Strong muscles with 5 exercises

If we don’t train our muscles, they shrink. And that starts from the age of 30. The number of muscle cells decreases and the muscle cells become less strong. Every 10 years we lose an average of 3 to 5 percent of our muscle mass and that can have serious consequences. The lack of muscle strength makes it faster to fall and harder to get back up, simply because we don’t have the strength to lift ourselves up. Also, the effects of osteoporosis, hip and knee wear more severe when the muscles relax. Strong muscles can partly compensate for the effects of wear and tear. Weak muscles cause bad posture, which gives back problems, for example, a chance.

In addition, muscle breakdown easily leads to obesity. With less muscle, the metabolism is less efficient, so that the body stores more fat. For example, it can happen that someone loses 5 kilograms of muscle over the course of 20 years while gaining 10 kilograms of fat. Fortunately, there is an easy way to stop this process.

Train yourself tight and strong

Exercising makes the muscle cells bigger and stronger. Muscles respond very quickly to strength training. Within eight weeks, women who have never exercised can convert an average of 2 percent of their body weight into muscle tissue. In men, this can go much faster – thanks to the male hormone testosterone.

Muscle training is useful at any age; even in the over-90s, muscle strength increases rapidly with simple exercises. So it’s never too late to get started.

You can train muscles in many ways. In addition to exercising with weights, for example, yoga and fitness (such as Pilates) are excellent ways to get stronger. Regularly doing a number of simple floor exercises can make the difference between a toned and strong body or a premature ‘collapse’.

Eating enough protein

Not only strength training is important to maintain the muscles; It is also crucial to eat enough protein. According to the Dutch standard, established by the Health Council, healthy people have a weight per kilogram of body weight
Need 0.8 grams of protein per day. With a weight of 70 kilograms, this is about 56 grams of protein per day.

With a normal, healthy diet you get 70 to 90 grams of protein per day. With vegetarians this is usually slightly less; This is because animal proteins are easier for the body to absorb than vegetable proteins. In addition, nuts, grains and legumes contain much less protein than meat, fish, dairy and eggs. Nevertheless, according to the Nutrition Center, everyone in the Netherlands gets enough protein and most people even eat more protein than is necessary.

However, according to some researchers, 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight is not enough for people over 50 to prevent muscle loss. The reasoning is that because we absorb proteins less well at a later age, we need more of them. For example, American research has shown that muscle loss in older subjects is halted if they consume 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight daily. With a weight of 70 kilograms, that is 112 grams of protein per day.

Good to know: people with type 1 diabetes and serious kidney problems should not consume too much protein, because their kidneys have to work extra hard. The advice for these patients is to eat no more than 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, according to the Diabetes Fund.

Shakes

A day of counting how much protein you eat can show whether you are getting enough. Is it on the low side? Then consider a once a day protein drink to take. For example, one shake with whey (a by-product of cheese making, for sale at gyms and health food stores) provides about 20 grams of protein. Dairy products fortified with extra protein also help.

5 exercises

With these five simple exercises, without equipment, you train the whole body. Do all five every day and you’ll stay strong.

1. Squat: Stand up straight with feet shoulder-width apart. Let the feet point outward about 30 degrees. Bend your knees with your back straight, as if you were going to sit on a chair. Do this five times. Build up to twenty reps.

2. Lunges: Stand up straight with feet together. Step forward with the left leg, with the left lower leg forming a 90-degree angle with the ground. Lower the back leg until the knee almost touches the floor. Step back to the starting position and repeat the exercise with the right leg. Repeat five times; build up to ten reps on each side.

3. Push-ups: Lie on the floor, place the hands next to the ears and press the body with the arms. Keep the body straight. Then bend the arms and slowly lower back to the floor. If it’s still too heavy, you can start doing push-ups from the knees. Do this five times. Build up to ten (women) or fifty (men) times.

4. Plank: Lie on the stomach with elbows under shoulders and legs together. Lift the body, with a straight back, leaning on the forearms and toes. Tighten the abs, keep the buttocks low and hold this position for as long as possible. Start with ten seconds and build up to a minute.
5. Half Bridge: Lie on your back with knees bent and feet slightly apart. Put your arms at your sides. Tighten your buttocks and push your hips up. Keep this up for five to ten seconds. Return to just above the floor and repeat ten times. Make the exercise harder by extending one leg at an angle.