I Have a Medical Condition... Can I Do Workouts With Muscle Charge?

Exercise is one of the most effective ways for maintaining overall health and longevity. Sources highlight that lifelong exercise is associated with a longer health span, delaying the onset of 40 chronic conditions/diseases.

But does this mean that exercise is automatically suitable for existing medical conditions?

In this article, we discuss if workouts with Muscle Charge are suitable with medical conditions. We explain how Muscle Charge works, the science behind strength training for men over 35, training with a medical condition, and guidelines to help you achieve your goals safely.

Understanding Muscle Charge Workouts

Muscle Charge workouts are specifically designed for men over 40 to build strength and endurance, while enhancing function. We explain how Muscle Charge workouts work, including the science behind strength training for men over 35 and how workouts can be adapted for your body and fitness level.

What Muscle Charge is And How it Works

Muscle Charges is a fitness app for men over 40 who want to increase their fitness. Men experience a decline in physical health with age.

Research shows that fat-free mass (muscle, bone, liver, kidneys, heart, and brain) accounts for 60–80% of resting energy expenditure. This peaks at 30, and steadily declines due to inactivity, aging, and dietary factors. Sources indicate that this leads to weight gain, impaired function, illness, and worsening metabolic health.

During this time, testosterone decreases by approximately 1% per year. Studies explain that this impacts sexual function, mood, cognition, metabolism, immune function, and bone mineral density. This also impacts health, increasing the risk of diabetes, dementia, cardiovascular disease, and mortality.

Muscle Charge is specifically designed to address these health challenges by increasing fat-free mass, and energy expenditure. This helps reduce visceral fat, lowering the risk of illness, and increases muscle mass.

To achieve this, the app takes you through a quiz to assess your current fitness level, existing conditions, and goals. The app then formulates a personalized program to help you achieve your ultimate goal.

The Science Behind Strength Training for Men 35+

Strength training is vital for overall health and wellbeing for men over 35 as it helps to maintain skeletal muscle mass, bone mass, and manage health weight and stress.

Research shows that resistance training is beneficial to cardiovascular, musculoskeletal, neurophysiological, and metabolic health. Regarding cardiovascular health, it reduces the risk of disease, while lowering blood pressure, and improving lipid and inflammatory profiles.

Musculoskeletal health improves with increases to bone density, tendon, ligament thickness, and muscle hypertrophy, while enhancing flexibility and balance. This makes it effective for treating osteoporosis, sarcopenia, arthritis, and low-back pain.

Meanwhile, it provides neuropsychological benefits, reducing anxiety, stress, and depression, while improving cognition. Metabolic health is improved by increasing fat-free mass and reducing visceral fat. This lowers the risk of related diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, fatty liver, and stroke.

How Workouts Adapt to Your Body and Fitness Level

Muscle Charge takes advantage of these benefits, creating tailored resistance training programs to increase muscle mass, bone density, while decreasing fat mass, and boosting your metabolism.

Programs are also designed based on your goals and schedule, providing you with a realistic plan that can be performed around work, family, and life.

Can I Do Muscle Charge If I Have A Medical Condition?

Muscle Charge’s tailored approach makes it suitable with most medical conditions. We highlight the program's safe and adjustable design, why it's important to start at your own pace, and how to track your body’s response during training.

Why the Program is Designed to be Safe and Adjustable

Muscle Charge prescribed programs and workout based on your requirements. These can be adjusted and modified based on your condition, meaning you are in full control. When you are ready to progress, try different programs, increasing training frequency, and even perform challenges to boost your progress.

Importance of Starting at Your Own Pace

When engaging in a new exercise routine it is important to take it slow and go at your own pace. While there is often a temptation to keep up, it can be unsafe, especially if you are experiencing difficulties due to medical conditions.

The key is to mindfully approach each session with a focus on technique and gradually increasing intensity as the session progresses. Not only does this allow you to maintain control, it also helps develop a mind-body connection and assess how your body responds to the stimulus of each exercise.

How to Track Your Body’s Response During Training

Monitoring your body’s response before, during, and after is essential for safe practice and growth.

Before each session, write or make a mental note of your current physical and mental state. For example, identify areas of soreness and weakness in the body, and any feeling of stress or anxiety. During your session, reassess and make mental notes of how your body is responding, including any changes to your initial assessment.

