5 daily habits that keep your muscles strong

Having strong muscles doesn’t just make you look and feel good—getting your muscles in shape will improve nearly every aspect of your life. Building muscle is good for your heart, your joints and your mind—and it doesn’t take hours of lifting heavy weights to do it.

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Chockfull of health benefits, pomegranates may help preserve your muscle loss. Pomegranates are particularly rich in a molecule called ellagic acid (raspberries are another good source). In the gut, ellagic acid is transformed by microbes into a substance called urolithin A; a study published in Nature Medicine in 2019 found that urolithin A enables muscle cells to protect themselves against the dysfunctional mitochondria associated with age.

Put down the peeler and embrace the fibre in many of these fruits and vegetables.

A little extra sunshine is good for both your body and mind. Research suggests that vitamin D—which humans mostly obtain through exposure to sunlight—can improve conditions like muscle weakness. Alternatively, studies have found that vitamin D deficiencies can lead to muscle wasting. Getting a little morning sun—no more than 15 minutes without sunscreen—can fire up the vitamin D-making machinery in your body.

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When it comes to rejuvenating muscles, resistance training is key. Although many adults exercise, a 2016 survey by AARP and Abbott found that 57 per cent preferred cardio, while only 24 per cent lift weights. “Evidence has really shown that doing those exercises can help you maintain your muscle,” says Tiffany Dewitt, a registered dietitian.

Lift weights you can heft between eight and 12 times; once you can lift a weight more than 12 times for a particular move, increase the amount. Focus on your entire body—think arms, chest, back, legs, and abdominals, and don’t rule out strength-building classes like yoga and Pilates.

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In the AARP survey, 62 per cent of adults said they thought they got enough protein, and 70 per cent reported increasing their intake of high-protein foods to minimize their risk of muscle loss. But interestingly, only 17 per cent said they knew how much protein they needed. So what’s best for adults?

A minimum of 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of weight (or for a 86-kilogram person, that’s 54 grams), according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. If you don’t want to do the maths, use the organisation’s online calculator to figure out your proteins needs along with other nutrients.

But don’t get too caught up with numbers. The 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines recommends concentrating on eating protein-rich foods rather than focusing on a particular amount of protein. Dewitt suggests speaking with your doctor about protein intake and goals.

Want to stay fuller longer? These high-protein foods will certainly do the trick.

Instead of cramming in your protein requirements with a steak at dinner, aim to balance your protein intake throughout the day. One University of Texas study published in 2014 in the Journal of Nutrition found a 25 percent increase in muscle protein synthesis when protein intake was divided evenly into 30-gram servings for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as opposed to when it was doled out randomly with an 11-gram serving at breakfast, 16 grams at lunch, and 63 grams at dinner.

So how much food equals 30 grams of protein? Think of an omelette with feta cheese, for example, or a serving of meat or poultry (roughly the size of a mobile phone).

Next, learn to spot the signs you could be eating too much protein.

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Source: Readersdigest.ca