Case Study Essay Question: Aging Assignment
Nash Fountain used to be the world Decathlon (the best all-around Track & Field Athlete)
champion when he was 25 years old. Now, 30 years later, he comes to you and complains of
feeling like he has less power, strength, speed, cardiorespiratory endurance, and muscle-mass
despite the fact that he still weighs 150lbs like he did when he was 25 years old. Explain to Nash,
in great detail, what contributing factors are associated with why he now feels the way that he
does at the “ripe-old-age” of 55 years old.
This essay prompt mentions Nash Fountain, the world Decathlon champion, who was 25
years old at the time. It has now been 30 years since winning his championship, and Nash is 55
years old. At the age of 55 years old, Nash describes having less power, strength, and speed. In
addition, he is experiencing less and less cardiorespiratory endurance as well as muscle mass.
His confusion lies in the fact that he still weighs 150 pounds, like he did when he was 25 years
old and competing at the highest level. This essay will seek to explain what factors could play
into why this may be the case for Nash Fountain.
In Nash’s situation, what Nash is experiencing is “aging.” The body begins to decline
both physically and cognitively. In a physical aspect, the body begins to show a decline in
maximal aerobic power at a rate of 1% which begins at age 20 to 40 years (Powers et al., 2020).
VO2 max values play a huge role into this decline as these levels begin decreasing at a steady
decline beginning in the 20 to 40 age range, which is what causes an individual to go from
independence to dependence/mortality risk (Powers et al., 2020). Nash is at the age level where
the VO2 max is steadily declining, which is why he will be experiencing less aerobic power,
which used to be what he utilized the most as a track athlete. Not only can Nash’s lack of power
be explained through his VO2 max, but his declining cardiorespiratory endurance is also affected
by the decline in his VO2 max. The VO2 max refers to the body’s potential to take in oxygen
during activities (Powers et al., 2020). This max can be trained with age, but ultimately this max
will not be the same as the individual begins to age.
Nash also complains of a lack of strength, compared to his youthful days. Strength begins
declining by roughly 10% within the 20 to 50 years old range, and after the age of 50, the decline
in strength only increase as that rate goes much higher (Powers et al., 2020). Sometimes the loss
in strength can be due to the individual lessening the amount of activity he/she engages in, but
the loss of muscle mass, referred to as sarcopenia, is the main culprit (Powers et al., 2020).
Overall, for the reasons listed about, it is totally normal for Nash to experience a decline even if
he weighs the same, which could be due to fat replacing the decrease in muscle mass. Continuing
to stay active and engaging in aerobic exercise could assist Nash but will not reverse the affects
of aging.
References
Powers, S., Howley, E., & Quindry, J. (2020). Exercise Physiology: Theory and Application to
Fitness and Performance (11th ed.). McGraw-Hill Higher Education (US).
https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/books/9781260813562
Amy Montgomery, L31739627