After your session, note the difference in your current physical and mental state, and identify exercises that helped, challenged you, and exacerbated your conditions. Recording findings will help you develop a greater connection with your body and a deeper understanding of its capabilities and limitations.

Training With Common Medical Conditions

Exercise is a scalable intervention which is highly effective for treating and supporting various health conditions. Below, we discuss training with common medical conditions, including workout with high blood pressure or heart issues, exercising with joint pain, and managing metabolic conditions, and thyroid imbalances.

Working Out With High Blood Pressure or Heart Issues

Research shows that 50.8% of men suffer from hypertension, while 40% are shown to experience cardiovascular disease (CVD) between 40–59 years old, increasing to 75% by 60-79.

Individuals suffering from high blood pressure must look out for intense blood pressure spikes. This can happen when breath is held during heavy lifts, and performing near-maximal loads. Similarly, performing lifts that engage large muscle groups such as deadlifts, squats, and leg press can also increase blood pressure.

Meanwhile, those with cardiovascular disease should be aware of blood pressure fluctuations, and symptoms such as shortness of breath, dizziness, chest pain, and other abnormalities during training.

The key to training with high blood pressure and heart disease is to listen to your body and take it at your own pace. Resistance should be gradually increased with each lift, with a focus on breathing and heart function.

Exercising With Joint Pain, Back Pain, or Past Injuries

Studies show that osteoarthritis occurs in 19–30% of adults over 45 years in the knees, 27% in the hand, and 27% in the hips. The lifetime risk for men is 40% increasing to 60% if body mass index (BMI) is over 30.

Meanwhile, sources show that more than $200 billion is spent annually on managing back pain, with 23% of adults globally experiencing chronic low back pain.

Exercise is shown to be highly effective for treating joint pain, back pain, and past injuries. Research shows that resistance training is effective for reducing osteoarthritis joint pain and enhancing function, with high-load exercise increasing strength and low-load exercise reducing stiffness.

Strength training, specifically the strengthening of the lumbar (low back) and cervical (neck) extensors is shown to effectively reduce kinesiophobia (fear of movement due to pain) and strengthen connective tissue including muscle, joint cartilage, tendons, and ligaments. These benefits make it effective for treating past injuries.

Each session should focus on the following key practices:

• Gentle Warm-Up: Perform low-intensity cardio or low resistance warm-up sets. This will increase blood flow to target muscles, prepare the nervous system, and warm-up muscles and joints.
• Focus on Technique: Focus on technique, taking the movement through the correct and full range of motion.
• Start Slow: Begin with a lighter resistance. This will help you focus on technique and identify areas of tension or soreness.
• Strengthen Supporting Muscles: Focus on strengthening muscles surrounding affected joints.
• Listen to Your Body: Identify positive effects of exercise including improvements to function, strength and mobility, and negative effects such as pain and dysfunction.

Managing Metabolic Conditions Like Diabetes or Thyroid Imbalance

Sources indicate that the prevalence of metabolic syndromes affects 30–40% of middle aged men, increasing with age.

Studies show that men gain an average of 0.3 kg per year between the age of 40 to 66. Muscle mass begins to decline from the age of 30 by 3–8% per decade and continues with age. Combined with a decrease in physical activity, increase in abdominal fat can lead to insulin resistance, and increase of illness.

Meanwhile, thyroid imbalances (hypothyroidism/hyperthyroidism), become more common with age, with source highlighting a prevalence of 2.9% in men.

Research explains that hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) symptoms include cold intolerance, weight gain, constipation, fatigue, hair loss, and dry skin. Hyperthryroidism (overactive thyroid) symptoms include unintentional weight loss, decreased cognitive function, depression, anxiety, and irritability.

When training with metabolic conditions such as diabetes, you must be mindful of blood glucose levels, managing medications, and abnormal sensations or symptoms.

Regarding thyroid imbalance, start slowly and aim for gradual improvements. Doing this will help you identify how your body responds to the training stimulus. This includes positive outcomes and the rise of symptoms such as fatigue, dizziness, joint pain, and heart palpitations.

When managing these conditions, it is important to listen to your body and prioritize rest and recovery. If you are concerned, please speak to your healthcare professional for guidance.

When And How To Modify Your Workouts

Knowing when to modify your training sessions is vital for growth and sustainability. Below, we explore how to alter your training, including, reducing training stimulus, using different forms of resistance, and signs you should slow down.

