Techniques for Getting Around Limitations
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Techniques for Getting Around Limitations - 3/25/2004 12:30:22 PM
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axgar
Posts: 191
Joined: 1/5/2004
From: Denver, Colorado
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There is a lot of knowledge out there! There are injuries and physical limitations that we find ways to work around and still keep in shape. List your thoughts about exercises, diet, etc.
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Training When Youre Over 40 - 4/21/2004 9:27:44 AM
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axgar
Posts: 191
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From: Denver, Colorado
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A good article for those in the "Masters Class!" I noticed some hard truths about how my body reacts to workouts. As time went on I became worn down quicker than in my 20's & 30's (duh!). By taking a week off every 4-6 weeks of hard workouts, my body felt much better.
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Training When Youre Over 40 Using More Wisdom and Less Energy
Training when over 40 years of age? Yes, Im very qualified to write on this subject&and have been for years. When I was in my twenties I did almost everything wrong in the gym. I did too many exercises for each muscle group, I did too many reps, too many sets and I virtually never had clear goals for each workout.
Youth can afford to make such mistakes. But as we age it behooves us to get more bang for the buck when we do weightlifting. We need maximum results with minimum time invested. And its not just because we lead busy lives and cant spend hours in the gym. Its because every workout represents a certain amount of wear and tear on the body and there is no good reason to deplete ourselves by performing more exercise than necessary to achieve our goals.
Warm Up
Fifteen years ago I used to jump right into an intense workout and hoist hundreds of pounds without the slightest warm up. Thats pretty dumb in your twenties but its downright dangerous later in life. A proper warm up increases blood circulation to the muscles, elevates respiration to improve oxygen absorption, and improves viscosity in the joints.
Before you start your weight lifting workout do 10 to 20 minutes of brisk walking on the treadmill or use a stationary bike, stair stepper or other aerobic machine. Then before you perform each lift, do a few reps with about half of the weight youll be shooting for that day. For example, if your goal is 8 reps with 250 pounds, warm up with 8 to 12 reps with 125 pounds. If youre doing static training and are shooting for a 5 second hold with 400 pounds, do your warm up reps for 5 seconds with 200 pounds or so.
Fewer Exercises
One of the biggest mistakes youll see in the gym is people who do many exercises for each muscle group. This is not necessary. Muscles grow though an adaptive response to the intensity at which they are forced to work. Intensity is measured by the amount of work done per unit of time. You will actually achieve better results in less time if you perform one very high intensity exercise per muscle group. For example, some people will work their chest by doing 3 sets of cable crossovers followed by 3 sets on the pec dec and finally 3 sets on the bench press. Our studies have shown that 90% of trainees will actually receive better results by performing one set of all-out, super high intensity bench presses of either 8 reps or 5 to 10 seconds of a static hold.
This is great news to everyone but it is particularly good for those of us who are over forty because performing multiple sets of multiple exercises is very depleting. Yet it is just not necessary.
Fewer Workouts
The three biggest lies in strength training are Monday, Wednesday and Friday!! Fixed strength training schedules dont work for very long. The goal of every workout should be to increase the intensity of work done compared to your previous workout. As intensity increases your body needs more time to recover (especially as we get older!) so workouts have to be spaced further apart. This is more good news to everyone except the exercise addict.
When you begin a strength training program you might be able to work out on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, provide your body can fully recover with just one day off. But as you get stronger and start hoisting some really heavy iron, you WILL need more time to recover. So your third or fourth week might allow you to train on Mondays and Thursdays. Two weeks later you might only be able to see increases in intensity if you train one day per week. After a month of that you will need to train only once every ten or fifteen days. I work with advanced trainees who now lift weights once every six weeks and they see improvements in every exercise on every workout.
The truth is you can achieve your optimum muscularity by working out with precisely engineered workouts that contain clear goals about as frequently as you get a haircut. Thats very welcome news to those of us who just want results and dont use the gym as a social gathering place.
Muscle Equals Youth
Have you ever seen two people who were both 60 years old but one of them looks 70 and the other looks 45? Age cant be measured by the calendar alone. There are several well established bio markers of agingthat are used to give more accuracy to the assessment of physical age. Guess what? The amount of muscle your body contains is one of the principle bio markers of aging. The more muscle you have, the younger you are. Another bio marker of aging is bone density. Guess what the number one method is of increasing bone density? Heavy, weight bearing exercise!
Those of us over forty years of age can greatly slow down (and in many cases reverse) aging processes by performing rational, efficient strength training that increases muscle mass and bone density. The really great news is that it can be done without hours of exercise performed week after week. Less wear and tear on the body, fewer workouts and increased youth!! Its great to finally be old and wise!!
