Everyone wants to have a good looking and toned body, young and old alike. Scientifically, it has been proven that a person with low fat levels and high muscle mass is much healthier than someone who has lower muscle mass.
According to one research at the Health Sciences Department of the University of California - Los Angeles, it was found that The more muscle mass older Americans have, the less likely they are to die prematurely. The findings add to the growing evidence that overall body composition -- and not the widely used body mass index, or BMI -- is a better predictor of all-cause mortality.
Also, one Swedish scientist claimed that a person who has low strength, especially in arms and legs will be more susceptible to an early death in comparison to a person who keeps themselves strong and maintains good muscle mass.
As our age progresses, our muscles become weaker and sooner or later this affects our life expectancy. Frailty, as a condition results in lower levels of physical activity, decreased muscle strength, increased fatigue, slower walking speed, and unwanted weight loss or weight gain. Weaker elderly people also tend to fall more frequently and have greater difficulty standing up from sitting or lying positions.
There are two things which lower the effect of muscle and life expectancy. According to Gerontologists, our defective mitochondria (the powerhouses of our cells) are to be blamed. As we age, our mitochondria start to degrade, resulting in weaker cells and muscle fibers and the elderly experience this as decreased levels of endurance, strength, and function.
Another fundamental problem of aging is our decreased production of telomerase. Telomerase is a crucial enzyme that maintains and repairs the little caps on the ends of our chromosomes. When we can't produce enough telomerase, our genetic integrity is compromised, and so too is cellular division. Chromosomal degradation acts as rust in our body and affects our muscles.
In order to beat these complications, it helps to have a leaner and muscular body. To have a leaner and more muscular physique, muscle strengthening and endurance exercises are a must, which will not only build strength and endurance, but will even increase longevity.