Fast Twitch Muscle Fibre After 50

I've been noticing significant declines in speed and agility/reflexes over the last months. I've heard that the decline in fast twitch muscle at my age is very significant.

Does anyone understand the biochem of what's involved enough to break it down to a layman?

Also, a blood test taken last week indicated my Free and Total testosterone serum levels were quite low - 188 ng/dL - the reference Interval for 40yr + being 348 - 1197 ng/dL.

Would that have a significant bearing into things?

Cheers,

 

Huh, well, biochem is not a great skill of mine, but I'm taking a behavioral endocrinology course right now, and we've recently discussed the link between testosterone and aging. It turns out that, although yes, there is a link between aging and lowered testosterone, it doesn't reliably translate into any difference in behavior. Agonistic actions like fighting and sexual function are not impeded in men. So you'll still be a horny ******* who slams faces into walls at least. I'm doing a report on testosterone replacement therapy as a solution to aging, I'll let you know what I find out about it when I do.

 

That's close enough.

Ja, the ill-tempered, old-lecher - I've got that part down already

How about filing it in your "Due Tomorrow" bin, then?

 

Ha, I'll do some preliminary research, certainly. At least it's a good way to procrastinate my "Due Today" bin.

 

I do know that women do have testosterone and that it does play some sort of significant role, IIRC. Don't know any specifics, though.

Not looking for the Fountain of Youth, mind you, just wanting to slow down the hemorrhage.

Canna help but wonder what Bernard Hopkins blood test would show...

 

IIRC Its less to do with specific biochem and more to do with innervation patterns

innervation patterns are the activation of of motor units (nerve fibres connected to certain muscle groups) and are explained by hennemans size principle.
Henneman’s size principle states that under load, motor units are recruited from smallest to largest. In practice, this means that small slow-twitch, low-force, fatigue-resistant muscle fibres are activated before large fast-twitch, high-force, less fatigue-resistant muscle fibres.

As you get older you loose the ability to recruit the large fibres (because you dont recruit them often enough) and therefore loose muscle mass (if a muscle isnt worked it shrinks as its just a wasted resource to maintain protein levels that arent being used)

studies of interventions suggest that when old people strength train (like for strength by lifting or exercising in a near maximal way) they dont have the innervation problems as much. but most people dont strength train and therefore suffer mass loss when they get old.

there are a few other reasons for losing the ability to recruit fibres like nervous system issues (often degenerative changes in old people) and lowered testosterone levels prevent as much mass growth.

often in older people we see that when they trip they have this slow step to brace themselves because their balance is diminished by the inability to recruit larger fibres (which are primarily type 2/fast twitch).
same thing when older people sit down - they just dump themselves down rather than a controlled sit. if they focused on a controlled lowering it would be really beneficial to them.

simple tests used in large population studies (10,000 people and more) are: "sit and go" tests, gait (walking) speed and grip strength. all of these correlate very well with life expectancy (the better you score, the longer you'll live)

 

At 55, agility and reflex are not a major problem for me, but stamina and being able to develop it, is becoming more of a problem.

At 55, I have a much better understanding of injuries and pacing myself semi-sensibly, than i did at 25.

 

Theres also another compounding issue which is anabolic resistance

basically over the decades your cells become resistant to anabolic (growth) stimulus from repeated long term exposure (much like type 2 diabetes and insulin) and therefore you require a greater stimulus to have the same effect as a young person (you will eventually become resistant to the greater stimulus too) in order to grow some muscle mass

anabolic stimuli are things like exercise (but if you dont exercise then you'll have motor unit recruitment problems mentioned above), any protein intake (which is essential to being alive) and certain drugs.

honestly im surprised that no quack or chi guy started some diet, lifestyle or exercise program to target anabolic resistance

 

Time to cash in Zaad

 

Overall muscle loss and decreased functioning is called "sarcopenia"
here's my favourite idea on why (courtesy of wikipedia):

which means lemonsloth is probably winning right now and all that "take it easy when training, dont forget rest days" stuff might be nonsense when it comes to health and longevity.

Alternatively, for only 19.99 you can order my recently made DVD set "Chi Kung: the ancient yogic art of anabolic domination"
For only 9.99 more i'll throw in my book "Palaeolithic vegan eating for the modern couch potato seeking immortality" which is the first in the series.
ORDER NOW FROM PSUEDOSCIENTIFICHYPERQUACKERY.COM

 

So there is a significant 'tolerance' effect in regards to acquiring new muscle mass...when one builds tolerance to drugs or medicines, taking a drug 'holiday' is one way to reset things back to zero. This doesn't apply to our question. Taking an 'exercise' holiday obviously hastens the decline all the more.

