout, resulting in additional calorie expenditure. This occurs because the body requires more oxygen during a higher-level exertion, creating an “oxygen debt” in the body, thus creating a higher core temperature (metabolism. To restore the oxygen debt, our body needs to recruit more oxygen long after the workouts (up to 72 hours). A study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology demonstrated that resistance training increased resting metabolic rate for up to 72 hours after exercise (Melanson et al., 2002). 

(Pic courtesy of cyclingapps.net)

As we wrap up, I want to say this: strength training is not just about sculpting an impressive physique. It offers a multitude of health benefits that far outreach what I wrote above and directly contribute to longevity and well-being. Scientific research supports its role in building a solid foundation, preserving muscle mass, enhancing bone density, preventing injury, improving metabolism, and regulating hormones (and we didn’t even touch on the numerous benefits that strength training has on our mental health). By incorporating strength training into our fitness routine, we can unlock the potential to age gracefully, strong, and resilient by improving our healthspan, not just our lifespan.

If we're looking for the coveted fountain of youth, look no further as we are pulling from the fountain of our strength.

Remember, we’re not just adding years to life, we’re adding life to years.

Strength training is the cornerstone of how we get this done! 

Fitness is the future of healthcare!

Written by Jordan Rudolph

Owner of Unity Fitness