Have a great workout!
Pete Sisco
Peter Sisco is co-author of Power Factor Training, Static Contraction Training and other books.He is also the editor of the five-book "Ironman's Ultimate Bodybuilding" series.You can check out Pete Sisco's website at www.PrecisionTraining.com
< Message edited by axgar -- 4/21/2004 3:12:46 PM >
(in reply to axgar)
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RE: Training When Youre Over 40 - 4/21/2004 10:45:06 AM
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guiman
Posts: 24
Joined: 10/27/2003
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Peter,
Great comments and good principles to follow for the over 40 guy like me.
(in reply to axgar)
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RE: Techniques for Getting Around Limitations - 4/28/2004 7:51:36 AM
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BIGDOG
Posts: 61
Joined: 1/6/2004
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Last night while working chest, I took someone's advice and changed up my incline db press. Simply by turning my palms together on the press, the usual screaming pain in my right shoulder disappeared. I was able to run up the weight by almost twenty percent (how's that for stupid - "this doesn't hurt anymore -let's keep throwing on plates until it does...").
I guess these are the things we have to contend with in the face of advancing age.
_____________________________
Falling down does not constitute failure: not getting up does.
(in reply to axgar)
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RE: Techniques for Getting Around Limitations - 4/30/2004 9:02:44 AM
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axgar
Posts: 191
Joined: 1/5/2004
From: Denver, Colorado
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quote:
ORIGINAL: BIGDOG
Last night while working chest, I took someone's advice and changed up my incline db press. Simply by turning my palms together on the press, the usual screaming pain in my right shoulder disappeared. I was able to run up the weight by almost twenty percent (how's that for stupid - "this doesn't hurt anymore -let's keep throwing on plates until it does...").
I guess these are the things we have to contend with in the face of advancing age.
Tonight I will start the TP-PT program and begin to understand what DOMs and physical exhaustion really mean. That said I have learned a few things about making progress while following the physical signals from my body. . . .
1) Burning, sharp, or lasting discomfort or pain is a red light!!
2) Focus on form with intensity and extreme weights aren't necessary.
3) Think Core, Core, Core, & Core! Your Ligaments, tendons, and smaller supporting muscles will give out or injure first! They also take the longest to adapt to new stresses.
4) Muscle balance and symmetry will make your day! I found I was an injury waiting to happen due to muscle imbalance.
5) Rest, rest, rest!!! I believe this is another reason I was prone to injury. . . not enough rest.
Let's see if I follow my own advice as I begin TP-PT!
< Message edited by axgar -- 6/21/2004 10:16:06 AM >
(in reply to BIGDOG)
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RE: Techniques for Getting Around Limitations - 5/18/2004 9:53:53 PM
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brianperth
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Joined: 5/18/2004
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I am interested in the 'more rest' technique - , just thinking maybe i should be exercising less frequently [and suffer less pain]
My main limitation is that i have had a total knee replacement, 28 Nov. 2002. So, my squats comprise, holding barbell and sitting on chair and standing up. I can only bend my knee to 90degrees.
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BrianPerth
(in reply to axgar)
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RE: Techniques for Getting Around Limitations - 5/31/2004 6:42:26 AM
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mrbig
Posts: 58
Joined: 5/28/2004
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I'm 53 years old and still hanging & banging like I did when I was 20.Looking
good feeling great 3 cheer's for the Iron God and World gym THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(in reply to brianperth)
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RE: Techniques for Getting Around Limitations - 6/21/2004 4:28:02 AM
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wcb
Posts: 2
Joined: 6/21/2004
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Just saying hello and thanking axgar for his excellent post.
I am 45 and have been a couch potato for about 15 years. I played around with weights when younger(didn't really know what I was doing) and religiously played practically every sport till I injured my knee playing basketball in '89. I have been yo-yo dieting and sedintary ever since.
BUT NOW IS DIFFERENT. I am thru with that life and starting a new one. I am on a mission to roll back the clock for good. I went on a diet in March and started lifting weights (machine in my basement) in April. I have gone from 277 down to 228 so far. I plan on getting my body fat analyzed and getting it down to a healthy level.
I have been reading a lot on the internet about lifting, and decided I could only do so much with the machine, SO I just purchased my first olympic bar and 300# weights. I am trying to be smart and go easy and stay injury free. I will be adding a rack for squats, bench press and maybe some RDLs soon. Wish me luck!
Hopefully I can use this forum to keep going in the right direction!
Thanks again,
wcb
(in reply to mrbig)
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