The terrible health consequences of smoking have been long established, and in recent years excessive sitting/sedentary behavior has also been associated with similar negative health effects. Now we are learning that weak muscles may be the “new smoking” when it comes to unhealthy aging. How is that so? Research has begun to show that weak muscles are associated with accelerated biological aging, with the implication that your weak muscles could be powerful predictors of serious illness as you age- and even portend premature mortality. There’s a new study just published in The Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle that explains this association.

Scientists at the University of Michigan followed over 1200 men and women of middle age and older for 8-10 years to examine the association between grip strength and biological aging (it’s well-known that grip strength can be a proxy for overall muscle strength, and weak grip strength itself can be a manifestation of serious heart or lung disease). What they found, evidently for the first time, was a strong link between muscle weakness and the actual acceleration of biological aging. This not only suggests regular assessment of grip strength may reveal functional decline and underlying disease (before symptoms occur) but also implies that maintaining muscle strength may help protect against many common age-related diseases and may slow the speed of your biological aging. So pick up a kettlebell and read more here.

We’ve touted the health value of strength training to sustain and improve muscle mass and strength for years. The Michigan study reinforces the importance of maintaining muscle strength to ward off accelerated aging. Other new research also provides motivation for keeping your muscles strong. For example, in a small new study published in the American Journal of Physiology: Cell Physiology, researchers report strength training can improve the connections between your nerves and muscles (protecting motor neurons in the spinal cord, which are essential for body functioning), and that this improvement can happen even in your later years. The men in this study underwent an intensive 16-week weight training protocol but it appears that even less intensive strength training can be beneficial. For example, new research out of Edith Cowan University demonstrated that in order to improve muscle mass, what really counts is the lowering of weights, rather than the lifting of weights. That is, “eccentric” muscle contractions appear to be more important than “concentric” (lifting) muscle contractions. To find out more, carefully lower some weights and look here.

Finally, if you want to start strength training, you can look at agebuzz resources along with new recommendations and resources. For example, The New York Times recently published a new guide intended to help you make strength training into a regular habit, with strategies, exercise regimens, and reassurance that even starting a short simple routine will yield big results. So grab a free weight or resistance band and click here. If you’re looking for a bit more challenge, learn how dumbbells can be beginner-friendly yet become more strenuous by clicking here, and for 5 dumbbell exercises that improve total body strength in older adults, grab a sweatband and read here.