Does Age Affect Fitness? - Alicia Jones Healthy Living

Does age affect fitness? If so, what can you do to get in shape and feel your fittest after 50?

I’ve coached hundreds of women after 50, who’ve come to me to feel their fittest and who’ve tried to get back into old fitness routines they participated in years back, yet, instead of feeling energized after their workout, they felt sore and achy. They felt like they just couldn’t recover quickly.

When this happens, they often ask “Is it my age? Does my age really affect fitness? Or has something else shifted that I need to be more concerned about?”

Today we’ll go through exactly what changes with age, and how it could affect your fitness, then I’ll show you how to make a few simple tweaks to your workout to feel energized, strong and happy in as little as 6 weeks!

Let’s go over a Recap of the Video:

Lung Capacity Changes With Age, but it May Not Affect Your Fitness:

The maximum volume of oxygen our lungs can take in is known as your V02Max. With age, this volume will go down.

That being said, unless you were a super athlete who pushed yourself to your limits, it won’t matter.

You would’ve had to reach maximum lung capacity levels which are usually achieved during extreme sports in order to notice a change in your ability to reach maximum levels.

If your main goal is general fitness so that you feel strong, independent and fully energized to accomplish everything you’ve set out to do in your day, you don’t have to push yourself to the max and you probably weren’t ever pushing yourself to your max anyways.

ALSO, you can increase your lung capacity, even after 50 by doing high intensity interval training out and it doesn’t need to make you feel depleted or out of energy for the rest of your day.

For a full workout plan that includes the exact exercise strategy to help you increase your V02Max and lose menopause belly fat click here: The Fastest Path to Shrink Belly Fat Over 50

Hormones Shift With Age and YES They Affect Fitness:

Especially during menopause hormones shift, and I don’t think I need to tell you that it affects your energy levels, your ability to sleep and it even affects your stress levels.

All of these factors will affect your fitness routine if:

You’ve had a restless night and couldn’t sleep, the best option is to choose sleep over exercise

You’re feeling really stressed, breathing exercises and light yoga take priority over intense long bouts of cardio

You’re experiencing a hot flash during fitness, it’s safe to workout but it will definitely affect your workout performance

Hormones change with age and yes, these hormone shifts may affect fitness.

The good news is while hormones affect fitness, exercise can also affect your hormones.

A consistent fitness routine will help you improve hormone balance. It’ll also help you sleep better, reduce stress levels and enhance your overall well-being.

Strength Levels Decrease Which May Affect Fitness, but They Don’t Have to:

The amount of lean muscle mass you have is linked to strength. The more lean muscle, the stronger you are. With age muscle declines and it takes your strength with it.

Muscle loss isn’t necessarily because you’ve aged. It has to do with the accumulation of years inactivity.

Muscle mass can increase with a consistent weight training program. You can revv up your metabolism, burn fat and become strong again.

The initial lack of strength from a decline in lean muscle will affect your fitness. You’ll have to use lighter weights and start slow. You may also need to weight train less often to allow for a stronger physique.

Yet, after as little as 6 weeks, you’ll notice your strength return and your workouts will become as powerful as they once were.

Recovery Rates May Change With Age Depending on the Type of Exercise You Do, But the Scientific Reasons Are Inconclusive:

For every study that show recovery rates are slower in older individuals, there’s an equally valid study that shows recovery rates are equal to younger individuals .

Partly, it may have to do with the type of exercise you do. Exercises that tax the muscles more intensely (such as weight training) may have a slower recovery rate than endurance exercises such as walking or cycling.

It may also have to do with stress. After the age of fifty, stress levels increase, hormones shift and both of these factors affect recovery rates. After all, cortisol, the stress hormone, is catabolic. In other words, it breaks down the muscle you’ve been trying to repair and may slow down recovery. It also increases inflammation within the body.

Recovery rates may be longer if you suffer from age related issues, such as arthritis. Inflammatory flair ups may take longer to subside, increasing the amount of time needed in between your workout sessions.

Either way recovery rates decline and you may need more days off in between workouts.

How to Change Your Workout to Feel Your Fittest After 50:

Cardio is a must to help you have a healthy level of lung capacity. If you’re looking to improve your maximum lung capacity, get to a state where it’s hard to breathe.

Lift weights to get your strength back. This increases your lean muscle mass, and with it comes a firm physique and a faster fat burning body.

For recovery levels less is more. Resistance training 2 times a week is a great start.

For hormone changes, starting with only 2 days of resistance training gives you the ability to listen to your body and choose whether your body needs rest, or fitness.

For the best workout to feel your fittest after 50, I created a free cardio and weight training plan that increases your lung capacity, includes weight training and as an added bonus, it burns belly fat too!