In the last few years, there has been a shift in the way many people think about training - or at least a new motivation. We’re talking about training for longevity. In the past, many people would only go to the gym if they wanted to train for massive biceps and a huge PR on the bench.
Now, we’re seeing more people, including older lifters, hit the gym to improve their quality of life. As such, we often hear things like “I’m just training for my health” and plenty of programs to sell a program for it. So, what’s the difference between training for longevity and training for performance?
Should I Train For Performance Or Longevity?
Do you want to train for strength or muscle growth? That used to be the only decision you had to make when lifting.
Now, another question has entered the equation – Do you want to focus on longevity?
It’s an awesome question, but has become a bit of a buzzword. It implies that strength training doesn't provide the health benefits, nor provides a better quality of life – as if you need to train differently.
Here’s the thing, longevity has always been a part of training. The long-term health benefits have always existed in the gym, from increasing muscle mass and strength.¹⁻² This includes;
- Decrease in chronic diseases
- Improved metabolic function
- Increase quality of life
- Improved mood
- Greater cognition
Longevity benefits don’t come from a completely different style of training.
Now, for high-performance lifters, we can clearly draw a divide. However, for average trainees, the difference between training for longevity and training for performance isn’t terribly different.
What Is Training For “Performance”?
Let’s put this into context.
When we say “train for performance”, we are talking about people whose primary goal is to maximize their physiological ability. This incudes;
- Build muscle (bodybuilding)
- Build strength (maximize 1RM of main lifts)
- Optimizing body composition
- A hybrid of both
Their training is going to have a heavy influence on progressive overload and developing peak capacity. “Performance lifters” will be pushing intensity with;
- Reaching new PRs
- Training to failure
- Using special training tactics (EMOMs, etc.)
More importantly, they’re going to measure their success in the gym by their progress.
- Are they building visible muscle?
- Are they hitting new PRs?
- Do they need to optimize their training?
This is an important distinction as we’ll see below.
What Is Training For Longevity?
So what do people mean when they say they want to train for longevity?
In general, they usually mean they’re not concerned with hitting new PRs and building a ton of muscle. Rather, they want to focus on;
- Sustainability
- Mobility
- Strength Preservation
- Movement Quality
- General Health
Ultimately, they want to live longer.
When it comes to the actual training they perform, some differences that may exist (in theory) are;
- Fewer or no attempts at new 1RM PR
- Less training frequency
- Drop in the frequency or volume of high-intensity training
- Gym sessions are split between primary lifts, functional training, and mobility work
These individuals will primarily determine their success based on their emotional state. While they will still be concerned with their body composition and even progressing with lifts, the focus is mitigated.
Longevity trainees just want to be healthy and improve their quality of life.
Training For Longevity: Misconceptions
As we see, training for performance and training for longevity do have pretty significant differences. However, this has more to do with the intent rather than the process.
You can compare it to a recreational runner vs a world elite marathoner. Both individuals are involved in the same sport. They also may use similar training programs, i.e., threshold runs and long-slow distance.
However, the recreational runner will probably be much more lax and their training less intense.
Here are some things that people who want to train for longevity get wrong.
1. You Still Must Train With Intensity. Many people who are training for longevity will say things like “I don’t really care about lifting heavy”. However, this is largely due to the misunderstanding of the word “heavy,” as “heavy” is relative to the person;
- 50lbs is heavy for a new older lifter whose 1RM is 55lbs (91% 1RM)
- 500lbs is heavy for an advanced lifter whose 1Rm is 550lbs (91% 1RM)
Even if a person doesn’t want to lift heavy in absolute terms, they will still need to lift “heavy” with intensity to evoke adaptations. This is especially true when it comes to strength.
This means they will still need to train with intensity. The difference is that it may not be as often.
2. They Will Use Similar Exercises. Whether you are training for longevity or performance, the exercises used will have significant crossover. We’re talking about;
- Squats
- Pressing
- Pulling
- Body Weight
There is no such thing as exercise for performance and exercise for longevity. This means you could theoretically use the same exercise in a bodybuilder's program.
The ultimate difference will likely come down to the load and your level.
