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I really like this video on lifting till you die. More realistic. Especially for those who lifted in their teens or 20's and never really took a huge break. Comparing your prime till now is really no contest unless one never lifted in their youth. Start at 10:30 if you are 60+.
Yes. I want to show this to every friend and relative I have. All of it is so true and is a major reason for why I lift weights regularly.
I personally started really lifting weights for strength at 27, initially peaked in my early 30s competing in powerlifting and strongman competitions, got injured for a while (herniated discs), eventually healed, and started again seriously a few years ago. Now at 46 I'm nearly as strong as I was at my peak. I train a lot smarter than I did before, though, with less volume of extremely heavy work and more focus on recovery and injury prevention. Hoping to be at my all time peak in another year or two and will maintain as much as I can for the rest of my life. As long as I can stay injury free for the most part my physical abilities should never hold me back.
I think the emphasis needs to be not on increasing size, but on improving practical strength. I find it harder to lift a bicycle onto a rack, or lift a carry-on into an overhead bin, things that seem easy but get harder as we get older, and require coordination of muscle groups and core strength. Flexibility and range of motion also need work.
"Stunts" like deadlifting heavy weights don't interest me.
What do you recommend for increasing "practical strength?"
I've been involved in the best way to train to improve strength specific to sports for over 50 years. I've read books and research articles, and talked to strength coaches. I haven't been able to prove that there are ways to exercise that are specific to sports or something called practical strength. Dead lifts are probably the best example of a practical strength exercise is deadlifts. We bend down and pick things off the floor as soon as soon as we can walk, and do it for as long as we are physically able, hopefully until old age. Even getting off the toilet is da very similar movement to doing a deadlift. That is practical strength in my book! You don't have to deadlift 500 lbs., you can start with bodyweight and progress to dumbbells, and then to barbells. I'm 69 and did barbell deadlifts last night.
I guess the proper term is "functional strength". I was just looking it up. There are a lot of exercises that can be used, both bodyweight and with weights, and deadlifting can be a part of it. The aim is to improve strength and balance in daily activities and reduce risk of injury. It's not about bulking up.
My training has been about isolating different muscles by using machines, which is called "nonfunctional" training. I need to change what I'm doing because I don't think it's working, but I hope it's better than nothing. I have back and shoulder issues I won't go into here, which complicate things.
Functional strength consists of multi-joint compound movement that most closely mimic natural movements we do in everyday life. Things such as picking something up off the floor (deadlift), getting up out of a chair or off the toilet (squat), and putting something up on a high shelf (overhead press). That's why the bread and butter compound exercises, done using free weights - not machines that limit your range or path of movement - are the best. Really if you only train 5 or 6 movements using progressive overload you'll get maximum benefit with the least amount of time wasted. One need only train the squat, deadlift, overhead press, bench press, and pullups and/or rows/lat pulldowns to build all the functional strength you'll need 99% of the time. It's really that simple.
Functional strength consists of multi-joint compound movement that most closely mimic natural movements we do in everyday life. Things such as picking something up off the floor (deadlift), getting up out of a chair or off the toilet (squat), and putting something up on a high shelf (overhead press). That's why the bread and butter compound exercises, done using free weights - not machines that limit your range or path of movement - are the best. Really if you only train 5 or 6 movements using progressive overload you'll get maximum benefit with the least amount of time wasted. One need only train the squat, deadlift, overhead press, bench press, and pullups and/or rows/lat pulldowns to build all the functional strength you'll need 99% of the time. It's really that simple.
It's simple if you don't develop joint problems or other issues that can interfere, which many of us do as we get older.
I started strength training in my 30's, and noticed modest gains very quickly, but plateaued within the first year. Now in my 60's, I've noticed I'm losing strength, not gaining. Staying motivated is also a problem. I've never enjoyed it, always thought it was deadly boring but necessary.
Same with running, I started running in my 40's, and kept improving for several years, reached a peak, and then started getting slower. Finally quit last year, wanting to save my knees for later.
Maybe some people can keep getting better in later years, but probably not many. Most of us will accumulate various aging processes that slow us down and cause loss of strength.
