Muscle loss can gradually change the way we move as we get older. You may notice that getting out of a low chair takes more effort, stairs feel more demanding, or carrying something that once felt manageable now feels heavier.
Some change in muscle mass and strength occurs with age, but significant weakness should not simply be dismissed as “getting older”. Maintaining muscle strength is an important part of healthy ageing, because muscles support many of the movements that allow us to stay active and independent.
Understanding why muscle changes occur — and what you can do about them — can help you take practical steps to maintain your physical capacity as you age.
What Happens to Our Muscles as We Age?
Muscles adapt to how much they are used. Regularly challenging them can help maintain strength and capacity, while reduced activity can contribute to gradual muscle loss.
Muscle mass gradually declines with age, with inactivity, inadequate nutrition, weight loss and some health conditions also contributing.
More significant declines may be associated with sarcopenia. The European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People highlights muscle strength as particularly important — because healthy ageing is not only about how much muscle you have, but how well your muscles function.
Why Muscle Loss Matters for Healthy Ageing
Muscles do much more than help us lift heavy objects. They generate the force required for everyday movements such as standing, walking, climbing stairs, reaching and recovering your balance.
The National Institute on Aging highlights age-related losses in muscle mass and strength as an important contributor to mobility limitations in later life.
This can show up in surprisingly ordinary situations. You might notice:
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Needing your arms more when rising from a chair
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Walking more slowly than you used to
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Finding stairs or slopes increasingly tiring
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Having more difficulty carrying everyday items
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Feeling less steady when moving or changing direction
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Fatiguing sooner during physical activities
These changes can develop gradually, which makes them easy to overlook.
For example, someone who finds stairs difficult may begin avoiding them. Someone who feels less steady outside may start walking less. Over time, doing less means the muscles receive less physical challenge, potentially contributing to further loss of strength.
This is why maintaining movement and muscle strength is about much more than fitness — it helps preserve the physical capacity needed for everyday life.
Muscle Loss Can Affect Balance Too
Balance is often thought of as a separate skill from strength, but the two are closely connected.
When you stumble or shift unexpectedly, your muscles may need to produce force quickly to help control your body or take a corrective step. Lower-body muscles also help support you as your weight moves from one leg to the other during walking.
Muscle loss does not mean that someone will necessarily fall. Falls are complex and can involve many factors, including vision, medications, environmental hazards, balance and health conditions. However, maintaining strength is one important part of supporting safe and confident movement.
The World Health Organization recognises sarcopenia among musculoskeletal conditions that can affect mobility and physical function.
What Can You Do About Age-Related Muscle Loss?
While ageing cannot be stopped, muscles can continue to respond to physical activity in later life. Two areas are particularly important: using your muscles regularly and supporting them with adequate nutrition.
1. Challenge Your Muscles
Walking is valuable for general health, but strengthening activities challenge muscles in a different way. Resistance or strength exercises make muscles work against a load, such as body weight, resistance bands or weights.
Examples of movements that can challenge major muscle groups include:
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Sit-to-stands
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Calf raises
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Step-ups
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Wall push-ups
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Resistance-band rows
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Hip strengthening exercises
A 2026 systematic review published in BMC Geriatrics found that resistance exercise improved measures including muscle strength, muscle mass, walking speed and sit-to-stand performance among older adults with sarcopenia.
If you have a health condition, recent injury or concerns about exercising safely, speak with an appropriate health professional before starting a new routine.
2. Avoid Long Periods of Inactivity
Regular movement throughout the day gives your muscles more opportunities to stay active. Walking, standing regularly, taking the stairs when appropriate and participating in recreational activities can all contribute.
Staying consistent can sometimes be the harder part. Our previous article Exercise Motivation: How to Stay Consistent with Your Routine explores practical ways to make movement a more regular part of your week.
3. Eat Enough Protein and Nourishing Foods
Protein provides amino acids that help maintain and repair muscle tissue. Sources include eggs, fish, lean meat, dairy products, beans, lentils, tofu, nuts and seeds.
Healthdirect Australia recommends adequate protein, a healthy balanced diet and regular exercise to help prevent muscle loss.
Individual nutrition needs vary, so a GP or Accredited Practising Dietitian can provide guidance when needed.
Supporting Strength From Home
Maintaining strength is easier when movement has a regular place in your week.
At Summit Health Solutions, our Telehealth Group Exercise Program offers live, guided group sessions designed for older adults. Sessions incorporate movements that challenge strength, balance and mobility, while giving you the opportunity to exercise alongside others online.
Make movement part of your week while working on the physical abilities that support everyday life.
Discover our Telehealth Group Exercise Program and try your first session free.
Healthy Ageing Is About Maintaining What Helps You Live Well
Muscle strength may not be something you think about until an everyday activity starts becoming harder.
Yet standing from a chair, walking comfortably, climbing steps and maintaining balance all rely partly on your muscles producing enough force when you need it.
Muscle loss does not mean you should stop challenging your body. Regular strengthening activity, everyday movement and good nutrition can all contribute to maintaining muscle health and physical function as you age.
Small, consistent opportunities to use your muscles can add up — helping you maintain the physical capacity to continue doing the things that are important to you.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is muscle loss a normal part of ageing?
Some muscle loss can occur with age, but significant weakness should not simply be dismissed as normal ageing. Inactivity, nutrition, health conditions and medications can also contribute.
2. What is sarcopenia?
Sarcopenia is a progressive decline in muscle strength and muscle quantity or quality. It can affect mobility and the ability to manage everyday activities.
3. Can older adults still build muscle?
Yes. Older muscles can still respond to resistance exercise. Regular, appropriately challenging strength activities can help improve or maintain muscle strength and physical function.
4. Is walking enough to prevent muscle loss?
Walking is valuable for health and mobility, but it may not sufficiently challenge all major muscle groups. Adding appropriate strengthening exercises provides a more direct stimulus to the muscles.
5. How often should older adults do strengthening exercises?
Regular strengthening activity is recommended as part of staying active in later life. How often and how intensely you exercise should reflect your health, current ability and experience.
