Getting older is a normal part of life. Becoming less capable of doing the things you enjoy doesn’t have to be.
Healthy ageing isn’t about trying to turn back the clock or pretending your body hasn’t changed. It’s about maintaining the physical capacity to keep doing the things that matter to you.
That might mean travelling comfortable, keeping up with the grandchildren, working in the garden, carrying your own shopping, walking with friends, or feeling confident getting up and down the stairs.
Many of these everyday activities have one important thing in common: They require strength.
Strength training is often associated with gyms, athletes, and lifting heavy weights, but its role in healthy ageing goes far beyond that. Building and maintaining strength can help support mobility, physical function, independence, and confidence as we get older.
What does healthy ageing actually mean?
Healthy ageing doesn’t mean living without illness, injury, or health conditions.
The World Health Organization describes healthy ageing as developing and maintaining the functional ability that enables people to do the things they value as they get older.
In practical terms, that means being able to continue participating in everyday life.
For one person, that might mean walking the dog every morning. For someone else, it might mean travelling overseas, getting down onto the floor to play with grandchildren, or continuing to enjoy their favourite sport.
There is no single definition of what healthy ageing should look like. But maintaining physical capacity gives us more options to keep doing the things we enjoy.
Why do we lose strength as we get older?
Changes in muscle mass and strength can occur as we age, particularly when we become less physically active.
This can gradually affect everyday activities. You might notice that getting out of a chair takes more effort, stairs feel harder than they used to, or carrying heavier items becomes more challenging.
Often, these changes happen gradually. So gradually, in fact, that people may start adapting without really noticing. You ask someone else to carry the heavy bags. You avoid getting down onto the floor. You choose the lift instead of the stairs.
There is nothing wrong with making life easier when you need to. The problem is that doing less can sometimes contribute to further losses in strength and physical capacity.
The body responds to what we ask it to do. That’s why continuing to challenge your muscles is important.
Strength is about much more than lifting weights
When people hear the words strength training, they often picture barbells and heavy weights.
But strength is something you use all day. You use it to:
- Get up from a chair
- Walk up and down stairs
- Carry groceries
- Lift and move objects
- Get up from the floor
- Maintain your balance when you trip or stumble
- Garden, play sport, and complete household tasks.
Strength training is simple a way of deliberately challenging your muscles so they can become stronger and better able to cope with the demands of everyday life.
Depending on your starting point, this could involve bodyweight exercises, resistance bands, dumbbells, machines, or other forms of resistance.
The best approach isn’t necessarily the most complicated one. It’s the one that is appropriate for you and can be progressed as your strength improves.
Strength training can support independence
One of the biggest benefits of maintaining strengths is the role it plays in helping you continue to move independently.
Think about some of the activities that become important as we get older:
- Standing up from a chair without needing to push heavily through your arms
- Walking up stairs
- Carrying washing or groceries
- Getting in and out of the car
- Recovering your balance if you trip.
These movements all rely on a combination of muscle strength, coordination, and balance.
The Australian Government’s current movement guidelines for adults aged 65 and over recommend muscle-strengthening activities on two or more days per week, as well as functional activities targeting mobility, balance, and coordination on three or more days per week.
Strength training isn’t just something to do if you want to go to the gym. It’s one part of maintaining the physical capacity needed for everyday life.
What about balance and falls prevention?
Strength and balance are closely connected. Good balance isn’t simply about being able to stand on one leg. Everyday balance requires your body to react to changes in position and movement.
If you trip over something or step unexpectedly onto an uneven surface, your muscles need to respond.
Building lower-body strength can be an important part of improving your ability to control movement and respond to these situations.
This is why physical activity recommendations for older adults include both muscle-strengthening activities and functional activities that target balance and coordination.
For many people, working on strength and balance together makes more sense than treating them as completely seperate things.
You don’t have to already be fit to start
One of the biggest barriers to starting an exercise program is the idea that you need to be reasonably fit before you begin. You don’t. Exercise should start with where you are at now.
For some people, that might mean beginning with simple exercises to improve leg strength and confidence with movement. For others, it could mean progressing to heavier resistance training or working towards a specific physical goal. There is no prize for starting at the hardest level.
A good exercise program should be tailored to your current abilities and progress gradually over time. In fact, the Australian guidelines emphasise that replacing sedentary time with physical activity of any intensity can provide health benefits, and that regular movement should be part of a healthy routine.
The important thing is getting started.
What does strength training look like for healthy ageing?
There isn’t one perfect strength program for everyone. Your exercise program should reflect your current ability, experience, and goals. It may include exercises such as:
Squats or sit-to-stands
These movements can help build strength for everyday activities such as getting up from a chair.
Step-ups
Step-ups can help develop the strength and control needed for stairs and other everyday movements.
Resistance exercises
Dumbbells, machines, and resistance bands can all be used to strengthen different muscle groups.
Carrying exercises
Carrying an appropriate weight can help develop strength for everyday activities such as carrying shopping or household items.
Functional exercises
These focus on movements that are relevant to your everyday life and the activities you want to continue doing. The exercises themselves are only part of the picture. How much resistance you use, how often you train, and how your program progresses are all important too.
How can an Exercise Physiologist help with healthy ageing?
An Exercise Physiologist, or EP, specialises in using exercise to support health, physical function, and quality of life.
For healthy ageing, and EP can help you build a structured exercise program around your goals and your starting point.
Sally, our Exercise Physiologist at Back In Strength, has a speical interst in:
- Healthy ageing
- Falls prevention
- Strength and conditioning
She can work with you to build strength, improve physical capacity, and develop confidence with movement.
Your program might focus on improving your ability to mange everyday activities, increasing your overall strength, improving your balance, or helping you feel more confident exercising.
For some people, the goal might be getting stronger for an upcoming holiday. For others, it might be continuing to garden independently or feeling more comfortable walking around the community. The goal doesn’t have to be complicated.
What matters is that your exercise program supports the life you want to live.
It’s never just about the gym
A strength program might happen in a gym or clinical setting, but the benefits are designed to carry over into everyday life.
The real measure of progress isn’t always how much weight you can lift. Sometimes progress looks like:
- Getting out of a chair more easily
- Walking further
- Feeling more confident on stairs
- Carrying the shopping without needing help
- Getting back to an activity you had started avoiding
- Feeling stronger and more capable in your day-to-day life
Those changes can have a meaningful impact on independence and confidence.
Healthy ageing is about staying capable
Getting older will always bring changes. But staying active and continuing to challenge your body can help you maintain the physical capacity needed to keep participating in the things you value.
Strength training doesn’t need to be intimidating, and you don’t need to become a gym person overnight. You simply need to start somewhere.
Whether your goal is to improve your strength, maintain your independence, work on your balance, or feel more confident with exercise, a tailored program can help you take the next step.
Want to build strength for the life you want to keep living?
Sally is an Exercise Physiologist at Back In Strength with a special interest in healthy ageing, falls prevention, and strength and conditioning. She can help you develop a personalised exercise program based on your current abilities, goals, and the activities that matter most to you.
Book an appointment with Sally and start building strength for life.
Related Blogs:
Falls Prevention: How Strength and Balance Can Help You Stay Independent As You Age
