Age 50 General Recommendations Please

Hi gang, my first post. Hoping to get off on the right foot. I read many of the newbie recommended threads but I'm not sure what pertains / does not pertain to me due to my age. 
STATS: 
Age 50  height 5'11"   weight 204lbs.  Average build and body type, thin boned, alittle flab around the gut, waist 36-38 ( varies) Perhaps a pic would help?
WORKOUT & GOALS:
After a 12 year lay-off, I joined a gym. I would like to lose about 5-10 lbs, trim my waist, and get muscle definition. Not looking for size ( maybe alittle in the biceps and calfs) After 3 weeks of hitting it hard I feel great! But I notice very little visual difference. Here's what I've been doing to " break in":
* 5-6 days per week, 30 minutes cardio every day ( 400-500 calories) then...
* FULL BODY workout every other day. 2 exercises for each body part- 2 or 3 sets- 8-12 reps. Minimal break between all, I finish with abs every day ( on both cardio and weight days) 

I have 5-6 days per week to whip into shape, and I'm committed to sticking with it. Should I be doing full body workouts and increasing # of exercises? Should I work opposing groups on different days? I eat modestly ( 3 times a day) and try to eat reasonably healthy food ( but I don't calorie count) Should I be paying closer attention to this? I'm not interested in serious bodybuilding...just want to get trim, fit and not be ashamed to take my shirt off this summer. How did I get to be age 50! :-( Thanks for your help...

Welcome to the forum. I am still rather new at this but being close to 50 myself one thing I have noticed is that I need to pay very close attention to the diet aspect.

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good

   Like Designer mentioned: Watch your diet. Eating clean is the key to everything. You can run and lift all you want, but if your still in line at McDonalds its not gonna work, like it did when you were 30.
   The workout you have Marsh should work fine for what you want. Things take time. Three weeks don't do much at our age. Somewhere around 8 weeks you should see a difference. Get a couple of photo's of yourself now to compare later in the year. You will be surprised. Just stick with it, it will happen.
 
WD

Team Keine Ausreden = No Excuses
mein scheinehund ist daheim
48 yrs young
6'5" 270 Lbs

Thanks guys. I like what I read on www.t-nation.com. I like the idea of working full body 3 times per week. I'm going to give this a try. I fully subscribe to the " variance" principles this guy is talking about. I will stick with it, I have 6 days per week available to spend 1-2 hours at the gym and I'm going for it! No...I won't burn out. I plan to alternate weight training and cardio days.....then take 1-2 days off each week. 
I quit all fried foods. I've been controlling my portions, eating till comfortable but I have some weaknesses like chinese food and sweetened green tea. I cut the tea 50/50 with water........not sure how to kick the chinese since it's next door to my work. I eat alot less and take left-overs home etc. 
Damn....I was hoping to eat anything in moderation? 


( article I read: click TRAINING tab / year 2004- scroll down to the 2nd article by Chad Waterbury entitled " Total Body Training")

A couple of years back when I was trying to loose weight I took a good look at what I was eating and noticed that I took in a huge amount of fat. I cut the fat way back; my goal was 25 grams or less per day. Rarely did I make that goal but stayed well under 60 grams a day and the weigh dropped fast, between mid September and the end of the year I had dropped 60 pounds and felt great. In fact, within a week and a half of cutting back the fat I noticed my energy level was going up significantly.
 
Basically, I tried to eat a healthy, but low-fat diet, cutting out all the Trans and saturated fats, and limiting the Monounsaturated and Polyunsaturated fats, as even too much good fat will cause you to gain weight. I counted fat, not calories and by reducing the fat I reduced the calories. Just be careful doing this, as you do need some fats in your diet to be healthy. As a rule, I ate the same things as before; I just prepared them differently and, while I was dieting, ate smaller portions.


Talk with some of the other guys in here but 1-2 hour in the gym 6 days a week might be a bit too much. You do have to give the muscles time to heal.

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good

 Thanks D. I'm not one to count calories, I'm just trying to eat well. Considering fats....there are alot of hidden fats in my diet right now. Peanuts, salad dressings etc. I need to try to cut back. I will try this and see how it goes. My pants fit nicely after a short 3-4 weeks and my energy level soared although the scale only shows a 1-2 pound weight loss. I'm not too concerned by this. ( weigh 204 and would like to see 195    height 5'11) 
  I've been going to the gym 5-6 days / week. I don't feel burn out as I'm doing cardio / abs every other day and I get plenty of rest. Lifting weights only 3 times per week. So far so good............

It was the same with me Marsh, lots of hidden fats. Start reading those food labels that helps a lot.

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good

I believe i noticed in one of your later posts that you took out abs every day which you shouldnt be doing

Just joined - been training for a number of years geting old at 52 but still enjoying it - had a bit of a bad two months. Hurt my back doing squats, should have not done abs before i started squats then ended up with flu. Another mistake went back down the gym too early so put myself back another couple of weeks - hope 2009 is better

I had some problems with squats myself a while back. Between that and my work schedule I was not doing much training through December.

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good

hello marsh. welcome to the community. im 2 weeks old here and i definitely would recommend this community.
forget abt the age factor. coz i read some place that older ppl have more patience and consistency. which is obviously true. im pretty much sure that u gonna looked ripped pretty soon. my only objective is to beat u to it coz im trying to do what u r doing and im 23! :-( ;) 

Anbe Sivam. Period.

I use the "low fat" method too. I set for a goal what is unrealistic to achieve, but the hidden fats bring it to the right ratio for me. I find that if you can cut a few simple things out of your diet that are high in fat, it makes a big difference.
 
Oh squats, I have to work up to those. I have a reconstructed knee to look out for, but so far so good with all of the other things I'm doing.
 
LT

That's right LTee, those small changes can make a world of difference.

Good luck with the Knee. I have an old injury in mine but, surprisingly, I apparently pinched a nerve in my back, likely due to improper form and jumping into some heavy weights much too quickly.

175 lbs
47 48 years old
Feeling pretty good