Looking Good At 40 | Weight Training Over Forty To Fight Fat

If looking good at 40 is your goal then you need to include weight training as part of your exercise routine. Building and maintaining muscle mass is one of the most important things for fitness over forty.

Did you know that between the ages of 25 and 65 we generally lose between 30-40 percent of our muscle mass? And as we lose this muscle, we lose our ability to burn calories. That is why we gain weight when we age. A woman's body fat percentage usually rises from 25 to 43 percent while a man can expect to see a rise from 18 to 38 percent. That is why people go from being young and fit to old and fat!

Here are the numbers that show why this happens:

35 calories are burned by one pound of muscle each day
2 calories are burned by one pound of fat

It isn't hard to see why the fat keeps on growing.

1/2 pound of LOST MUSCLE each year after 35
1 1/2 pounds of MORE FAT is added each year after 35

This means that one year ago you were burning 15 more calories each day then you are now. And if you don't add weight training to your fitness routine then this trend will continue and you will get fatter.

Everyone needs to have a fitness program that includes weight training. This will increase your muscle mass, increase the amount of calories you burn and help to reverse the affects of aging.

Studies show that weight training will not only increase the length of your life in general, but it will also increase the freedom you have as you age. With a continual decline in muscle mass, the elderly end up too weak to look after themselves and are therefore forced into some sort of assisted living program.

And this can happen at a younger age then you may think. It is estimated that 25 percent of people over the age of 65 can't get dress, bathe, eat or get out of bed without some sort of assistance. This number increase to 50 percent by age 85. But there is a way to avoid this.

Weight training over forty, or at any age, can and will reverse this. Even the elderly can regain their muscle strength with weight training. At any age, muscle cells respond to high intensity weight training. Of course, the younger you start the better. Aerobic training is always thought of when people think of exercise, and it is important, but not as important as weight training over forty.

Looking good over forty can be achieved. It takes commitment and desire to look good and feel good. Weight training over forty will help you reach your goals in more then one way, so add it to your fitness routine and you will be looking good over forty before you know it.