Just because you're 75, you shouldn't have trouble lifting a bag of groceries or getting up from a chair. But for millions of older Americans, those simple activities are a daily struggle. Disabling frailty doesn't have to be part of aging. She led a study of 7,000 Americans ages 60 to 94 that established the standards. The exercise tests are simple enough that many people could try them at home, and senior centers around the country are starting to use them.
Frailty is a huge risk of aging.
By age 70, most people have at least 20 percent less muscle than they did at age 30. About 70 percent of elderly women are too frail to lift just 10 pounds, and 60 percent cannot perform such household work as vacuuming. About 35 percent of men are equally frail. Some of the muscle deterioration may be inevitable. But Rikli says at least half is due to people becoming more sedentary with age, meaning that keeping active is important if you want healthy retirement years.