It's simple if you don't develop joint problems or other issues that can interfere, which many of us do as we get older.
I started strength training in my 30's, and noticed modest gains very quickly, but plateaued within the first year. Now in my 60's, I've noticed I'm losing strength, not gaining. Staying motivated is also a problem. I've never enjoyed it, always thought it was deadly boring but necessary.
Same with running, I started running in my 40's, and kept improving for several years, reached a peak, and then started getting slower. Finally quit last year, wanting to save my knees for later.
Maybe some people can keep getting better in later years, but probably not many. Most of us will accumulate various aging processes that slow us down and cause loss of strength.
I'm 69. I've also worked out most of my life, but got back in to both running and weightlifting when I was 39. I ran over 200 races over a period of around 26 years. My strength goes up and down depending on how hard I'm working out. Probably my best indicator of my strength is when I do pull-ups. I do 5 sets. On good days, I can hit 11-12 on at least one set and get a minimum of 9-10 on each set. When I'm feeling weaker, I may only get 3-4 reps on the later sets, depending on how much I rest between sets.
My suggestion to you is to mix up your workouts. I use barbells, dumbbells, and machines. I never do exactly the same workout. Sometimes I'll use a dip belt and do weighted dips and pull-ups. I usually do barbell bench presses, but sometimes I'll use a plate loading machine. I just started using a plate loading leg press machine, which I had never used before.
I still feel like I haven't peaked as far as my weightlifting strength. I finally had to stop running because of a torn meniscus. I would still be running if I could. My knee only hurts when I run.
You say that strength training is boring. That's how I felt about running. It was difficult to stay motivated each day. Training for races is what kept me motivated for 26 years. Compared to running, I find strength training to be easy. I listen to music or audiobooks on my Airpods while I'm lifting
A few years back I began working out again after about a fifteen year hiatus. I was surprised how quickly I built muscle, especially in my torso and biceps. In the first couple of weeks I started to use a dip bar and had to use the assist pedal. Within a month I was cranking out multiple sets without any assist. After a few months I was adding a weight belt. Then my shoulders started to ache, badly. I stopped doing dips. But even benching hurt my shoulders, and then even push ups, which I have always done each morning m-f for ever, hurt.
I plan to start up again with weights, but I have to find a way to avoid the damage. A trainer might be a good investment. The benefits of weight lifting are impressive, but not if you are losing sleep due to pain.
A few years back I began working out again after about a fifteen year hiatus. I was surprised how quickly I built muscle, especially in my torso and biceps. In the first couple of weeks I started to use a dip bar and had to use the assist pedal. Within a month I was cranking out multiple sets without any assist. After a few months I was adding a weight belt. Then my shoulders started to ache, badly. I stopped doing dips. But even benching hurt my shoulders, and then even push ups, which I have always done each morning m-f for ever, hurt.
I plan to start up again with weights, but I have to find a way to avoid the damage. A trainer might be a good investment. The benefits of weight lifting are impressive, but not if you are losing sleep due to pain.
I've had some shoulder and elbow issues in the past. I experimented with different exercises and found regular military presses cause my should pain. I found that using a machine to do military presses where I could grip the bar with palms facing stopped the pain and it eventually disappeared. I also found that regular pullups caused elbow pain. I found that if I used parallel bars to do pullups where my palms were facing did not cause elbow pain.
My only other suggestion is to make sure there are no jerky movements in your exercises. Slow down and do all movements under control. This means you should be able to stop the movement at any point.
My husband and I are both in our 70s. We work out 4-5x week. We don't want to lose strength, balance, or flexibility. Use it or lose it.
Neither of us care whether or not we have visible muscles. I'd rather wear out than rust out. Gotta keep those joints lubricated and in good working order. And we don't mind looking fit and having good posture.
No, we don't--nor expect to look like we did in our 20s or 30s--just want to look reasonably good for our age and mobile and enjoying life.
Unless you are 100% obsessed with it (and maybe medicated) you'll go nowhere after 30 or so.
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