Nelson Vergel
Founder, ExcelMale.com
Programming for the (Healthy) 40-Plus Crowd
The Big Lifts
Just because you're older doesn't mean the “big” exercises like squats, deadlifts, and bench presses are suddenly too dangerous to include. Performed correctly, these movements still offer the biggest bang for your training buck.
However, with age the “performed correctly” part becomes much more important. So if you want to regularly include the big lifts (you don't have to by the way, if your goal is just to look better) you should do the following:
Practice near perfect technique. And never ever stop learning it. Thinking, “I know I can do that lift a bit better” is what will keep you lifting well into old age.
Perform more warm-up sets.
Never, ever train through pain.
Hit your “required reps” and that's it. Max-rep or PR sets with a big lift can be flirting with disaster.
Never do a big lift first.
Rotate variations of the big lift regularly. This is to prevent overuse injuries and ensure more balanced development.
For example, I haven't done a deadlift in almost a year, but according to my log I've done:
Snatch grip deadlifts
Stiff-leg deadlifts
Trap-bar deadlift
DB/BB Romanian deadlifts
Standing good mornings
Seated good mornings
Sumo deadlifts off pins
Snatch grip deadlifts off a podium
Enough back extension variations to choke the Polish army
Isolation Exercises
For some nonsensical reason, older trainees are always pressured to dump any isolation or “single-joint” exercises to “save energy.” Like a few sets of DB curls or triceps pressdowns will be what sends them tumbling down the overtraining rabbit hole, not those excruciatingly slow 1RM deadlifts.
Fact is, older lifters should do more isolation work not less, especially if trying to bring up an aesthetically weak bodypart. These exercises allow for greater mind-muscle connection, thereby cleaning up technique, which is often the limiting factor.
Furthermore, since isolation lifts aren't as taxing as the “bigger” lifts, sets can safely go right to failure and even beyond, a powerful hypertrophy tool.
Of course, training economy still matters, so if you only have 30 minutes to work out you should prioritize a big lift, not making room for 11 variations of cable curls.
Just don't be the dork that only bench presses and then wonders why his shoulders ache and his pecs “refuse to grow.”
Variety
Exercise variety is a grossly undervalued hypertrophy tool. Basically, the bigger your exercise toolbox, the better your results.
As researcher Brad Schoenfeld notes here “the architectural variances of muscle give support for the need for a multi-planar, multi-angular approach to hypertrophy training.”
Furthermore, if you're older and more beat up, something as subtle as a change in grip width or hand position can be enough to mitigate pattern overload injuries.
Or you can just be stubborn and keep loading your beloved lying triceps extensions for another 25 years. By the way that's not your dog barking, it's your elbows.
Overtraining
Overtraining is the boogeyman of bodybuilding. Every “three days a week” gym hero works out with one eye on the clock, rushing to beat the “59 minute” deadline for fear they'll wake up in a hospital bed hooked up to an IV with the testosterone level of an earthworm.
While few recreational lifters will ever come close to overtraining (“overreaching” is more plausible) the fact remains that older dudes get bogged down faster.
Here's what to do or not do:
Train more frequently but with shorter workouts. Forty (hard) minutes, six days a week is more tolerable than 80 (hard) minutes three days a week. A good rule of thumb is, a few hours after completing the workout you should feel like you could go back and repeat it.
Avoid grinding reps, especially with heavy barbell work. I got a lot of respect for anyone who fights through a heavy deadlift. Just remember, those recovery checks you're writing keep getting bigger while your bank account is only getting smaller.
Use variations of the patient lifter's method (i.e., 8 sets of 3 crisp reps with your 5RM).
Manage volume correctly. Volume is great for building muscle but can gas you too, so push volume in waves. You could do a month at a “reasonable” level, a second month much higher, and then a month of lower volume.
Always bookend very intense or high volume phases with a deloading phase. I learned this from my friend and one time client Jeff Kushmerek, whom I admittedly gassed the shit out of (oops).
A short phase of no heavy barbell work (think single-leg variations, dumbbells) plus steady state cardio and mobility drills scheduled between serious volume or intensity “blocks” is like adding oil to your lamp.
And no, your one-week “deload” is about as impactful as a fart in a monsoon.
If you like gadgets and data, investigate HRV. Check out Mike T Nelson and Dave Dellanave for more information.
Steady state cardio is an awesome recovery tool. While it certainly helps burn fat, its effect on mood and mental clarity (not to mention cardiovascular health) is where it really shines for older guys. Just don't turn it into yet another slog fest. Exercise shouldn't always tear you down. My friends Alex Viada and Tony Gentilcore call it Zone 2 cardio.
