Competitive Bodybuilding after 35

I have just started bodybuilding at 42. I realize this is past "primetime" but I still see and feel results. I am working toward adding lean mass and entering a contest but I'm curious about what to expect as I pursue this goal. I went to a state competition last fall and witnessed as one guy won the Master field and then the overall! This guy was ripped and had muscles everywhere!! What impressed me was his overall symmetry, great! More like Frane Zane than today's monsters.

Question: How do I/we protect and ensure the longevity of the joints as we continue lifting?

Well even though 42 may be past prime time in one sense, it is still just a number. I entered my first contest at age 44. I competed in two catagories(weight and master). I had a blast. If you still are seeing gains, then you can achieve the body that you want in order to compete. I assume that it is for fun. Now to answer your question What I have found is the following:

1. Warm-up before each lifting session. We all like to get right to it and skipped the cardio. This is not good.

2. Wrap up your weak areas, knees, back, etc... when lifting heavy. Wrist wraps really add stability when doing bench presses.

3. Glucosomine ....there are plenty on the market.

4. Slow progressive weights, with proper form. NOTHING hurts a lifter more than when they try to do more than what the muscle is able to do at that time. They compensate with bad motion and form. Every see a guy do alternate dumb curls and it looks like he is throwing upper cuts to the body....swinging the weights.

Hopes this helps a bit.

Glucosamine supplementation.

And maybe dropping the weight and going for more reps over sheer weight. I've had success so far with Max-OT. Lift heavy.. short durations.. done.

What sucks around the getting older thing is that an injury that might be a pain for 2 days.. now takes weeks.. if not months to heal.

I've had 2 friends how on the smith machine lunges, pulled a hamstring. It took them (one is 36 the other is 41) months.. to get back on track. And when they do, they never go as heavy as they always can feel a slight twinge.

Maybe it's not completely necessary to push yourself at that age? Joints get injured and give way due to overuse and abuse.

Maybe the key is form at that point and full range of motion?

Seems like every older guy in the gym I talk to has the same opinion. If I had just quit at X weight.. I'd be alright. I think what they mean is.. the guys who start doing 405 squats.. eventually hurt themselves. They went to a point where it was really really heavy. Had they quit at 315 and went for reps of 25.. their legs might be just as large but the joints under a lot less pressure and strain. That was what I got out of a recent conversation. I simply asked.. do you think if I just stick with 315 lbs for squats.. I'll be alright? They seemed to think so. Only because I wasn't on this continual quest to see how much my body would take. Isn't there a point where your body just has some injury that you don't recover from?

Maybe.. I'm not really sure.

But it's a very good point. And something I've been thinking about as I approach 35.

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

I appreciate the response. Yes, the object is more a celebration of meeting a personal goal although I am pretty serious during my workouts. Here is my personal suggestion:

*Trying stretching after a particularly heavy workout.*

I found my knees did not pain me after squats or lunges if I stretched at the end of my workout.

I agree that MAX-OT seems to work very well for me. I haven't moved to lower weight and higher reps yet. . . . I still want more mass before I begin maintenance. On lunges - I never, ever use barbells or the Smith for lunges. I use dumbbells and have encouraging gains so far. . . maybe that example is one way we need to pay attention to our bodies. When ever I get that slight *tingle* I ease up and change exercises. Also the basic compound exercises suggested by the experiences lifters and those on this site have never led me wrong.

I`m 48, and have been training since 1969.I compete in 4-5 show`s a year.I have never been seriously injured, and always have trained hard, and heavy.The best advice I could offer is to listen to your body`s feedback, and train accordingly.If you have a day when you feel exceptionally strong, go for it,on the other hand if the session is a bit draggy, or you feel tired,lighten the load, and train faster for intensity, doing Super-Sets ,or Drop-Sets etc. You can`t always go heavy, but you can always work hard! Good Luck !!

"You Can`t Flex Fat" Weights On The Web- http://www.geocities.com/timbuktuweights/

My Forum: http://timwescott.proboards18.com/index.cgi

Awesome advice t.j..

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

Thanks TJ! Honestly I'm a FNG still learning what my body responds to best. I found out my Triceps really, really respond to Supersets of Chin-ups and Dips so I am experimenting and checking as I go. Thanks!

Thanks guy`s! Axgar,I beleive that experimenting on your own body with different techniques is the best way to "learn" YOUR body, and the way it responds to different methods.Too many people ascribe to all the fancy named training routines out there, that are designed by psuedo experts.Don`t get me wrong ,I`m not saying they are all junk ,or not to give them a try,but some are just old rehashed routines, with a fancy name, made up by someone to make a quick buck, or to gain some notoriety for himself.

Try different methods
Record your body`s feedback in a journal
Weigh what works and discard what doesn`t
Make up your own routine using what you`ve learned

This will undoubtably take a long time for most of us ,but the end result amounts to you finding your own training niche, thereby taking the confusion and guesswork, out of your training.
One important thing to note is that you will never stop learning ,and something that doesn`t necessarily work for you now may work great somewhere down the road.Bottom line is don`t beleive all the hype about certain routines, just because someone else ,famous or otherwise, says they work,find out for yourself what works for your particular bodytype.We`re all different. and respond differently to training and diet.There is no best routine for everybody ,just one for you.Now go out and find it!!

"You Can`t Flex Fat" Weights On The Web- http://www.geocities.com/timbuktuweights/

My Forum: http://timwescott.proboards18.com/index.cgi

I'm keeping this thread alive with another question: For those of us that haven't followed the discipline of bodybuilding during our younger years but want to enter a contest . . . I realize at soon to be 43, I'm racing against the biological clock when it comes to building quality lean muscle mass. I tend to shy away from Pro-hormones since testicular shrinkage is not on my "Must Do" list. Is my only option (in order to reach a good contest size) to (1) reach my goal of 10% bodyfat and then (2) begin a bulking cycle for a year or so? My goal is to enter a contest by age 44.

T.J. has entered a few.. he's 42.. a guy I see at my gym all the time didn't even start bodybuilding until age 50.. he's 62 now.

I'd get to the size you want.. then rip up.. not going beyond 20% body fat. Like a zig zag method. Bulk, cut, bulk cut.. if you cut now.. it will be too far from competition and you probably want to gain more size and then get ripped.

Marc C. David - NGA CPT
Author of NoBull Bodybuilding
www.nobullbodybuilding.com

Good advice Marc ! Another good thing to do, without resorting to roids or pro-hormones, is to create your own anabolic state in the body, by eating a lot of protein, every three hours or so.Taking the right supplements, that are time tested and proven to work, over others that are just a lot of hype,and training correctly, so you don`t waste time spinning your wheels.Sleep is a very important factor also, as if you don`t recover, you will not grow.Try to get naps, and a good nights sleep, as they will both produce natural Growth Hormone output, as will heavy training on lifts like squats, deadlifts, and other compound exercises.

"You Can`t Flex Fat" Weights On The Web- http://www.geocities.com/timbuktuweights/

My Forum: http://timwescott.proboards18.com/index.cgi