Working out regularly can be good for your health at any age. However, our bodies and muscles change as we get older, and the way we recover from exercise may need to change as well.

Heather A. Milton, MS, RCEP, CSCS, an exercise physiologist supervisor at NYU Langone’s Sports Performance Center, speaks to Well and Good about studies showing longer recovery times are needed as people get older. “If you ask both age groups to do a 50-pound back squat, just 48 hours later the 20-year-olds will be able to squat with the same amount of weight. The 70-year-olds, however, might not be able to do as much,” Milton says. “You can’t generate the same amount of force.”

Milton says these changes in recovery time have less to do with forces related to aging and more to do with lifestyle choices. She shares positive habit shifts that can help your body recoup faster, including drinking more water as your thirst drive increases as you get older, improving your nutrient intake, and making sure you get enough sleep.

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