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A 47-year study reveals the age when your body starts losing strength

Researchers say the slide in strength and fitness speeds up with age, though people who begin exercising as adults can still improve how well their bodies perform.

On air: Dale Bearman and Hank Ledger on The Bonk-o-Meter
Published 10:23 AM ET, Thursday, October 15, 2026

At a glance

First reported by ScienceDaily: “A 47-year study reveals the age when your body starts losing strength”.
Covered on BBN on Thursday, October 15, 2026, at 10:23 AM ET on The Bonk-o-Meter, by Dale Bearman and Hank Ledger.

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

ScienceDailyA 47-year study reveals the age when your body starts losing strength

What BBN said about it

Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorOn October fifteenth, 2026, ScienceDaily reported on a forty-seven-year study of physical aging. The claim under review: your strength starts fading around age thirty-five.
Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorThirty-five. The researchers say it happens even to people who exercise regularly, so the gym was never a rescue plan, just a slower ride down.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorEven the regulars.
Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorAnd the study says the decline speeds up as people get older. It's a staircase that tilts into a slide, Hank, and I'm delighted.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe researchers also say that starting to exercise in adulthood can still improve physical performance.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe claim holds up, and there's actually a workaround hiding in the decline.
Dale Bearman · Chief Skeptic & ContributorAn exit. Trust science to ruin a perfectly good decline.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorRating: Mildly Bonkers, because it's true and still rude. I'll start exercising at forty, and Dale, the study says that counts.