Muscle Atrophy
By Alexander Germanis
Just two months after turning 12, I was hit by a car at the close of the summer. Although I spent only a week in the hospital and another two to three weeks recuperating at home, the sharp drop in my physical strength was alarming.
At the start of the summer, I had been cycling daily, running a six-minute mile, swimming regularly, and was constantly active. After my hospital stay, however, I could not walk on my own. When I returned to school, I could no longer walk up a flight of stairs, and for numerous reasons, could not attend my physical education classes for about four months.
The skeletal muscle mass loss, or muscle atrophy, I experienced was rapid and, had I not had family help and age on my side, could have been utterly catastrophic.
Although we equate muscle atrophy more with the senior population, it can affect people of any age. As mentioned in this month’s “Winter Wellness” article, it can take only two to three weeks for muscles to start to atrophy due to inactivity.
It may seem relatively easy to build and maintain muscle mass in our 20s, but most people can start to experience a muscle percentage loss of three to five percent per decade starting when they are in their 30s.
Muscle loss directly correlates to strength loss, and that pairing only gains ground with each decade of age. Someone in their 50s, with an average muscle mass loss of just two percent, will experience a four percent drop in strength. That 1:2 muscle loss to strength loss ratio remains fairly consistent with an increase of age.
In the 50 years between our 30s and 80s, it is estimated we can lose 35 to 40 percent of our muscle mass. Applying the above ratio to those numbers results in a disturbing loss of strength. This age-related condition of muscle and strength loss is known as sarcopenia.
Strength training, therefore, becomes more and more important with every decade we age. Waiting until one is in one’s 50s or 60s is certainly not the best course of action. Muscle building becomes harder as we age due in part to the aforementioned age-related muscle mass loss; and, naturally, the more muscle one builds while one is younger, the more one can afford to lose later.
Although you can experience an increase in strength as you begin training, actual muscle mass gain might not be noticeable until six to eight weeks after focused training. Regular strength training can also grant you a 20-year advantage over other people your age. This means exhibiting the strength and muscle of a less active person 20 years your junior.
Strength training two to three times per week is only one way to combat atrophy. As muscles are made up of water and protein, staying hydrated and maintaining a steady intake of protein are necessary steps. Protein intake depends on one’s age, sex, and level of activity, but a general rule is to take in 1.6 to 2.2 grams of protein per day for each kilogram (2.2 lb.) of body weight. So, a 77-kilogram (170 lb.) person would want to take in about 123 to 170 grams of protein per day. Spreading this intake out throughout the day is important. For people who wish to intake plant-based protein, it is recommended to diversify the sources of protein.
Humans are meant to move, and this is simply not possible without muscle strength. So, build muscle now to keep moving in the future.