T-Nation Tips For Old People

[VenomousCoffee]

Just saw this on T-Nation: The New Rules of Over-40 Lifting.

https://www.t-nation.com/training/the-n ... 40-lifting

This seemed like the most relevant/interesting part to me.

5 – Lots of Days Off Are a Luxury You Can't Afford
The conventional thinking is that old bastards need to take more time off sitting at home in an easy chair eating protein-laced porridge until the poor old coots can gather the strength to get up and shuffle-walk to the gym.

It's true in one way, but false in another. Sure, older guys need to focus on recovery more than younger guys, but they often convince themselves to take off more time than necessary. They end up taking off because the mass of sweaty, training humanity says they're supposed to, rather than taking time off because they need to. The incessant recovery drumbeat messes with their heads.
There's one thing that should tell you when to legitimately take a day off, and that's your training log. If it tells you that on Tuesday you failed to exceed, or at the very least, meet the previous workout's numbers, it's time to take a day off.

If not, get thee to the gym, just as you have since time immemorial.

[Barkadion]

Well.. I'd say it depends. Personally, I found that having more that 4-5 days off between blocks is detrimental. But I also can hit a wall easily if I am not smart about recovery. Everything can change on the fly. Again, it depends..

[Aiwacht]

For me at 52 it's all about movement, all the time. Unless I am truly messed up, I need to be doing something that keeps me moving in a positive forward direction every day. So if I can't run, can I do yoga? Somatics? Animal movements? An extended 'warm up'? Some mobility drills? True down time is usually detrimental beyond 2-3 days for me. And being really, really long view about progression.

[Islay_malt]

I’m 58, and I agree with both of you. Although in general capacity for volume decreases while need for recovery increases, as you age, they’re still very much specific to the individual. So hopefully we at least get wiser as we age and we’re more willing to do what we need vs what we did when we were 30.

I also agree with Aiwacht that mobility is critical. It’s the first thing to go as you age, I think even more so than speed or strength. I’m very active, but if I miss even a few days, things you take for granted, like tying your shoes, can be tough. Very important to get moving every day, even if it’s just a little bit.

[Barkadion]

I’m 58, and I agree with both of you. Although in general capacity for volume decreases while need for recovery increases, as you age, they’re still very much specific to the individual. So hopefully we at least get wiser as we age and we’re more willing to do what we need vs what we did when we were 30.

I also agree with Aiwacht that mobility is critical. It’s the first thing to go as you age, I think even more so than speed or strength. I’m very active, but if I miss even a few days, things you take for granted, like tying your shoes, can be tough. Very important to get moving every day, even if it’s just a little bit.

I’d add that keeping injury free consistent training that does help you with everyday life is the most valuable benefit. Progression can have a different meaning when you age..

[Aiwacht]

I’m 58, and I agree with both of you. Although in general capacity for volume decreases while need for recovery increases, as you age, they’re still very much specific to the individual. So hopefully we at least get wiser as we age and we’re more willing to do what we need vs what we did when we were 30.

I also agree with Aiwacht that mobility is critical. It’s the first thing to go as you age, I think even more so than speed or strength. I’m very active, but if I miss even a few days, things you take for granted, like tying your shoes, can be tough. Very important to get moving every day, even if it’s just a little bit.

I’d add that keeping injury free consistent training that does help you with everyday life is the most valuable benefit. Progression can have a different meaning when you age..

Yep to all of this! For me everything should make me feel better, or something is off. Still get sore & tired of course, but in some way I want to feel what I did as a definite 'yes'!

[Islay_malt]

I’m 58, and I agree with both of you. Although in general capacity for volume decreases while need for recovery increases, as you age, they’re still very much specific to the individual. So hopefully we at least get wiser as we age and we’re more willing to do what we need vs what we did when we were 30.

I also agree with Aiwacht that mobility is critical. It’s the first thing to go as you age, I think even more so than speed or strength. I’m very active, but if I miss even a few days, things you take for granted, like tying your shoes, can be tough. Very important to get moving every day, even if it’s just a little bit.

I’d add that keeping injury free consistent training that does help you with everyday life is the most valuable benefit. Progression can have a different meaning when you age..

Absolutely agree. I heard coach Michael Boyle speak about this a couple of years ago. He basically said rule one for him is nobody gets hurt in his gym. If athletes were paying him to help them be better at their particular sport, he would be an idiot to injure them in an activity outside that sport. The same is true for the rest of us; we either have jobs with a fitness requirement or we want to be fit and healthy. The gym is a means, not an end, and having to ability to show up every day is the key to consistency.

[TBPenguin]

The older I get, the more my ability to demonstrate any fitness modality is lost, and the slower it is to regain it. Contemporaries I know have told me the same. (BTW, welcome Islay, good to see a contemporary join in the fun.) So on that point I'll agree.

The perspective I'd give to anybody reading one of these kinds of articles is this: they tend to be written by guys 40-45 years old. Unless they have worked with a large number of older lifters, the stuff they write veers from reality as you get further from that age. So maybe think about the ideas, but don't necessarily buy into them.

In this case, "over-40 lifters?" A lot of guys are at or near their peak in that age range, and just over 40 does not differ that much from 35-40. The difference between a 40-45 lifter and one 10-15 years older is much greater.

[Islay_malt]

Thanks, TBPenguin, appreciate the welcome.

[Green2Blue]

Jim wrote a great TB book covering this exact subject. Check it out.