It is believed that many of the parents or elders of the post-80s and post-90s have entered old age and their physical mobility has started to be much less than before, which will face many physical safety issues such as increased risk of fractures due to osteoporosis.
Muscle mass decreases with age, leading to a decline in muscular strength and endurance, which will decrease by 3-5% every 10 years after the age of 25. This is largely due to lifestyle changes and decreased use of the neuromuscular system. Studies consistently show that muscle strength and endurance increase with exercise in older adults.
The aging process also affects bones. As we age, bones become more fragile and porous, which puts older adults at a much higher risk of fracture. Weakening fractures are becoming more common, and many older adults with hip fractures die because of complications. Calcium loss with age leads to a decrease in bone mass, but resistance training has been shown to help maintain bone mass.
The relative importance of leg muscles is not lost on our regular exercise partners, as training them brings us many benefits, such as enhancing our mobility, increasing hormone levels, improving metabolism, increasing bone density and protecting the knee joints. However, for seniors, the most immediate benefit of strengthening leg muscle groups is to maintain mobility in older adults.
In the elderly population, while some older adults may have physical activity habits such as square dancing, Tai Chi, and bar exercises. However, the legs have not done specialized strengthening training. Then, their mobility will still decline with age. Therefore, strengthening the legs is especially important for many exercise programs.
Gluteal muscle
The gluteus maximus consists of the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius and gluteus minimus, which are the largest muscles in the body.
The gluteus maximus is primarily responsible for stretching the hip joint (as opposed to allowing the body to move to the back side), externally rotating the thigh (rotating the entire thigh outward), and abducting the thigh (allowing the thigh to move outward).
Quadriceps
The quadriceps consists of four muscle heads: rectus femoris, vastus medialis, vastus lateralis, and vastus medialis, with the vastus medialis being covered by the rectus femoris.
The quadriceps is the strongest muscle in the body, a powerful muscle that extends the knee joint, and the rectus femoris also flexes the hip joint.