Over 40 Workout & Supplements

Your nutritional and exercise needs change throughout your life. In your 40s, your goal is to prevent losing muscle mass while maintaining a healthy weight and strong bones. Knowing how exercise and supplementation fit into this picture can help you to stay healthy.

Muscle-Building

As you age, a reduction in hormone production causes you to lose muscle mass, which typically is replaced with fat, according to The Milford Daily News. To avoid this, you should utilize a resistance-training routine that involves variety to help you make your muscles adapt to different activities. For example, you can spend one weight-lifting session lifting lighter weights with more repetitions. The next exercise session, lift heavier weights with fewer repetitions. Engage in at least three weightlifting sessions per week in addition to fat-burning cardiovascular activities, according to Shape Fit.

Balance and Flexibility

If you have neglected exercises for balance and flexibility in the past, now is the time to incorporate these into your workout, according to Shape Fit. Balance exercises--such as standing on one leg for 30 seconds at a time--can help to prevent future falls because balance is affected as you age. Flexibility exercises, such as those performed in yoga or Pilates, can help you to prevent injuries.

Cardiovascular Workouts

At age 40, you may find inactivity is due more to a busy lifestyle, according to Shape Fit. However, it's important to continue engaging in cardiovascular exercise to keep your muscles and joints in working order. However, you may find your knees, shoulders or other joints ache more than they used to following an exercise routine. For this reason, it's a good idea to perform a variety of cardiovascular activities to help your body avoid strain. Examples include walking, swimming, running or other activities you enjoy performing, according to "The Daily Mail." Swimming can be especially good because it does not place a significant amount of impact on the joints.

Supplements for Women

Your body has several nutritional needs when you reach age 40 and beyond. Bone-strengthening minerals like calcium and magnesium and heart-protective omega-3 fatty acids can benefit you, according to Oprah.com. Take a multivitamin that contains some or all of the following supplements: D3, 500 IUs twice per day; folate, 200 mcg twice per day; niacin, 15 mg twice per day; pantothenic acid, 150 mg twice per day; calcium, 600 mg three times per day; magnesium, 200 mg twice per day; and 100 mcg twice per day. Taking a vitamin E supplement of 30 IUs a day also may help you to fight free radicals that cause inflammation and early aging in the body, according to the University of Florida News.

Supplements for Men

Like women, men over age 40 should utilize supplementation to maintain strong bones, according to Oprah.com. Try taking two 300 mg calcium supplements twice per day--the body cannot absorb more than 600 mg at one setting--and 200 mg of magnesium, 100 mcg of selenium and 7.5 mg of zinc twice per day. For your vitamin intake, aim to take 500 IU of vitamin D3 twice per day and 150 mg of pantothenic acid twice per day. Additional vitamins to take include lycopene, lutein, quericin, omega-3, tumeric, coenzyme Q-10 and aspirin. Taking vitamins C and E also has been shown to reduce prostate cancer incidence, according to "USC Health Magazine."