The Big Lifts
Just because you're older doesn't mean the “big” exercises like squats, deadlifts, and bench presses are suddenly too dangerous to include. Performed correctly, these movements still offer the biggest bang for your training buck.
However, with age the “performed correctly” part becomes much more important. So if you want to regularly include the big lifts (you don't have to by the way, if your goal is just to look better) you should do the following:
Practice near perfect technique. And never ever stop learning it. Thinking, “I know I can do that lift a bit better” is what will keep you lifting well into old age.
Perform more warm-up sets.
Never, ever train through pain.
Hit your “required reps” and that's it. Max-rep or PR sets with a big lift can be flirting with disaster.
Never do a big lift first.
Rotate variations of the big lift regularly. This is to prevent overuse injuries and ensure more balanced development.
For example, I haven't done a deadlift in almost a year, but according to my log I've done:
Snatch grip deadlifts
Stiff-leg deadlifts
Trap-bar deadlift
DB/BB Romanian deadlifts
Standing good mornings
Seated good mornings
Sumo deadlifts off pins
Snatch grip deadlifts off a podium
Enough back extension variations to choke the Polish army
Isolation Exercises
For some nonsensical reason, older trainees are always pressured to dump any isolation or “single-joint” exercises to “save energy.” Like a few sets of DB curls or triceps pressdowns will be what sends them tumbling down the overtraining rabbit hole, not those excruciatingly slow 1RM deadlifts.
Fact is, older lifters should do more isolation work not less, especially if trying to bring up an aesthetically weak bodypart. These exercises allow for greater mind-muscle connection, thereby cleaning up technique, which is often the limiting factor.
Furthermore, since isolation lifts aren't as taxing as the “bigger” lifts, sets can safely go right to failure and even beyond, a powerful hypertrophy tool.
Of course, training economy still matters, so if you only have 30 minutes to work out you should prioritize a big lift, not making room for 11 variations of cable curls.
Just don't be the dork that only bench presses and then wonders why his shoulders ache and his pecs “refuse to grow.”
Variety
Exercise variety is a grossly undervalued hypertrophy tool. Basically, the bigger your exercise toolbox, the better your results.
As researcher Brad Schoenfeld notes here “the architectural variances of muscle give support for the need for a multi-planar, multi-angular approach to hypertrophy training.”
Furthermore, if you're older and more beat up, something as subtle as a change in grip width or hand position can be enough to mitigate pattern overload injuries.
Or you can just be stubborn and keep loading your beloved lying triceps extensions for another 25 years. By the way that's not your dog barking, it's your elbows.
Overtraining
Overtraining is the boogeyman of bodybuilding. Every “three days a week” gym hero works out with one eye on the clock, rushing to beat the “59 minute” deadline for fear they'll wake up in a hospital bed hooked up to an IV with the testosterone level of an earthworm.
While few recreational lifters will ever come close to overtraining (“overreaching” is more plausible) the fact remains that older dudes get bogged down faster.
Here's what to do or not do:
Train more frequently but with shorter workouts. Forty (hard) minutes, six days a week is more tolerable than 80 (hard) minutes three days a week. A good rule of thumb is, a few hours after completing the workout you should feel like you could go back and repeat it.
Avoid grinding reps, especially with heavy barbell work. I got a lot of respect for anyone who fights through a heavy deadlift. Just remember, those recovery checks you're writing keep getting bigger while your bank account is only getting smaller.
Use variations of the patient lifter's method (i.e., 8 sets of 3 crisp reps with your 5RM).
Manage volume correctly. Volume is great for building muscle but can gas you too, so push volume in waves. You could do a month at a “reasonable” level, a second month much higher, and then a month of lower volume.
Always bookend very intense or high volume phases with a deloading phase. I learned this from my friend and one time client Jeff Kushmerek, whom I admittedly gassed the shit out of (oops).
A short phase of no heavy barbell work (think single-leg variations, dumbbells) plus steady state cardio and mobility drills scheduled between serious volume or intensity “blocks” is like adding oil to your lamp.
And no, your one-week “deload” is about as impactful as a fart in a monsoon.
If you like gadgets and data, investigate HRV. Check out Mike T Nelson and Dave Dellanave for more information.
Steady state cardio is an awesome recovery tool. While it certainly helps burn fat, its effect on mood and mental clarity (not to mention cardiovascular health) is where it really shines for older guys. Just don't turn it into yet another slog fest. Exercise shouldn't always tear you down. My friends Alex Viada and Tony Gentilcore call it Zone 2 cardio.
