Muscle Matters

Introduction

When you think about muscle, you probably think about body builders, gym culture, protein shakes, heavy lifting and getting toned. But muscle is far more than something that just changes how your body looks.

Muscle is one of the most important organs for long term health, mobility, metabolism, energy, independence, recovery and healthy aging. In fact, maintaining muscle mass is one of the strongest predictors of quality of life as we get older. Muscle is therefore not only important for athletes - it’s important for everyone. Muscle helps us carry groceries, get up off the floor, climb stairs, maintain balance, protect our bones and recover from illness.

What Does Muscle Actually Do?

Muscles do far more than just create movement.

They are metabolically active tissue, meaning they influence many systems throughout the body.

Healthy muscle mass regulates blood sugar, improves insulin sensitivity, supports hormone health, stabilizes joints, improves posture, protects bone density, increases metabolic health, supports balance and mobility, and improves overall resilience.

Muscle also acts as a major storage site for glucose (sugar) in the body. When muscles contract during movement or exercise, they pull glucose out of the bloodstream and use it for energy. This helps regulate blood sugar levels and reduces the strain on the body’s insulin system over time.

Why Muscle Matters As We Age

One of the most important things to understand is that muscle naturally declines with age if we do not actively maintain it. This process is called sarcopenia. From around the age of 30 onwards, adults gradually begin losing muscle mass and strength each decade - especially if they are inactive. This decline can accelerate during menopause, periods of inactivity, chronic stress, illness, under-eating, or long-term dieting. And as already mentioned, lower muscle mass affects more than just the way you look.

This is why strength and muscle preservation become increasingly important as we age - particularly for women.

Muscle and Menopause

During menopause, estrogen levels decline.

Estrogen helps support muscle maintenance, bone density, recovery and overall metabolic health. As hormone levels change, many women notice reduced strength, increased fatigue, slower recovery, changes in body composition, and loss of muscle tone. This is not because women are “failing.”

It is physiology. And it’s one of the reasons strength training becomes so valuable during this stage of life.

Not for punishment.

Not to become extreme.

But to support muscle mass and all it entails.

Does More Muscle Mean a Faster Metabolism?

Yes, to a degree.

Muscle is a metabolically active tissue, meaning it is quite a hungry tissue - it requires energy to maintain itself. This means people with more muscle mass burn slightly more energy at rest compared to someone with lower muscle mass. This increased energy expenditure isn’t just about burning calories (although having higher muscle mass can help you maintain your weight easier), it also improves blood sugar regulation, insulin sensitivity and resilience.

So what’s the ideal muscle mass? There is no perfect number that you should aim for as it depends on age, gender, genetics, body size, and activity level. The goal isn’t necessarily to become muscular, but rather to have the strength and physical capacity to support your health and daily life.

How Do We Build Muscle?

Muscle is built when the body is exposed to challenge and then allowed to recover. This usually happens through resistance training. Resistance training simply means that muscles are working against some form of resistance. This could include bodyweight exercises, resistance bands, weights, gym machines, carrying heavy objects, Pilates, manual labour, or certain forms of yoga.

When muscles are challenged, tiny microscopic damage occurs within the muscle fibres. The body then repairs and rebuilds these fibres stronger than before. But this process requires adequate nutrition, recovery and consistency.

Protein intake therefore matters too. Muscles are built from amino acids, which come from protein in the diet. Amino acids are like the little bricks used to build a house. Without adequate protein intake, the body struggles to repair, maintain and build muscle tissue effectively. Good protein sources include animal products like lean meat, chicken, fish, eggs and dairy, and plant-based products like legumes, lentils, tofu and protein-rich grains.

How Do We Preserve Muscle?

It is important to note that it is easier to maintain muscle than it is to rebuild it after losing it. So ensure that you do regular resistance training and movement, eat sufficient protein (and enough food overall), get good sleep and recovery and avoid long periods of inactivity.

A Final Thought

Many people spend years chasing weight loss, smaller bodies or a specific number on the scale. If the scale increases, they’re discouraged, and if the scale decreases, they motivated. But what if that lower number was actually a decline in muscle mass?

The goal should not be simply to weigh less. The goal should be to change the composition of your body so that it can support you, protect you and allow you to live a life with energy.

You do not need to now live in the gym, lift extremely heavy weights, eat huge amounts of protein, drink raw eggs or completely overhaul your life overnight. Building and maintaining muscle is not al all-or-nothing process.

Like all aspects of health, it responds really well to small, consistent changes over time.

For you, that could be as simple as walking more, learning a few bodyweight exercises, adding in 1-2 strength sessions a week, including a protein source at every meal, or improving your recovery. Meet yourself where you’re at, and challenge yourself in small ways from there.