Tag: workout

Old Age Insurance

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Very few of us, myself included, ever gave much thought to maintaining our health as we age. It’s such a slow process while it’s happening, that we forget aging is unavoidable. We saw elderly people every day of our youthful lives, never thinking… “is that going to happen to me?” Let me tell you as I am speaking from experience; we age and we age quickly!

When I picked up my first barbell on January 1, 1970, it was the beginning of the most important career of my life. For forty straight years, beginning in 1974 and ending in 2014, I competed in over one hundred physique competitions. While in my prime, I had no limitations… until I did. Heavy weights and relentless, intense training took it’s toll. But that’s not what slowed me down. I was simply getting old. Yes, OLD! I always new I was getting older, but it wasn’t the same as BEING old.

So here I am now, at seventy six years old, still personal training and still training myself. What “training to failure” meant back in the day, was I lifted until I couldn’t put anymore weight on the bar, or I hurt myself trying. I called it “old school bodybuilder mentality”. At least that’s how it was for me. Now at my current age, training to failure means, how much arthritic joint pain can I take! It’s really sad because it comes on seemingly overnight.

All kidding aside, after reaching sixty years of age, it was becoming evident that muscle growth was a thing of the past. As the years went on, training has now become one of “maintaining” as much muscle as I can. I still enjoy training as much as I ever did, but now it has become a challenge. It requires more thinking and more planning before working out, “how do I maximize my training without the risk of injury”? The good news is I have been doing it successfully for many years now, and then using this same knowledge for my clients as they too age.

My advice to you is invest in you “old age insurance” now by training hard with free weights… eating healthy every single day… and leaving that DAMN CELL PHONE IN THE CAR!!!

It’s 100% or Nothing

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Progressive resistance weight training. Men and women have been doing it for decades. The act of actually lifting weights for strength building began hundreds of years ago. We have since taken a more scientific approach to PRWT, and have subsequently improved upon our “straight out of the box” physiques. Yet, as I look around the private gyms and corporate health clubs, I see men and women giving less than 50% effort when performing a resistance exercise. It doesn’t matter if it’s a machine exercise or free weights, they will execute a set and then sit back and do nothing. Excuse me… I meant to say they either take out their cell phone, or sit back and watch TV, or just sit and stare into space! It is simply a lack of education. Today’s health clubs are not set up to educate their members. Many offer personal training, but for many the cost is too high. They don’t know the value of an education that will help them achieve their training goals.

Those of you that know me, understand the importance of having a professional trainer. A good trainer will educate you on how the muscles of your body work, how to avoid injuries, and how to properly eat to get the most out of your PRWT. It may look simple, but it is a very complex system that takes months to show results from your workout sessions.

What do I mean by, “It’s 100% or nothing”? For muscles to get stronger and larger, they must be brought to failure repeatedly throughout each and every workout you perform. There is a lot of science that goes into muscle growth and it will only work when you perform to your max and by having a healthy nutrition plan. By staring at your cell phone or watching the TV after doing a set, will net you zero muscle growth, plain and simple. You are just taking up space, prohibiting someone else to get on the machine and train properly.

Take your PRWT seriously. Read what you can on the subjects of exercise and nutrition. You’ll thank me when you look in the mirror this Summer.

Age appropriate training and nutrition

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As we age, we need to change our weight training workouts and our dietary plan. For both men and women, our requirements for training need to adjusted. To continue with injury free, productive workouts, we need to assess our strengths and weaknesses yearly. As with all men and women, our testosterone levels decrease with age. The ability to increase muscle mass and strength slows, and our susceptibility to injuries increase.

Once you reach your fiftieth birthday, chances are you will have noticed a decline in almost everything requiring strength, balance, endurance and coordination, but with an increase in fat levels, injuries, and possibly arthritis. You are not alone, even the best of athletes experience this.

So how do we offset these conditions. In regards to nutrition, let me suggest a diet rich in vegetables, proteins, and good fats. There is no one food that can make anyone fat, it is all about being in the correct calorie range for each day. As you age, your body cannot breakdown foods to use for fuel and tissue repair as efficiently as when you were in your thirties. So your diet should be made up of small meals, five to six times a day. Drink plenty of water, and stay away from desserts and overly processed foods. Your training does not need to be as long as it once may have been. Your body will respond better with less sets, moderate to heavy weights when possible, and with at least a day off in between each workout. Without enough time for the muscles to recover, you will bring progress to a halt.

Follow these simple guidelines and you will be able to pump iron for years to come!