
Muscle Is Metabolic Armor, Not Vanity
You’ve been told muscle is about how you look: bigger arms, a wider chest, something to show for the gym. That framing has it exactly backwards. Skeletal muscle is the largest metabolic organ most men never think about. It’s where your body disposes of glucose after a meal. It’s a gland that secretes signals affecting your brain, your immune system, and how fast you age. Lose it, and the diseases of midlife — type 2 diabetes, frailty, dependence — arrive years early. ...