For example, you could have a 70-year-old grandmother doing goblet squats with a 5lb dumbbell, getting similar results as a strength athlete squatting 500lbs.
3. Health Benefits Came From Training Before “Longevity Training”. One of the most important distinctions is that health benefits from training for longevity have always been present in the gym.
If you only trained for performance, you would increase muscle mass and strength. It just so happens the same health benefits you’re looking for come from this, including:
- Greater metabolic function
- Increased bone strength
- Improved cardiovascular health
- Mitigate the chances of chronic disease
And so on.
This means that the individuals who are training for performance are still getting these benefits (assuming it’s not those on the extreme end). Improving one’s health and quality of life is not a benefit that’s unique to those training for longevity.
So, when we talk about training for longevity, we’re really just talking about a cultural shift that has been made in the way we view training.
We’re acknowledging that everyone will benefit and improve their life from training, regardless of whether they care about bench press numbers and preparing for the stage.³
Optimizing Training For Longevity
With all that said, we can still make some changes to optimize training for performance.
1. Approach Training With A Hybrid Approach - When training for longevity and general health, it’s important to include multiple disciplines. This includes;
- Strength training
- Cardio
- Functional training (sled work, farmer carries)
- HIIT or metabolic conditioning
This will ensure that you are optimizing all of your fitness variables and health markers. This includes;
- VO2max
- Muscular Strength
- Endurance
- Metabolic Function
2. Be Sure To Use Functional And Dynamic Movement - Static exercises are great; squats and deadlifts provide a ton of benefits. However, be sure to use exercises that require dynamic effort and functional movements (that’s a loaded term, but we’re using it here!).
We are talking about forcing your body to actually move objects. Awesome exercises include;
- Walking lunges
- Sled push
- Sled rope pull
- Farmer carry (any carry, actually)
- Sandbag work (if possible)
You get the idea. These exercises train multiple physiological systems at once in ways static movements just can’t.
3. Include Mobility Work - While you should always be including some aspect of mobility work, this is especially true when overall health and function are your goal. Now, this doesn’t mean just low-intensity stretching. You should include;
- Overhead squatting
- Single overhead carries
- Iron mace training
- Deep front squats
4. Try To Move More - While vague, you should move more! This is huge and has a massive overall impact. By “moving more”, we are talking about getting outside (or inside) and getting involved in activity or athletics.
- Cycling
- Swimming
- Hiking
- Canoeing
- Indoor Rock Climbing
Keep in mind these don’t necessarily need to be at intense levels (but they can be). In fact, we think it’s important to have exercise that “doesn’t feel like exercise”. This can help build that healthy relationship with fitness.
Longevity And Performance
Unless we are talking about the extreme ends, we can’t separate longevity and performance. If you become stronger to prevent injury, you’re also going to squat more. If you perform an Olympic triathlon to podium, you’re obviously going to improve VO2max and all the amazing benefits that come with that. So, if you really want to train for longevity, train to build strength and increase your muscle mass because that’s where the health benefits lie.
References
- Westcott, Wayne L. PhD. Resistance Training is Medicine: Effects of Strength Training on Health. Current Sports Medicine Reports 11(4):p 209-216, July/August 2012. | DOI: 10.1249/JSR.0b013e31825dabb8 https://journals.lww.com/acsm-csmr/fulltext/2012/07000/resistancetrainingismedicineeffectsof.13.aspx
- Abou Sawan, Sidney; Nunes, Everson A.; Lim, Changhyun; McKendry, James; Phillips, Stuart M.. The Health Benefits of Resistance Exercise: Beyond Hypertrophy and Big Weights. Exercise, Sport, and Movement 1(1):e00001, Winter 2023. | DOI: 10.1249/ESM.0000000000000001 https://journals.lww.com/acsm-esm/fulltext/2023/01000/the_health_benefits_of_resistance_exercise__beyond.2.aspx)
- Tyler, John, and Dr. Panayotis Thanos. 2023. “Raising the Bar for Public Health: Resistance Training and Health Benefits”. International Journal of Strength and Conditioning 3 (1). https://doi.org/10.47206/ijsc.v3i1.195.
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