Why strength training is the new anti-aging secret

Growing up as the daughter of a geriatric nurse, I spent my formative years in nursing homes. Seeing frail elderly made an impression on me, and I vowed to never become one. “Strong Women Stay Young” by PhD Miriam Nelson, which I stumbled into in 1998, was the first book that taught me how.

Prior to that time, I was an “aerobics junkie,” focusing exclusively on exercising my heart and lungs. Dr. Nelson shared results from a landmark 1990 study published in JAMA that showed a 175% increase in strength and a 48% improvement in walking speed and balance from an eight-week strength training regimen. These results were not surprising until you realized who the study group was – frail elderly men and women in nursing homes.

Prior to the study no one knew that the elderly could make gains in strength and muscle mass. It dispelled the myth that sarcopenia – the loss of muscle and strength that occurs due to the aging process – was inevitable.

Researchers like Dr. Nelson taught me how important it was to learn how to safely lift weights. And not just little 1–2-pound dumbbells, but the amount of weight that I could lift only 10-12 times with good form. The benefits of what she referred to as “high intensity strength training” from her one-year study with post-menopausal women read like the fountain of youth – more lean muscle, less joint pain and stiffness, better balance, less body fat, higher activity levels, and stronger bone.

Fast forward to 2022 for another landmark study following 416,420 American adults in the National Health Interview Survey. This study looked at the types of physical activity participants engaged in, how often, and how it impacted their mortality risk (risk of death). Participants who engaged in one hour of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity a week had a 15% lower mortality risk. Those who engaged in three hours a week had 27% less risk. But those who took part in one to two strength-training sessions per week had an even lower mortality risk – a full 40% lower than those who did not exercise at all. Interestingly, this was like the difference between a nonsmoker and a half-a-packa-day habit.

Researchers found the greatest gains were associated with 30-60 minutes of strength training a week, with a subsequent 10 to 20% drop in the risk of mortality, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.

For most of us, the idea of successful aging includes independence and the ability to maintain function and quality of life. Yet muscle loss starts in a person’s 30s and progresses with age. Sometimes this is so subtle that we don’t notice until we struggle to get out of a chair.

If our “muscles of independence,” those large lower body movers, falter it compromises our ability to care for ourselves. This new research shows that not only can we fend off these negative effects of aging by learning how to strength train, but we can function at a much higher level while living longer. One doctor from the study, Dr. Monica Ciolino, said, “Research shows that even septuagenarians with mobility issues can benefit from a regular strength training program.” And that’s good news for us all!

Lisa, of Farmington, is a former ICU nurse who grew up in Ft. Smith, Arkansas. She has spent the past 38 years in multiple facets of fitness and wellness helping others with personal transformation through movement, nutrition, and mindset training. She holds a BSN from Oral Roberts University and an MBA from Indiana University but is most passionate about helping others grow their “health bank” as a holistic nurse coach. You can reach Lisa at www.LisaBellHenson.com.