Muscle is Longevity - Why the Strongest Organ Decides How You Age
What keeps us young? Most people would say diet, sleep, supplements or a good skincare routine. Muscle rarely makes the list. Yet it may be the most underrated organ in the story of how well we age.
That was the message behind Muscle is Longevity, the international webinar hosted by seca on 29th September 2026 in partnership with Longevity Clinic Malaysia. Participants joined from across the region, many bringing sharp, practical questions about their own bodies, and perhaps some of the same questions you have about yours.
Three ideas from the session are worth sharing. First, muscle matters far more than most people realise. Second, exercise alone does not guarantee we keep it. Third, the age that truly counts is the one written in our cells, not the one printed on an identity card.
More than Strength
Many of us think of muscle as something for athletes, or simply as what moves us from one place to another. It is worth seeing it differently, as a living, dynamic longevity organ with three distinct roles.
Movement. Muscle provides strength, mobility and balance, and with them independence.
Metabolism. Between 70% and 90% of insulin-stimulated glucose disposal happens in skeletal muscle. Not in the liver or fat. Anyone who cares about blood sugar, insulin sensitivity or metabolic health needs to care about muscle.
Communication. Muscle releases signalling molecules called myokines, which travel through the body and talk to other organs. In many ways, muscle behaves like an endocrine gland.
Seen this way, the stakes become clear. Stronger muscle means greater physical resilience. Better muscle function means better metabolic health. Preserving muscle means preserving the ability to live on our own terms for longer.
The Silent Epidemic
If muscle is so important, why are so many of us losing it? Sarcopenia, the progressive loss of muscle mass and function, is a silent epidemic. Silent, because it is so easy to miss. Muscle typically peaks in our 20s, slips quietly from our 30s, declines faster through our 40s and 50s and drops steeply from our 60s onwards. By the time climbing the stairs or rising from a chair becomes a struggle, much of the damage has already been done.
The causes are part of everyday life for many people, from long hours sitting and spells of inactivity or illness to poor nutrition, metabolic disease and simply getting older. None of these feels dramatic on any single day. Together, over years, they quietly wear down the body's most important reserve.
Nor does ageing follow a steady slope. Multi-omics research by Professor Michael Snyder and colleagues at Stanford, published in Nature Aging in 2024, suggested that only about 6.6% of molecules change in a straight line with age, while around 81% shift abruptly, with two possible spikes. Around 44, changes hit lipid metabolism, cardiovascular health, skin and muscle. Around 60, they reach carbohydrate metabolism, immunity, kidney function and tissue structure. The journal has since noted that parts of this analysis are under review, so the exact ages may be refined, but the wider message that ageing comes in waves remains a useful one.
The mid-40s, then, may well be a biological turning point, and the years leading up to it are the best window to build and protect muscle reserve. That is why sarcopenia is best seen as a longevity challenge, not just a problem of old age. Preserving muscle is not about vanity or performance. It is one of the most powerful levers we have to extend healthspan, the years we live in good health.
Exercise is Not the Same as Muscle
Does playing a sport regularly keep muscle strong? During the Q&A, a participant who plays pickleball asked exactly this. How could she increase her muscle mass?
The honest answer applies to many of us. Pickleball is wonderful for cardiovascular fitness. It is sociable and fun, and that matters enormously for staying active. It does help muscle a little. But among the pickleball players assessed at Longevity Clinic Malaysia, muscle mass tends to sit in the moderate range.
What is missing is progressive load. Muscle grows when it is asked to do a little more over time, through heavier weights, greater resistance and more demand. A recreational game, however energetic, does not provide that steady increase. So keep playing, but add structured strength training focused on stability, strength and power. It often makes for a better game on court too.
The same goes for any sport. Being active and building muscle are related, but they are not the same thing. Whatever the game, muscle still needs to be nurtured deliberately.
The Age that Really Counts
How old are we? It is a question at the heart of longevity medicine.
Each of us has two ages. Chronological age is the number on the identity card, counted from the year of birth. Biological age reflects how well the body and its cells are holding up, and it can be older or younger than the calendar suggests.
At Longevity Clinic Malaysia, biological age can be measured with a DNA methylation test. It looks at epigenetic markers, the chemical tags that influence how genes behave, and shows how lifestyle is shaping the body at a cellular level.
The encouraging news is how much of this is within our control. Genes account for only around a quarter of how we age. Roughly 75% comes down to the choices we make every day, in how we move, breathe, eat, rest and think. Each of these leaves its mark on our epigenetics.
A first result is therefore a baseline, not a verdict. With more mindful daily choices and the right longevity interventions, the number can move. It may even fall below chronological age. However, perhaps measuring only biological age is not enough. We need more.
Measure, Measure, Measure
All of this leads to one practical point. We cannot manage what we do not measure. A bathroom scale cannot tell the difference between losing fat and losing muscle. Nor can it show whether training is building muscle or simply burning calories.
This is where seca medical body composition analysis helps. It tracks muscle mass, fat mass and body water with clinical precision. Repeated over time, these measurements show whether an exercise plan is working and flag early muscle loss long before it turns into frailty. Alongside markers such as biological age, they give a much fuller picture of how someone is ageing.
It is the difference between hoping and knowing. Data turns longevity from a vague wish into a plan that can be tested and adjusted.
Muscle is Longevity
If there is one thing to remember, let it be this. Muscle is movement. Muscle is metabolism. Muscle is communication. Muscle is resilience. Muscle is reserve. And above all, muscle is longevity.
Consider this both a warning and an invitation. The warning is that muscle loss may already have started, quietly, and staying active may not be enough to stop it. The invitation is that so much of how we age remains in our own hands. With the right training, the right choices and the right measurements, we can all live longer and live better.
References
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2. DeFronzo RA, Jacot E, Jequier E, Maeder E, Wahren J, Felber JP. The effect of insulin on the disposal of intravenous glucose. Results from indirect calorimetry and hepatic and femoral venous catheterization. Diabetes, 1981, 30(12), 1000-1007.
3. Pedersen BK. Muscle as a secretory organ. Comprehensive Physiology, 2013, 3(3), 1337-1362.
4. Shen X, Wang C, Zhou X, et al. Nonlinear dynamics of multi-omics profiles during human aging. Nature Aging, 2024, 4(11), 1619-1634. Editor's note added 15 July 2026 stating that some analyses are under review.
5. American College of Sports Medicine. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 2009, 41(3), 687-708.
Horvath S. DNA methylation age of human tissues and cell types. Genome Biology, 2013, 14(10), R115.
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