Why You Want To Preserve Muscle Mass As You Age

There are many reasons why you want to preserve muscle mass, as well as continue to build muscle, as you age....especially if you are a woman.

Below are some reasons why.....

Building muscle strength:

• Builds stronger bones
• Protects joints from wear and tear
• Better movement to help prevent injury
• Helps maintain stability, balance and overall health
• Helps you burn more calories when your body is at rest
• Assists with a better quality of life
• When you move better, you feel better and then you have a better chance to live independently for the length of your entire life span

I think those are some pretty damn good reasons why you want to preserve the muscle you have as well as inspire you to even build more muscle.

I have always done some form of working out my whole life. I did some working out with weights when in high school. But my first real love of the gym and weights came when I was in college.

Having played sports my whole life, I just figured I would play them in college too. But I decided not to. So in the Fall before I started college, unlike the past 4 Falls prior, there were no grueling 3-sessions-a-day field hockey practices in the sweltering heat of August. I also didn't do much during the Fall of my freshman year of college. Guess it was just all so new, and I was settling in to college life. Hence, I gained the freshman 8....and 8 pounds for me was a lot on my little 5'3" frame.

So during winter session, I started going to the weight-lifting room at the college gym. I loved it so much that I ended up joining a local gym in the town. Hence to say I was hooked and weight-lifting was now a part of my life, until yoga teacher training.

The yoga teacher training I took was quite intensive and with all the additonal yoga practices and studying I did outside of the actual 'teacher training' hours, I found it hard to find the time, and the energy, to lift.

Then after I became a certified yoga instructor, I eventually found my way back to the weights. And I found other new interesting equipment and gear out there in the fitness world so I slowly began creating a little home gym. I worked out from home for years and then I eventually signed back up for a gym membership about 2 months before the corona virus hit. It felt good adding the gym back into my training routine, but I'm also happy that I have a lot of gear to work with at home, on top of using my body weight, to keep the muscle mass I have and build some more, since the gyms closed down for a bit due to the virus.

Speaking of building muscle, about a year ago I decided I wanted to attempt to build more muscle. Now, over a year later, I feel stronger than I ever have, and I'm in my second half of life.

Think you can't build muscle as you age? Well, as I always say, give it a shot and have your own damn experience around it instead of believing what others say.

And if those reasons up above aren't good enough for you, here are a few more I have personally experienced:

• Increased confidence
• Stepping out of my comfort zone (& enjoying life more!)
• Feeling stronger physically and mentally
• More energy to do the stuff I love
• Inspiring others
• Meeting some awesome like-minded humans
• Less anxiety
• Less overall stress
• Don't mind what others think
• Less judgmental
• Deeper devotion to Self
• Better eating habits (because when you put the hard work in, you want to treat and fuel your body better!)

If you'd like to start feeling some of these benefits, I'd like to invite you on a journey with me.

It's a 4-week challenge called the MIND~BODY CHISEL CHALLENGE and you can find out all about it here.

Here's to living RADIANT BEYOND 50!

gina