Build muscle after 50? Absolutely here's how you do it
In the picture: My friend Freddy, 75 years old, and myself (Kennet Båth), 63 years old.
There's a persistent myth that muscle is something you build in your 20s, and that the rest of your life is about managing what you have left. Forget it. Your body can build muscle throughout your life all it takes is the right training, the right food, and a little patience.
In this post, we'll go over the basics: how muscles actually grow, how to train, and what to eat to get results.
How it works the short version
Your muscles are made up of protein, and your body breaks them down and rebuilds them all the time, 24/7. It's a constant balancing act: if your body builds more protein into your muscles than it breaks down, they grow. If it breaks down more than it builds up, they shrink.
The whole secret to building muscle is to tip the scales in the right direction. And you do that with two tools:
Strength training with sufficient resistance: that's the signal that tells the body to build.
Enough protein and energy: that's the building block.
If either of the two is missing, nothing happens. You can train as hard as you want, but without food nothing grows. And you can eat perfectly, but without training the body has no reason to build.
Of particular interest to us men: hormones like testosterone play a major role in the process – and strength training is one of the best ways to give it a natural boost. (Recognize that from our previous post about testosterone? It’s no coincidence.)
The workout: how to set it up
Find the right number of repetitions
A "repetition" is a movement performed – a squat, a press, a deadlift. How many you can do with a certain weight determines what the workout will yield:
1–5 repetitions with heavy weight: mainly builds raw strength
8–12 repetitions: best zone for muscle growth
15 or more: primarily builds muscle endurance
The boundaries are not razor-sharp heavy sets also build some muscle, and light sets also build some strength. Research also shows that we respond differently: some grow most from heavy and few repetitions, others from lighter weights and more. Experiment and vary over time.
Choose the right weight
This is where many people get careless. The weight should be so heavy that you are close to not being able to do any more repetitions when the set is over. If you do ten repetitions, the tenth should feel like the eleventh had barely been done. As a rule of thumb, you should never have more than a couple of repetitions "left in the tank" when you lower the weight. If it feels comfortable all the way through then the weight is too light.
Choose the right exercises
Muscles only grow where they are exercised. If you want stronger arms, your arms need to work. There are two types of exercises, and you need both:
Basic exercises: are movements that work multiple major muscle groups at the same time like squats, deadlifts and bench presses. They give you the most value for your time and build strength that you can use in everyday life: lifting, carrying, standing up.
Isolation exercises: work one muscle at a time like bicep curls. They’re easier to learn, easier to do when you’re tired, and perfect for targeting specific muscles at the end of your workout.
Moderate is best – this way you avoid overtraining
A simple plan that works: start the workout with 3–5 basic exercises, finish with 1–2 isolation exercises, and do about 3 sets per exercise. Heaviest weight on the basic exercises, more repetitions on the isolation exercises. Stick to a total of 5–7 exercises per workout more than that rarely gives better results, only a more tired body. Especially after 50, recovery is half the workout.
Food: the other half of the equation
Eat a little more than you burn – but not too much
To build muscle, the body needs a small energy surplus, meaning that you eat slightly more than you burn. Around 300–500 extra calories per day is enough. More than that doesn't build muscle the body has a maximum speed but is just stored as fat.
How much you actually consume depends on your age, weight, muscle mass and how active you are. The easiest way is to use an online calorie calculator to find your basal consumption, and then add 300 calories.
Protein is priority one
Protein is the building block, and many people skimp on it unnecessarily. The guideline for those who strength train is 1.4–2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. If you weigh 90 kilograms, this means roughly 130–180 grams of protein per day.
Good sources of protein include lean meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, nuts and legumes. Feel free to vary between several different sources.
Fat and carbohydrates fill the rest
Fat is needed, among other things, for hormones including testosterone to function properly. Aim for about 0.5–1.5 grams of fat per kilogram of body weight per day. Fill the rest of your daily calories with good carbohydrates, which provide fuel for your workout.
How fast does it go?
Let's be honest here: muscle is built slowly. With good training and good nutrition, an adult man can expect to gain about 0.25–0.9 kilograms of new muscle mass per month and that's at best.
Does that sound cheap? Do the math. A couple of years of consistent training can add 10–15 kilos of muscle. It doesn't just change how you look it changes how you feel, move and feel. Every week counts, but it's the years that add up.
The conclusion
Building muscle after 50 is entirely possible, and the recipe is the same as it always has been: train with enough resistance, eat enough protein and energy, and keep going over time. Train hard, eat right, be consistent. The body will take care of the rest.
Want the workout and the diet served? Download our free Bodyweight Diet app try our free 7-day program and get a sustainable plan for men and women 50+ who want to build muscle, lose fat and have more energy in everyday life. No fad diets, just what works.
Kennet Bath
