Aging Athlete Series: Losing Your Butt as You Age is NOT a Good Thing (Episode 6)

Originally from a blog post entitled, "Aging Athlete Series: Losing Your Butt as You Age is NOT a Good Thing (Episode 6)"

First, as a late baby boomer, I have to ask, what’s up with this butt implant thing? I see many celebrities right now with really small bodies and really big butts. Why is this a thing? If you’re wondering what your doctor is doing asking about celebrity butts, that’s a great segway into this week’s Aging Athlete series. Let’s dive into why keeping your butt muscles big as you age will help protect your hips and back. Let’s talk about how how losing your butt is just a sign of aging, not a must!

The Old Flat Butt

First, I feel like a 3rd grader even using the term “butt”, but hey we’re all adults, right? Let’s all admit it, we all notice that our older friends just don’t have that same butt that they did when they were younger. Is this a real thing? Yep. In fact, a research group in 2015 looked at 185 gluteal regions on MRI and found that not only was there a trend toward shrinking butt muscles with age (gluteus minimus and maximus), but that as the muscles atrophied, their tendons ended up getting frayed and torn (1). Meaning older people had flat butts with more tendon tears in their gluteal muscles.

We also know that the butt muscles are stabilizers of the hip joint and that in people with hip arthritis, these muscles don’t work as well (2). We also know that atrophy (shrinking) of the gluteal muscles happens in patients with low back pain (3,4). Hence, a strong butt is likely associated with protecting the back and hips.

How You Can Keep or Regain You Butt....

Published by Centeno-Schultz Clinic
Read by Chris Centeno, MD

Want to learn more about our procedures? Here's where you can go:
Stem Cell Therapy: https://centenoschultz.com/stem-cell-therapy-denver/
PRP & Platelet Lysate: https://centenoschultz.com/prp-denver/