Dr Mercola at a now deleted post, summarises evidence that resistance training, that is in short, lifting weights, is a core part of muscle-centric medicine. This field of medicine sees many diseases such as diabetes as based upon skeletal muscle insulin resistance. Resistance training unlike cardo training produces optimal results for longevity, and aids in disease prevention, as muscles interface with the immune system. As well, skeletal muscle is the regulator of your metabolism, and the basic site for glucose disposal, and a way of managing blood sugar levels.
It is never too late to engage on resistance training, after a doctor’s check-up of course. Dr Mercola is 67, and has a video where he deadlifts for, I think for reps, 370 pounds, and he says that he has now lifted 400 pounds! But one does not need to do that, or go to any extremes. Nor do I think do older people need an expensive gym membership, where they will feel out of place. The idea is to do body weight training such as push ups, chin ups say from a safe bar or sturdy tree branch, and squats. An old duffel bag full of rocks can serve for many exercises, such as arm curls. One is limited only by one’s ability to improvise. Every exercise one needs to do is covered on YouTube, just plug into the search engine “body weight training.” Every second day I do body weight squats in a continuous set of 500 reps usually numbering 2,000 reps. I also do calf raises, up to 10,000 reps, and I am 75! But after the medical ok, start off slowly because injuries are easy to get from going too heavy too soon, or doing too much. Just the other day, something went in my right calf muscle and I had to rest it for a couple of weeks. So, beware, train safe!