Read time: 4 minutes

​

It sounds cliché.

The best time to get started (with exercise) was yesterday.

And the next best time is, of course, today.

We know a key benefit of exercise - and resistance training in particular - is better strength.

But it’s easy to get caught up in the idea you only need to worry about strength when you’re “older”.

When your lack of strength begins to limit you.

The reality is, it’s important to maximise strength across the whole lifespan.

Only then can you give yourself the best chance of being stronger - for longer.

This is what it means to maximise what a recent editorial coined your “strengthspan”.

​

Being strong underpins a longer, healthier life

We know resistance training is linked to many positive outcomes.

This includes:

• Reduced mortality risk
• Lower chronic disease risk
• Better cardiometabolic health
• And higher physical functioning

Just a name a few.

Being strong sets you up to stay healthy and physically independent for longer.

But a focus on reaping the benefits of resistance training only later in life neglects a key aspect.

And that’s the importance of building - and then maintaining - a solid foundation of strength in all life stages.

This means we not only benefit from being strong earlier in life, but we’re in a better position to fend off the inevitable decline later on.

​

What it means to expand your “strengthspan”

You’ve probably heard the term healthspan.

A common definition of this is:

This is different to lifespan (or longevity), which is simply how long we live.

So where longevity is living longer, healthspan is living better.

Quality over quantity, if you will.

So where does “strengthspan” fit in?

While healthspan encompasses various aspects of health and wellbeing, strengthspan is more focused on, well, strength.

You can think of it as a continuous measure of your physical strength across your lifespan that contributes to your overall health and years of life.

To expand your strengthspan means to push out your strength curve across all stages of life:

Strength is important across the lifespan

In many ways, healthy ageing means:

• Building a reserve of strength early in life
• Maintaining these gains throughout adulthood
• And slowing the decline in strength into old age

As you can see, this isn’t just about the final endpoint.

It’s important to target strength across all life stages - starting from childhood.

And this isn’t just because of the benefits of being strong in old age.

It's because there’s considerable upside to being strong at any age - starting in childhood.

​

Childhood: START strong

When you think of the stages of life where strength is important, childhood probably isn’t the first to spring to mind.

But being strong is important for children too.

Having a base of strength supports participation in other forms of physical activity - including play, exercise, and sport.

What’s more, strength training is linked to future disease risk years later.

And strength gained in childhood tracks through to adulthood too - with stronger kids more likely to be stronger adults.

This suggests building our strength reserves early - in a developmentally-appropriate way, sets the stage for better strength and overall health in the future.

​

Adulthood: BE strong

If you’ve managed to build a decent foundation of strength in childhood, the next step is keeping the momentum into adulthood.

Problem is of course, fewer than 10% of adults engage in regular strength training (or at least meet the guidelines of 2 sessions per week).

This is troubling, because adulthood is our chance to maximise our peak levels of strength.

To expand our strengthspan at its widest point.

And in the process, reap the many benefits of better strength that:

• Makes it easier to stay active and avoid injury
• Reduces the risk of many chronic diseases and mortality
• And helps us retain the ability to perform activities of daily living

Talk about the ingredients for a better and more fulfilling life.

And starting with a higher peak of strength puts us in a strong (pardon the pun) position to slow the decline into older age.

​

Old age: STAY strong

To turn then tables on ageing, nothing beats resistance training.

Not only can lifting weights slow muscle loss, it preserves the very structure of muscle.

It’s the only thing that can sidestep the loss of critical type II muscle fibres - the ones that are bigger and produce far more force and power than the smaller type I fibres.

And of course, being stronger means it's possible to keep doing physical tasks.

Things like:

• Enjoying recreational sports with friends
• Doing gardening and yardwork around the home
• And playing with your grandkids (or great-grandkids)

The bottom line?

Being strong into old age means you’re less likely to have chronic disease, and more likely to stay independent.

​

Final word

This landmark editorial rams home that strength is important across all life stages.

Being strong earlier in life makes it more likely this will continue into later life.

And of course, with all the benefits that come with it along the journey.

So we need to make strength a priority as early as possible.

Making this happen requires debunking persistent myths - like resistance training is unsafe or harmful in children.

And of course, tacking the many barriers to exercise faced by different groups across the lifespan.

Only then can we truly maximise strengthspan across the population.

The authors of this editorial probably couldn’t have put it any better by saying:

​

Thanks for reading!

​

Until next Saturday,

Jackson

​​​

If you've got a moment, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this edition of The Weekly Exerciser.

Send me a quick message or email - I'll reply to every one!

​

PS: Did someone forward you this email? You can sign up to The Weekly Exerciser here.

​

IMPORTANT:

The information contained herein is of general nature only and does not constitute personal advice. You should not act on any information without considering your personal needs, circumstances, and objectives. Any exercise program may result in injury. We recommend you obtain advice specific to your circumstances from an appropriate health professional before starting any exercise program.