Reducing Load, Reps, or Tempo Safely

The correct amount of resistance (load, repetitions, tempo) is when you can perform the exercise with correct technique and find each set challenging, while finding the last few repetitions of the last set difficult to perform. This ensures you are safely overloading the muscle for growth, while reducing the risk of injury.

Reducing stimulus allows you to focus on technique, safely perform the exercise, and establish a mind-muscle connection. This not only improves movement proficiency, but also helps to improve sustainability, especially when you are fatigued.

If the resistance is impacting your form and you are unable to perform all prescribed sets or repetitions, consider reducing load, repetitions, or tempo.

Using Bodyweight or Resistance Bands Instead of Weights

Using bodyweight or resistance bands instead of free weight is an excellent way to add variety to your workouts without the hefty price tag.

Bodyweight resistance training known as calisthenics is shown to be an effective tool for improving posture, strength, and body composition. Exercises such as squats, lunges, push-ups, chin-ups, and planks are all excellent bodyweight exercises that engage the entire body.

Meanwhile, sources explain that resistance bands are effective for increasing strength, power, balance, body composition, and quality of life. They provide an affordable alternative to conventional weights, and can be stored easily, making them great for home workouts or fitting in a session when you have no access to a gym.

Stimulus for these exercises can be increased by manipulating the number of sets, repetitions, duration, and intensity. While heavier resistance bands can be purchased to increase load.

Signs to Slow Down, Pause, or Rest

Knowing your limits and when to slow down is essential when training with a medical condition. If you are experiencing fatigue, shortness of breath, or find the session too challenging, pause the workout. These may be harmless and may be a signal to decrease intensity and resistance.

However, if your workout is making you feel dizzy, lightheaded, ill, or is aggravating symptoms related to your condition it may be time to stop the workout. These are more serious and you should speak to your healthcare professional for guidance.

Medical And Safety Guidelines

If you are training with a medical condition, additional care must be taken to ensure your safety. We discuss medical and safety guidelines, including when to speak to a doctor before starting, combining medical treatment with fitness, and how to recognize warning signs during exercise.

When to Talk to Your Doctor Before Starting

You should speak to a doctor if you have heart, metabolic, kidneys, or musculoskeletal conditions. These conditions regardless of severity should be taken seriously. Speaking to a doctor will help you outline your capabilities and limitations for safe training.

How to Combine Medical Treatment With Fitness Progress

Exercise efficacy for treatment and overall health means that it can be paired with a treat plan to yield greater results. If you want to combine your medical treatment and fitness program speak to your healthcare professional.

They will be able to highlight guidelines for safe training, and the type of training that will compliment your medical treatment.

Recognizing Warning Signs During Exercise

When you are training it is important to identify warning signs to avoid exacerbating your condition. For many conditions, feelings such as pain, difficulty breathing, dizziness, nausea, and fatigue are signs that you need to stop your workout.

If you are experiencing any of these symptoms or any other related to your medical condition, identify if they are linked to exercise difficulty or your condition. If you believe they stem from the challenging session, take a short rest and decrease intensity. If you believe they are related to your medical condition, stop your session and speak to your healthcare professional.

Getting Support From Muscle Charge

Starting a new workout program with a medical condition can be confusing, that is why Muscle Charge has made it easier than ever to contact customer support. Below, we explain how to contact the team for training guidance, how to note injuries in the app, and how to access the community and progress tracking features.

How to Contact the Team for Training Guidance

You can contact the team for assistance through the Muscle Charge app or website. You can get in touch with the Muscle Charge team via our email: [email protected], or by heading to the Muscle Charge website and clicking the floating chat icon in the bottom right corner.

You can also get in touch through the Muscle Charge app by following these steps:

Muscle Charge App - Chat

• Open Muscle Charge.
• Tap “My Profile’ icon (top right corner).
• Go to “Settings”.
• Tap “Help Center”.
• Tap “Message”.

Accessing the Community and Progress Tracking Features

Community is a big part of reaching your goals. That is why Muscle Charge have created a members only community group where users gather to share their experiences, challenges, and results.

Take the following steps to access the Muscle Charge Group:

1. Open Muscle Charge.
2. Tap the “Grow” tab (bottom right corner)
3. Tap “Community”.
4. Tap “Let’s go”.