The question is, I suppose, how and why is our DNA programmed to do this (requiring greater and greater stimulus for the same relative new muscle growth) and is it possible to circumvent this to any degree.

Being that I was quite active in my late forties relative to my statistical constituents, is it safe to assume the sense of rapid decline in fast twitch muscle is probably due to the very low T numbers that I'm now becoming aware of?

cheque's in the mail, Zaad inocchio:

 

According to this ... bulletin or whatever, weight training, plyometrics, growth hormone and creatin can offset age-related reductions in speed.

Also suggested that, as Zaad and Sloth stated, training is best done with intensity.


http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/speed-age.html

 

Research regarding exercise for over 50's is still in some ways in a relatively infantile state.

Personally I see examples all the time where people don't quite follow expected trends. When we look at anatomy people forget where the bodies came from and what condition they were to start with. Newer research sometimes contradicts older stuff. When you have access to a disease free long term healthy population ( and higher numbers of subjects) to base your conclusions on you can notice whether exceptions are exceptions or a different trend.

Ross Enamait has some great examples on his website 'Rosstraining.com' of successful older athletes.

When people get older they are often more sedentary and may lose muscle mass from inactivity. Others may not be inactive ( read possibly 3rd world workers etc) and show different trends. I don't know if these sort of comparisons have been thoroughly considered.

I put on a stone recently and my speed and reflexes are as good as they have been for a long time.

In my experience , to some degree, BT, age is not as big a barrier as expected for some people.

LFD

 

Whaddaya think about the Testosterone being so low?

 

Zaad, you're ignoring me...

Zaad? ZAAD Zaad?

 

sweet. something to look forward to. only 6 years to go!

 

Sorry man!

What I'm about to tell you is the one thing i learnt over 4 years of uni and what the fitness industry doesnt want you to know because "big fitness" will go out of business if you just...




Order my recently made DVD set "Chi Kung: the ancient yogic art of anabolic domination"
For only 9.99 more i'll throw in my book "Palaeolithic vegan eating for the modern couch potato seeking immortality" which is the first in the series.
ORDER NOW FROM PSUEDOSCIENTIFICHYPERQUACKERY.COM

but really though, this isnt what many folks in the fitness industry dont like admitting to older clients:
Everyone falls on a bell curve in almost every aspect (in terms of genetics and potential). Exercise and diet can only do so much to change that natural pattern.

some people fall at the far end of when things like bone density peaks (age 50 or even 70) or the close end (age 20 or 10) but the average/most people fall in and around the middle (age 30)
late4dinner falls on the far end of the spectrum with many things and if he is declining - it isnt apparent because of diet and exercise.

exercise and lifestyle can only slow the decline once you hit your peak but people hit their peak in different places and most never even attempt to hit their peak (only pro athetes are trying to touch their genetic ceiling).
i dont really know why the genetic traits decline like that.

ive never studied testosterone in detail so i cant comment on that but what you view as a decline in fast twitch muscle probably isnt as rapid as you thing if your still exercising and can function reasonably well, the main function of fast twitch isnt speed but large movements in general (its apparent in older people when you see them move slowly because they cant activate large/fast twitch fibres)

the anabolic resistance thing cant be avoided forever just like type 2 diabetes, cancer or heart disease (one will all get you eventually, competing mortality causes).

 

About bloody time...()


I've never asked Ross but I'm supposing he's had proper diet and exercise since - well, let me rephrase it - he's probably never gone through a period of any significance where he wasn't properly dieting and exercising.

I went through long periods of relative inactivity/bad diet. I never participated in any athletics as a child. I didn't really start becoming "athletic" to any degree at all until my early 30's - the first time I'd ever run a mile or longer. I became fairly fit, running half-marathons and such for a period of 3 or 4 years after that. Then, when my fist kid was born, I went through another long period of inactivity until I started up with MT about 4 years ago.

Some sort of odd RBF-like disease I picked up later led to septicemia and that knocked me off the fitness trail for over a year. Then I was back at it...

Have you ever done studies of people who were not active in their youth but became so later in life? I'm curious if there be any eye-opening patterns revealed with that...By not being athletic as a youngster, did I inadvertently set some sort of low ceiling on things?

Thanks for clearing that misconception up.

Ja, just wondering if there is anything I can do that I've not been doing to "blow the roof off" of any unnatural ceiling I may have set in years past outside of T replacement therapy which some of the doctors are suspecting I might need - I'd rather not go that route.

 

Impetuous young'uns. Just you wait ....