Muscle atrophy is a disease, but it is seriously ignored by us——

There is a disease,

You may not know it is a disease.

The consequences are quite serious!

Too little muscle

The Four Deadly Sins

Imbalanced nutrition and lack of exercise are the main reasons for accelerated muscle loss in modern elderly people.
Muscles and bones together form the body's supporting movement system. Starting from childhood, muscles grow with the body's growth and development, reaching their peak around the age of 30, and then begin to decrease year by year. After the age of 60, muscle loss will accelerate further, causing a series of problems:
1

It causes a decrease in the mobility of the elderly, resulting in difficulty standing, slow steps, and easy falls.

2

It affects the ability to regulate blood sugar and metabolize blood lipids, induces chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia, and puts the body into a vicious cycle.

3

The increase in hospitalization rates and medical expenses for the elderly seriously affects their quality of life and even shortens their lifespan.

4

If you lose too much muscle, you should be careful about developing sarcopenia.

Sarcopenia, also known as muscle attenuation syndrome, is a syndrome of skeletal muscle loss, muscle strength and muscle function associated with aging. Not long ago, the "Chinese Expert Consensus on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Sarcopenia in the Elderly (2021)" and the "Chinese Expert Consensus on Core Information for Preventing Sarcopenia in the Elderly (2021)" were released. The consensus points out that there are currently 50 million people suffering from sarcopenia in the world, and everyone's understanding of sarcopenia is still in its early stages.

muscle

It's amazing

1

Muscles are the basis of all body movement

All human activities are powered by muscles and carried out by bones. Insufficient muscle strength will directly affect various body activities, resulting in limited activities. In severe cases, people have to use crutches, sit in a wheelchair, or even stay in bed, losing the ability to take care of themselves. Have you heard that people's legs age first? This is because the elderly lose a lot of leg muscles.

Muscles are the second heart of human beings

Everyone relies on the heart to transport blood throughout the body, but the power of the heart alone is obviously not enough. The muscles in the calves and feet contract like a "pump", compressing the blood vessels to make the blood flow upward through the venules and veins, and finally flow back to the heart, so that the entire blood circulation of the human body can proceed smoothly. Therefore, muscles are known as the "second heart of the human body".

Muscles are the main battlefield for energy consumption

When you are at rest, the calories consumed by the same weight of muscle are three times that of fat. When doing various exercises, the energy consumed by muscles will increase exponentially. Muscles are like engines. They also consume energy when idling. When they are active, they can convert a lot of energy into power to drive the human body to do various movements. In a word, people with more muscles have stronger athletic ability.

Muscles are the guardian of joint and bone health

Only when the muscles are strong can they protect the joints and prevent various bone and joint injuries, such as knee pain, back pain, etc. A large number of studies have shown that muscle content is positively correlated with bone density, and a decrease in muscle content is the main cause of osteoporosis.

Muscles are the main force in blood sugar metabolism

Diabetes has become one of the most common diseases in the world. Muscles are the largest glucose storage and consumption plant in the human body, and are of great significance to the regulation of blood sugar. Having strong muscles can effectively prevent and control diabetes.
Two methods

See if you are strong

Method 1: According to the National Physical Exercise Standards, the elderly can assess their muscle loss by the number of leg raises they can do in one minute.
Specific method: The subject lies on his back on the mat, with his legs together and straight, his arms placed on both sides of his body, and does abdominal contraction and straight leg lifts. When the knees and calves touch the rubber band (bars are placed on both sides of the mat and connected with rubber bands), return to the starting position and record the number of reps done in one minute and compare it with the table of "Evaluation Standards for One-Minute Supine Leg Raises for the Elderly". The lower the score, the worse the muscle endurance and the more serious the muscle loss.

Method 2: According to the 2019 Asian Consensus on the Diagnosis and Treatment of Sarcopenia (AWGS2019), the following four criteria can also serve as warning signs of muscle loss.

Calf circumference: men <34 cm, women <33 cm.

2

Hand grip strength: Men <28 kg, women <18 kg.

3

Six-meter walking speed measurement: walking speed <1 m/s.

4

Chair sit-ups: Cross your arms over your chest and do 5 stand-up-and-sit-down exercises with time > 12 seconds.

If at least one of the above conditions is met, it indicates the possibility of muscle loss and requires timely intervention.

Recommended actions

Gain muscle and be the best

Many people think that the effect of fitness for the elderly will not be very obvious because of their age. However, with strict nutrition and muscle strength training, this phenomenon can be reversed, allowing a 60-year-old to have the muscle strength of a 30-year-old.

When elderly people do muscle strength training, they must first be safe. Using small weights and multiple repetitions for muscle endurance training is safe and easier to stick to. Use your own weight, or small tools such as small dumbbells, mineral water bottles, and elastic bands to provide resistance. Focus on training the large muscle groups of the lower limbs, chest and back, and shoulders and arms.

Here are some recommended actions⬇️⬇️

★Seated thigh lift

Sit on the front edge of the chair with your buttocks, hold the chair with both hands, lift your left leg and straighten it parallel to the ground, keep your upper body straight, do not lean back or forward. Hold for 5 to 10 seconds, then switch to the right leg, do 10 to 20 times each as a set, and do 3 to 4 sets.

★Chair stand up and sit down

Cross your arms over your shoulders or stretch them out, spread your legs, stand up from the chair, and then sit down. Inhale when you stand up, and exhale when you sit down. Do this slowly. You can inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth. Repeat 10 to 20 times per set, do 3 to 4 sets, and rest for 1 to 2 minutes between sets.

Push-ups

According to your physical fitness, you can choose to do push-ups with your hands on the wall, followed by push-ups with your hands on a bench, and the most difficult is push-ups with your hands on the ground. Choose different difficult movements at different training stages. Do 10 to 20 times as a set, and do 3 to 4 sets.

★Dumbbell or elastic band press

Hold heavy objects such as small dumbbells, mineral water bottles or elastic ropes and push up. Do 10 to 20 times as a set. Do 3 to 4 sets and choose the weight according to your physical condition.

Note ⚠

1. It is best to do muscle strength training every other day, that is, 3 times a week. Exercise four parts of the muscles each time, choose one movement for each part, and practice for about 30 minutes.

2. Ordinary people should not pursue heavy weights when doing muscle training. First, it is easy to get injured, and second, it will make people afraid and give up exercising.

3. Exercise should be gradual, and resistance should be gradually increased as strength increases. Only in this way can muscle growth be continuously stimulated.

4. Keep up with nutrition and eat more high-quality protein foods, such as low-fat and high-protein foods, to promote muscle growth.

Author: Zhao Qingshui, Beijing Fangshan District Center for Disease Control and Prevention