How to Retain Muscle Mass As You Age

Ageing is a natural process. But with the growing age, some people may start losing a lot of muscle mass and gaining fat, especially around their abdominal and hip region. While for some it could be due to any injury or fatigue, for others it may be due to hormonal imbalances. But retaining muscle mass and losing the extra fat can be difficult. The natural loss of muscle mass with age is medically called sarcopenia.

In recent research, published in The Journal of Nutrition, scientists have found that consumption of vitamin C can help in retaining the muscle mass after the age of 50 years.

Study: Vitamin C study to regain muscle mass

The scientists from the University of East Anglia conducted research where they studied data from more than 13,000 people in the age group of 42 to 82 years. In this research, the scientists calculated the skeletal muscle mass and vitamin C intake of these people from their seven-day food diary. The scientists then examined the levels of vitamin C in their blood.

The results of the study showed that people who had high amounts of vitamin C in their diet or blood had a higher amount of skeletal muscle mass as compared to the people who had low amounts of vitamin C.

Ways to retain muscle mass

The following things can be done to prevent the loss of muscle mass with growing age:

1. Adding protein to your diet: As we age, we must keep on adding protein-rich foods such as chicken, eggs, fish, soy, dairy and legumes in our diet as protein is the primary source for building muscle mass. Moreover, the more muscle mass you gain, the faster your metabolism gets, thus helping in fat loss.

2. Sleeping well: Sleeping soundly is necessary to maintain healthy blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and hormones, all of which can help retain and build muscle mass. Most of the muscle recovery occurs while you are sleeping.

3. Not forgetting to exercise: Staying physically active throughout your life can help prevent the loss of muscle strength. A combination of strength training (which includes lifting weights and bodyweight exercises) and aerobic exercises (such as brisk walking, swimming and running) can help in improving muscle strength as well as overall health.

4. Maintaining your vitamin D levels: Studies have shown that people with higher muscle mass have high levels of active vitamin D in their body. Also, vitamin D helps in increasing the strength of the muscles.

For more information, read our article on Bodybuilding food list.

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