[Article] Weight training is crucial for masters athletes

Weight training is crucial for masters athletes
Author: Associate Professor Peter Reaburn
Source Aussport.gov.au

Muscle-building weight training is crucial for Masters athletes wanting to maintain or improve sports performance. The muscle mass of athletes change in four stages:

1. Muscle size peaks between 16–19 years for females and 18–24 years for males.
2. Between 25 and 50 years there is a 5–10 per cent decline in muscle size.
3. Between 50 and 65–70 years there is another 15 per cent decline.
4. After 65–70 years there is an accelerated loss of a further 25 per cent.

As we get older we lose the muscle mass so crucial for sports performance. There are two major reasons why:

• Decreased muscle fibre size, particularly in the power-producing fast twitch muscle fibres.
• Decreased muscle fibre number, especially the power-producing fast twitch fibre (at age 30, about 60 per cent of muscle fibres are fast twitch; at age 80, it’s about 30 per cent).

Both of these decreases lead to a 50 per cent loss in muscle mass between the ages of 20 and 90. Sprint or power training and high-intensity endurance training can help slow the decline in muscle mass.

Benefits of weight training for older athletes

Weight training as we get older has numerous health and performance benefits, as summarized below.

Health Benefits

• Increases independence as we age.
• Helps prevent and treat osteoporosis.
• Normalises blood pressure in people with high blood pressure.
• Reduces resistance to insulin in people with type 2 diabetes.
• Decreases both total and abdominal body fat linked to increased cardiovascular disease risk.Performance Benefits
• Increases resting metabolic rate, so helps weight control.
• Reduces risk of falls.
• Helps reduce pain and improve function in people with osteoarthritis.
• Improves posture.
• Helps reduce stress.

Performance Benefits

• Increases muscle mass for strength and power development in sport.
• Increases fast twitch fibre area, for speed and power generation.
• More muscle to take up oxygen and improve endurance performance, following endurance training.
• Stronger connective tissue (ligaments, tendons and cartilage) to increase joint stability and help prevent injury.
• Increased bone density and thus bone strength, helping to prevent injury.
• Helps with weight control.
• Improved self-confidence in training and competition.

Where to start

Strength and conditioning development is part art and part science. Therefore Masters athletes and their coaches should get advice from qualified strength and conditioning professionals. Three methods for making contact are:

• speaking with coaches of high performance athletes in your sport to find out where they get their advice\
• through the ‘find a coach’ search on the Australian Strength and Conditioning Association website (see related links). These industry and/or university-qualified people are recommended for younger and healthy Masters athletes.
• through the ‘find an exercise physiologist’ search on the homepage of the Australian Association for Exercise and Sport Science (see related links). These university-qualified professionals are recommended for Masters athletes with health problems.

Conclusion

Weight training that focuses on building muscle mass is crucial for Masters athletes. The off-season and pre-season should be used to develop muscle mass and strength. During the pre-competition and competition phases of training, the increased muscle mass and strength should be converted to power through a combination of specific sports training and exercises designed by professional strength and conditioning specialists.

All being well I intend to train well into my elderly years.

I'm aiming to be an extremely well conditioned master weightlifter. I"ve got 7 years to get my shit together

This is a double post.

PowerBuilder said:

I'm aiming to be an extremely well conditioned master weightlifter. I"ve got 7 years to get my shit together

Click to expand...

Well I am already a master .
Truth is I'm having more fun now than ever.
One point though, is that the more you learn the harder it is. For example when I was 19 (In 1991) I was told the best way to bulk was to eat anything and lots of it. Sure I bulk but I got fat. I went from 57kg to 80kg in next to no time, but it was fun watching the weight pile on, now I watch everything I eat and it has become less enjoyable in that aspect but the final outcomes are much more rewarding knowing I'm putting the hard yards in. Dieting for me is 4 times harder than lifting.

thats it mate. Over the last 4 years I've watched what i've eaten pretty much every single day. Being mindful of what comes in, in terms of quality, quantity, alongside of it's macro-nutritional break down. It's been more so over the last few years. I've followed more of a carb controlled diet. I"m strangely stronger, leaner & bigger than ever. Last time i was 68-69kg....i wasn't this strong or lean!