6 essential moves helping men age-proof their muscles

Maybe you’re middle-aged or beyond and believe there’s no way to get back in shape. Not true. With some motivation, ingenuity, and stick-to-itiveness, you can get and stay lean, strong and fit well into middle age and beyond. With the right exercise moves and good nutrition, you can build muscle, lose fat if necessary, and age-proof your body with strong muscles and a robust immune system rivaling people 30 years younger as a 2018 British study has shown.

It begins with getting and maintaining muscle mass. Muscle mass naturally dwindles as the body ages.  But it’s critical for staying healthy and strong, and for avoiding major chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes or osteoporosis. That’s why certain basic exercise moves are especially important for working all major muscles of the body keeping men fit and strong for life.

Here’s a look at these six essential moves men can use to age-proof their muscles:

1.     Shoulder Press

Your shoulders are the most complex joint in the human body and also the most flexible.  We often forget how important good shoulder strength is for helping us reach overhead, to the side, across the body, behind the back, and everywhere in between. Their incredible flexibility also makes them the most commonly injured joint in the body. Because of its uniqueness and complexity, it makes this joint with the greatest range of motion, also the joint with the least stability. Up to fifty to sixty percent of men will have a shoulder injury during their lifetime.

That’s why the number one move for working the front of the shoulders is the dumbbell shoulder press. This dynamic move increases strength throughout the shoulders, working all aspects of the deltoid muscle of the shoulder and engages the core for stability. Grab a pair of dumbbells and watch this video to know the proper form for this move.

2.     Dumbbell concentration curls for biceps

Aging brings loss of muscle mass.  It happens in your lower limbs, including thighs, hamstrings, and calves. However, because you walk around each day carrying your body weight, the loss of muscle mass in your lower limbs is not as noticeable. But upper body strength is usually the first to go with age. You may not be pushing or lifting things as much as you used to. This means muscles like your trapezius, deltoids, biceps, and triceps that define your upper body strength, can weaken over time making simple tasks like carrying heavy boxes, the force of your golf swing, or carrying your grandkids more difficult to do.

To achieve and maintain strong, defined biceps, one of the best moves for this is the dumbbell concentration curl.  Watch this video for correct form.

3.     Push-ups for pectoral muscles

Men with strong pectoral muscles gain a look of overall upper body strength which is exactly what these muscles are for. Strong chest muscles improve your ability to push heavy and to perform swinging movements such as hitting a tennis ball or swinging a baseball bat.

The best move for building and maintain strong pectoral muscles are push-ups. Besides creating strong chest muscles, push-ups a push help build and sculpt your muscles from your shoulders to your toes, allowing you to get a full body workout faster.

To know how to correctly perform a push-up, watch this video.

4.     Planks for core and abdominal muscles

From picking up something on the floor to twisting your body to look behind you, almost every move you make requires strong core muscles. Your core is made up of many muscle groups in different parts of your body.  Strong core muscles help stabilize your body before any movement you make. When core muscles are weak, the other surrounding muscles have to compensate.  The longer this goes on, the more those muscles will suffer leading to lingering pain. Performing planks is your solution for helping your body learn to hold a more natural and healthy posture helping eliminate pain.

To understand how to do a plank properly, here’s a video showing you how.

5.     Lunges for your hamstrings and buttocks

To prevent sagginess and loss of strength along with muscle mass, lunges are your answer for tightening up hamstrings and buttocks. The American Council on Exercise has endorsed lunges as one of the most effective lower-body exercises for working your glutes, quadriceps and hamstrings.  Lunges work on this area of the body by activating and isolating those muscles to help give you a firm, rounded bottom with muscular thighs. Lunges also pay off by creating strong, toned legs and buttocks helping speed up your metabolism helping burn more calories throughout the day. 

Watch this video to help you perform lunges the right way.

6.     Superman move for a strong back

Men are already at a disadvantage than women when it comes to maintaining a strong back.  Men tend to be less flexible than women and carry more abdominal weight, which can strain the lower back. Your lower back muscles help stabilize the spine and contribute to a healthy posture. They also help you bend forward, turn to the side, and lift things off the ground.  A strong back will likely have fewer aches and pains than someone with weak back muscles.

That’s why the superman or lower back extension move should be part of any man’s workout, especially if you work at a desk most of the time. Best of all, besides strengthening your lower and upper back, this move also works your glutes and hamstrings and improves your core strength.

To know how to perform this move, here’s a video showing you how.

Dr. David Samadi is the Director of Men’s Health and Urologic Oncology at St. Francis Hospital in Long Island. He’s a renowned and highly successful board certified Urologic Oncologist Expert and Robotic Surgeon in New York City, regarded as one of the leading prostate surgeons in the U.S., with a vast expertise in prostate cancer treatment and Robotic-Assisted Laparoscopic Prostatectomy.  Visit Dr. Samadi’s websites at robotic oncology and prostate cancer 911.