Muscles: your guarantee of a healthier life

Oscar Wilde’s fictional hedonist Dorian Gray sold his soul to the devil to remain forever young, while in Greek mythology the goddess of the dawn, Eos, asked Zeus for an eternity with her mortal lover Tithonus. Achieving eternal youth is an unattainable desire that has been present in our culture since the beginning of time but, given this impossibility, the best thing to do is to prolong our stay on Earth as long as possible and in the best way possible. In recent times there have been several studies in the scientific community that clearly relate longevity with muscle mass and quality of life.

How much muscle mass a body has can reflect that person’s nutritional status, as that mass tells us how the body’s protein reserves are and when muscle mass is inadequate. These reserves can also determine diseases related to malnutrition, cancer, cachexia (also known as wasting syndrome) or sarcopenia (muscle loss through growing old). In addition, muscle weakening is often accompanied by a reduction in physical activity, which leads the person to a point that worsens their health condition.

To recover muscle mass you don’t necessarily have to prepare to compete in CrossFit or weightlifting challenges. Strength training can be done with weights, rubber bands or by simply doing functional exercises with your own body. It generates multiple long-term benefits: improving insulin sensitivity by reducing fat accumulation, lowering blood pressure, burning more calories even when your body is at rest by increasing your basal metabolic rate, combatting osteoporosis in women, improving performance in carrying out daily activities, and reducing the natural loss of muscle mass that occurs with the passing of the years. Walking is very good for general health, but it is not enough.

“Traditionally, muscle has been seen as a simple contractile tissue but today we know that it is actually a complex endocrine organ that secretes a multitude of compounds that have anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, neuroprotective effects, etc”, explains Marcos Vázquez, author of the popular blog Fitness Revolucionario, which has won multiple awards for its work in health education. The expert suggests strength training at least two or three times a week (leaving at least one day of rest between each session), focusing on the core muscles, arms and legs, based on large movements.

But what exactly are we talking about when we refer to strength training? “These are exercises that require biomechanical tension in the muscle, taking it to such an intensity that some inflammation is generated and there is an adaptive response that favours the building up of new muscle mass,” explains Dr Antonio Hernández, a doctor specialising in orthomolecular nutrition and combining alternative and conventional medicine.

Vázquez recommends working your body with a series of push-ups, squats, lunges or pull-ups, while with free weights he advises adding the overhead press and deadlift. “The ideal is to do sessions where you work on strength and hypertrophy but also include some cardiovascular exercise sessions, since their benefits complement and enhance each other.”

Any type of intense exercise – aerobic or anaerobic – must be balanced with optimal nutrition to maintain muscle mass at the appropriate levels within our body. “We should consume between 1.5 and 2 grammes per kilo of weight per day in protein-rich foods, although this may vary depending on the clinical context of the person, as well as incorporating carbohydrates in certain meals,” explains Dr Hernández.

This means, for example, that a person weighing 70 kg should consume between 80 and 100 grammes of protein a day, more or less. Note, we are talking about macronutrients, not food here, so 100g of meat or fish have about 25 grammes of protein. “I consume enough protein and energy to facilitate muscle gain, the number of meals I eat per day or whether I follow an intermittent fasting strategy is not relevant,” says Vázquez.

We should look for nutrients in real food although, depending on our lifestyle, we may have certain deficiencies. “There are supplements such as creatine that have been shown to help us gain more muscle mass. If we have trouble meeting our daily protein requirements, it is advisable to include a liquefied protein isolate supplement, as with those based on whey,” explains Dr Hernández.

Experts believe that the negative myths surrounding strength training for women are fading. On social media, both women and medical experts are spreading the word about how this change towards more strength training for women can be fundamental in the fight against osteoporosis, as well as being one of the keys to remaining healthy as we age.

“Aesthetic standards are changing. Many women want, in addition to being thin, to have muscles in their back, buttocks and legs, thereby improving bone density. The risks of bone calcification associated with menopause can be moderated.” Muscles not only help us to maintain posture, balance and movement, but they also have significant metabolic functions. “They regulate blood glucose levels, help regulate body temperature and act as a very interesting endocrine organ,” says Hernández.