After a decade or so of not setting foot inside a gym I recently decided to get my almost 50-year-old self back into some resistance training.
A few years ago, I had some significant knee injuries and the orthopaedic surgeon I saw told me that I would need a knee replacement fairly soon. Because of the pain, I stopped exercising regularly and my general strength and overall function started to decline.
I noticed that I was unable to do what I wanted to do around the property, I made all the young guys at cricket run after the ball and I was constantly in pain.
I had actually started to believe that I would never be out of knee pain, never run without pain again and that I would be forced to have a knee replacement at a relatively young age.
But, the physios at Physique would not just allow that to happen.
They did up a training program for me about three months ago and I’ve been going to the gym three or four times a week ever since.
I had forgotten how much joy there is in getting stronger.
There is satisfaction in slowly lifting heavier weights and there is a sense of achievement in rediscovering movements and movement patterns that I did very easily as a younger man.
And the difference is incredible.
I have relearnt how to squat, how to jump and how to kneel.
In the space of three months, I have gone from constant pain to now only getting knee pain if I overdo things. And I can run again. Not fast.
I don’t care about that anymore, but a 30-minute run two or three times a week.
And for the first time in my life, exercising is fun. I think it is the knowledge that this is saving my future self a world of hurt that is giving me so much enjoyment.
Doing resistance training is so incredibly important as humans get older than 40.
As we age, if we do not do regular resistance training, we will slowly lose our muscle mass.
This results in less strength, less movement, less balance and a decreased ability to do the things that we love.
Generally, it will also mean that you will have more pain and stiffness as there is more pressure on our joints, especially the weight bearing ones.
Resistance training isn’t only about being a gym bro, it just means working your muscles against some kind of force.
That could be dumbbells, resistance bands, machines, soup cans, or even your own body weight.
The ultimate goal of any resistance training is to challenge your muscles so they get stronger over time and then stay strong.
It is important that this is done right to maximise your benefits and minimise any risks, and, under the watchful eyes of the professionals at Physique Physiotherapy I guarantee you will do it right.
Make a choice to make a difference to your muscle strength and to your life. Your future self will thank you for it.
Give us a call at Physique, it’s time to hit the gym.
The post Almost 50? It’s time to hit the gym. appeared first on Tamborine Mountain News.
