Clinical Screening Tools for Sarcopenia and Its Management

Table 3

Exercise and nutritional interventions for sarcopenia.

Exercise [33]
Type of training	Frequency	Intensity	Duration/set
Aerobic exercise	Minimum 5 days/week for moderate intensity; or; 3 days/week for vigorous intensity	Moderate intensity at; 5-6 on a 10-point scale; Vigorous intensity at 7-8 on a 10-point scale	Accumulate at least 30 min/day of moderate intensity activity in bouts of at least 10 min each continuous vigorous activity for at least 20 min/day
Resistance exercise; (for major muscle groups using free weights and machines)	At least 2 days/week	Slow-to-moderate velocity; 60–80% of 1 RM	8–10 exercises; 1–3 sets per exercise; 8–12 repetitions; 1–3 min rest
Power training; (to practice only after the resistance training)	Two days a week	High repetition velocity; Light-to-moderate loading 30–60% of 1 RM	1–3 sets; 6–10 repetitions
Nutritional supplementation [38–40]
Intervention	Evidence or recommendation
	Amount of protein	Type of protein	Timing
Protein supplement	At least 1.0–1.2 g/kg/day in people aged 65 years and above; GFR 30–60—0.8 g/kg/day; GFR <30—between 0.6 and 0.8 g/kg/day	“Fast” proteins are thought to be more beneficial compared to “slow” proteins but lacks robust evidence.	Even distribution of protein intake in main meals through the day
Vitamin D	Replace depleted serum vitamin D level and maintain adequate intake at 700 to 1000 IU/day of cholecalciferol
Essential amino acid supplementation	Daily leucine 2.5 g or 2.8 g with combination of resistance exercise (benefits only shown in a small number of studies)
Beta-hydroxy-beta-methylbutyrate (HMB)	HMB alone, or with combination of resistance exercise or arginine and lysine (evidence not consistently positive and only shown in a small number of studies)

GFR: glomerular filtration rate, mL/min/1.73 m². Not currently incorporated into mainstream of treatment.