{"id":225689,"date":"2025-10-26T01:58:16","date_gmt":"2025-10-26T01:58:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/225689\/"},"modified":"2025-10-26T01:58:16","modified_gmt":"2025-10-26T01:58:16","slug":"6-simple-ways-to-build-muscle-after-50-and-why-strength-is-essential-in-older-age","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/225689\/","title":{"rendered":"6 simple ways to build muscle after 50 \u2013 and why strength is essential in older age"},"content":{"rendered":"

To feel healthy, resilient and independent after the age of 50, it\u2019s vital that you make the effort to keep your body strong \u2013 especially if you want to keep running well into your later years. And while strength training<\/a> should play a big role in any runner\u2019s weekly routine, it becomes especially important as you mature, when the inevitable process of involuntary muscle loss \u2013 sarcopenia<\/a> \u2013 starts to occur.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, building and maintaining muscle after 50 doesn\u2019t call for anything complicated. Here are six expert-backed strategies to boost your strength in older age.<\/p>\n

1. Make strength training a non-negotiable<\/p>\n

According to health and fitness coach Nikki Ternay<\/a>, founder of MavenHeart, progress can be made with three resistance sessions a week. Although she says that building muscle is possible at any age, as you get older, \u2018the body needs more stimulus to achieve the results that [you] want\u2019. This is particularly the case for women going through menopause<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here are a few tips from Ternay:<\/p>\n

Aim to do three strength workouts per week, spread evenly across the seven-day period. Here is a sample week of strength workouts:<\/p>\n

Workout 1: Full-body \u2013 legs, back and core<\/p>\n

Workout 2: Full-body \u2013 chest, shoulders, arms and core<\/p>\n

Workout 3: Full-body \u2013 legs, back, chest and core<\/p>\n

Focus on training key muscle groups like your legs, back and core as you build up your routine.<\/p>\n

Target each muscle group with at least two to three exercises per session.<\/p>\n

To build muscle, perform six to 12 reps of three to five sets per exercise, with 60 to 90 seconds of rest in between sets.<\/p>\n

Beginners can start with fewer sets per muscle group per week, then gradually increase this over time.<\/p>\n

Choose a weight that makes the last one to two reps of each set feel challenging but still doable with proper form.<\/p>\n

2. Warm up and cool down properly<\/p>\n

Warming up before a run or strength session \u2013 or any kind of exercise \u2013 prepares your body to do the work by increasing circulation, which decreases your risk of injury. As you get older, though, it takes a little longer for your muscles to warm up and get ready for a workout.<\/p>\n

The ideal time frame for a warm-up<\/a> is 15 to 20 minutes, during which time you should perform movements that increase your heart rate at a slow and steady rate, advises Ternay. Gentle walking is a great warm-up choice to do anywhere, or jump on a stationary bike if you\u2019re in the gym. Bodyweight moves like planks<\/a> and squats<\/a> work well for priming the body ahead of a workout, too.<\/p>\n

Just like you ease into your workout, you should ease out of it as well. As Ternay explains, a cooldown allows your body to return to its regular temperature and brings your heart rate back down a little slower, which is a safer approach than just stopping your workout abruptly.<\/p>\n

A good cooldown could include gentle stretching or light walking, or using a foam roller<\/a> or even a massage gun<\/a> to release any muscle tension. Spend 10 to 15 minutes on your cooldown to give your body time to adjust and reduce post-workout soreness.<\/p>\n

3. Learn proper form first<\/p>\n

Before you start lifting weights, it\u2019s important to learn how to perform strength exercises with proper form. This ensures that you\u2019re working the correct muscles<\/a> and avoiding injury. If you\u2019re new to lifting weights, Ternay recommends seeking guidance from a qualified personal trainer, who can assess your technique and create a personalised plan that is appropriate for your age and fitness level.<\/p>\n

But learning proper form doesn\u2019t have to feel overwhelming \u2013 start by focusing on bodyweight exercises like squats, lunges<\/a> and push-ups to understand how your body moves, what feels good and what feels challenging. From there, you can gradually incorporate weights and resistance exercises.<\/p>\n

4. Don\u2019t forget to stretch<\/p>\n

Focusing on flexibility becomes even more important \u2013 not only for runs and workouts, but also for everyday activities \u2013 as you age. Better mobility<\/a> means that you\u2019ll be able to reach and bend with greater ease, with less strain and risk of injury. In your workouts, specifically, you\u2019ll be able to get in the proper position to perform your exercises safely. Not to mention, a good base of mobility helps loading and unloading weights feel a little more manageable.<\/p>\n

To increase mobility post-workout, Ternay recommends picking three to five dynamic stretches<\/a> and moving through each for 30 to 60 seconds, for a total of at least five minutes. Then, follow these dynamic stretches with about 10 minutes of static stretches<\/a>, like hamstring and quad stretches that you hold for 20 to 30 seconds each. This helps to increase flexibility and reduce tension.<\/p>\n

5. Enter the right mindset<\/p>\n

Getting in the right frame of mind for exercise is almost as important as the exercise itself. When you view exercise as a long-term investment in your health, energy levels and independence, you can shift your attitude and actions in a big way. As Ternay says, exercising is a way of taking care of your body and giving yourself a better chance of enjoying a long life, says Ternay.<\/p>\n

If you build and nurture strong muscles, you\u2019ll not only feel and function better, but also help to safeguard your future health and independence.<\/p>\n

6. Eat enough protein<\/p>\n

Exercise is essential for building muscle after 50 \u2013 but so is proper nutrition. Protein<\/a> helps to rebuild your muscles post-workout, allowing for strength gains. Without adequate protein intake, you won\u2019t be able to get ahead of age-related muscle loss, regardless of your workouts. Aim to consume 25g to 30g of protein per meal, especially if you\u2019re eating three meals a day. This is a good target for supporting muscle maintenance and growth.<\/p>\n

Why older runners need to train their muscles<\/p>\n

After the age of 30, both men and women begin to experience sarcopenia, says Ternay \u2013 and from there, between 3% and 8% of muscle mass is lost per decade. For women in particular, changing estrogen levels during perimenopause and menopause can accelerate this process further, especially as they go into their 50s.<\/p>\n

Muscle is the fountain of youth and strength training is particularly effective in offsetting sarcopenia, as it stimulates muscle growth and helps to maintain bone density, mobility and overall health, says Ternay.<\/p>\n

Lean muscle mass can contribute to disease prevention, too. The higher your muscle to fat mass ratio, the less likely that diseases such as arthritis<\/a>, diabetes, osteoporosis, high blood pressure, heart disease and obesity will occur, says Ternay. Muscle burns a lot of energy and helps to keep your blood sugar stable, which can even lower your chances of developing type 2 diabetes<\/a>, she adds.<\/p>\n

Although building muscle after 50 takes a concerted effort, one thing is for certain: your future self will never regret it.<\/p>\n

You Might Also Like<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"To feel healthy, resilient and independent after the age of 50, it\u2019s vital that you make the effort…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":225690,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[37559,6647,102,96134,83688,89783,14222,96133,96132,96135,8764,62880,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-225689","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-building-muscle","tag-fitness","tag-health","tag-involuntary-muscle","tag-muscle-group","tag-muscle-groups","tag-muscle-loss","tag-muscle-tension","tag-nikki-ternay","tag-strength-exercises","tag-strength-training","tag-strength-workouts","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225689","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=225689"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225689\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/225690"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=225689"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=225689"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=225689"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}