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getting older means losing muscle mass
glance gender makes no difference The age-old question of gender differences rears its head quite regularly; depending on the situation, sometimes the answer is that there are none. The American College of Sports Medicine has published a study in its official monthly journal, Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise�, which addressed the differences in strength change with one repetition maximum (1RM) strength training on young (20-30 yrs.) and older (65-75 yrs.) men and women.
We know that aging means losing muscle mass, which brings on a reduction in strength, risk of falls and impaired functional ability. Studies have shown that strength training is a safe, effective way to ward off these unhappy conditions, but no one had compared the responses of both young and older persons to both training and detraining. Nor had any previous study compared age with gender. Jeffrey T. Lemmer, Ph.D., from the University of Maryland, and eight colleagues, developed a study that would measure these responses. They hoped to find out the effects of not training on men and women, old and young. "Muscular activity and its role in age-related changes in strength have only recently been documented," said Lemmer. "We wanted new information in order to explain what happens when this activity is discontinued for whatever reason, and how age and gender might influence these declines in strength." |
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Forty-one healthy untrained men and women ages 20-30 and 65-75 were chosen for the study, specifically 10 young and 12 older men and eight young and 11 older women. Each was screened for cardiovascular disease; the older participants were asked to undergo a physical examination. Subsequently each participant was assessed in terms of aerobic power (VO2max), body composition (absorptiometry), isokinetic peak torque, and strength (one repetition maximum). These tests were done in order to confirm that the subjects were not aerobically trained, to familiarize them with the equipment and technique for strength training, and to minimize neurological contributions to strength gains in study subjects. The training program consisted of five sets of unilateral knee extension exercises of the subject's dominant leg, preceded by a warm-up of five repetitions at 50% of full strength (1RM). Four training sets followed, beginning at full strength, separated by varying rest periods and characterized by progressively reducing resistance until ten, then 15, then 20 repetitions could be made. Compliance with the training protocol was confirmed by consistent direct observation.
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Both groups made substantial gains in strength following the training protocol. After nine weeks, it was clear that young subjects showed greater increases in strength when compared with the older subjects, but that men in both groups gained strength at the same rate as women. In the first 12 weeks of detraining there were no differences in decline in any of the four groups. Young subjects did show smaller declines, however, over the full 31 weeks of detraining.
The researchers noted that the smaller increase in strength in older compared with younger subjects may be attributable to an age-associated loss of Type II muscle fiber in both number and size. They pointed out, however, that it is important to remember that the relative increases in muscle strength were not significantly different, and that frail older individuals can reap very large increases from a program of strength training. Thus, it is never too late to start.
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