strength training and the older athlete

7/27/2019 Strength Training and the Older Athlete

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/strength-training-and-the-older-athlete 1/4

Strength training and the Older Athlete

After I wrote the two installments of this series on strength training for youngathletes, I was bombarded with request for a similiar piece directed toward older athletes. I wasn't suprised, for i"ve observed that most older men are verymuch interested in gainng strength. They aren't merely satisfied with going toa fitness facility, puttering around on a host of machines for and hour and leaving without even breaking a good sweat.

I frequently recieve phone calls a nd letters from older men, and most want to know the same thing: Can they still train hard and heavy and do some of the exercises recommended for younger people? Older athletes have exactly the same needsas their younger counterparts. Their approach to improving their level of strength fitness is also the same. Obviously , there will be certain limitations.For example, because of some injury, theu may not be able to do power cleans oreven deadlifts. They also may not care to acheive as high a level of strength as a college football player-but their approach to training should be exactly thesame, and they must follow the same principles I've outlined in previous articles.

It's falsely assumed that older people cannot increase their strength appreciably. Consequently, in most fitness facilities the programs outlined do little morethan take up time. They're usually referred to as toning routines, and in actuality they bring very few results-although they do bring in nice monetary rewards

for the gym owner. To suggest that older individuals should do squats, heavy pulls and presses is considered innsane, for they're sure to hurt themmselves. That is so ridiculous. The muscles, tendons and ligaments of older athletes will respond to resisstance training in the same manner as those of younger athletes.

A great many people in their 40s and 50s have lost strength not because of the forces of nature but simply because they've allowed that important factor to slide. Some, after participating in high school and college sports, ceased all formsof strength training. To them going to the weight room was analogous to playingthe sport. Plus, most were busy building careers and raising families. Their physical needs took a backseat, and over the years fitness levels slipped. Extra bodyweight began appearing. A few bad habits, such as smoking, drinking too muchand! or overeating, also became part of their lifestyle.

At some stage, however, every man wakes up one day, looks in the mirror and is very displeased, if not repulsed, by what he sees. He fully realizes that he mustdo something about his sad physical state, but exxactly what? The only way he knows how to train is hard and heavy for a sport, but he's no longer interested in competing in football or baskettball. He just wants to lose some of the unwanted weight, add some muscles and, yes, get a bit stronger.

If that's your situation, the first thing you need to know is that you can increase your level of strength fitness regardless of your age. What I call "strengthfitness" refers to a combination of strength, flexibility and endurance. All should be part of the fitness package for older athletes. All can be improved. Ofthe three factors, flexibility is the most difficult for older people to work on

, but they can achieve some degree of improvement. Sometimes even a little improvement can make a huge difference.

When I help older people formulate a fitness routine, I always emphasize strength. That may not sound reasonable, for many older people don't call on their muscles to perform regularly, but strength is the single most important variable foranyone, especially older people. Simply stated, without sufficient strength there is no movement. The nursing homes in this country are crammed with people whocannot walk without assistance or get up from a chair, not because they're oldbut because they allowed their muscles to get too weak.



Other than basic movements, such as walking, you need strength for coordination,balance, endurance and recovery. Even to enjoy such low-exertion activities ashikking, swimming or bowling, you have to possess a certain amount of strength.

Having said all of the above, howwever, I must now list the drawbacks to training for older athletes. Beginnning at age 35, you gradually lose muscle mass, typically a half pound a day. At the same time you start to add unwanted bodyweight,on the average of a pound a year. Organ functions diminish with age, starttingin the early 20s. The number of fast-twitch muscle fibers also declines, along with flexibility and endurance. Testosterone production drops off appreciably.

Then there are the many injuries-some small, some not so small-that have accumulated over the years, and they greatly influence the exercises you select. You may be limited, but you can still find at least one exercise to fit your needs ifyou're motivated.

Time is another critical factor. Your business may be getting bigger or the family may be at a stage where you must spend time with your kids. It's simply unrealistic for a busy person to go to a gym three or four times a week on a consistent basis.

That's the down side, but as with most other things in life, for every down there's an up. Older athletes actually enjoy many advantages over their younger coun

terparts when it comes to strength training. Number one, older athletes are muchmore patient. That's a major plus, believe me. Patience is critical to success,since any strength proogram must be approached on a long-term basis. When I inform older trainees that it will most likely take a year to improve a weak area like their lower back, they nod and accept their fate. When I tell younger athletes that it might take two months for their shoulder to heal properly, they oftenbecome so upset at such a prospect that they quit training altogether.

Another factor that helps older trainees is their ability to adapt. They won't force their body to do any exercise that hurts them. Tell young athletes that they should lay off bench-pressing until their bad shoulder heals, and they seldomlissten. They start doing benches, usuually too heavy, too soon and reinjure themselves. On the other hand, sugggest to older athletes that they'd be better off

substituting the incline bench for the flat bench for several months, and they'll understand and comply without argument.

Older athletes for the most part understand their bodies better than younger ones. After trying a new movement, they can tell if it's helpping or doing them harm. Younger minds are often fixed and will push through an exercise or set of exerrcises that are obviously creating problems. In other words, older people are smarter.

Another very positive quality of older athletes is that they don't mind doing hard work. All-or allmost all-have at some time in their lives performed some manual labor, often for an extended period of time. The concept of hard work in thegym doesn't deter them in the least. In fact, they thrive on it. That's in contr

ast to most youngsters, who consider mowing the lawn grueling. I've started manyyoungsters on strength programs, and most have bailed within a few weeks simplybecause they couldn't handle the difficult exercises like squats and deadlifts.I've never had an older athlete quit on me because of the difficulty of the exercises.

One winter Nick Frasca hired me as a strength consultant at his gym in Yuba City, California. I taught strength training to anyone who cared to learn, which included colllege students, women and a few men in their late 20s. One day I was approached by a gentlemen in his early 70s. He said he'd had heart surgery six mon



ths earlier and had been training for the past two months, doing a variety of exercises on a battery of machines. He wanted to do something different. He didn'tlike working on the machines, for they were boring, and he didn't feel as if hewas making any realprogress. He wanted a program that had teeth to it, and I gave him one.

I put him through bench presses, squats and deadlifts, using free weights. Sincehe wasn't in very good shape, he used light weights. Even so, I didn't baby himbecause of his medical history, nor did I let up on him because of his age. Everyone who watched was shocked, to say the least. The next day Nick fully expected a call from the man's lawyer. It never came, but there was a consensus of opinion that the man would never show up again. The connsensus was wrong.

On Wednesday he was waiting for me, all smiles. He said the workout I'd given him had made him so sore, he could barely get out of bed, but he hadn't felt so good in a very long time. That was what he'd been seeking, a program that forced his body to respond. He later told me he'd gone through the Depression and oftenworked 15 hours a day just to support his family. Working hard was something heunderstood. As long as I was there, he never missed a workout and he got a greatdeal stronger.

It's important to note that the projected length of time it will take to get toa certain level of strength fitness depends on your condition when you begin. If you've had no physical activity for several years, it's going to take you cons

iderably longer to get into decent shape than people who have been doing something, even relatively tame activities such as recreational tennis or swimming. Some older trainees have developed an excellent aerobic base from runnng or biking,and that helps when they start on a strength routine.

The strength program for older athletes, just like programs for younger trainees, should be basic but complete. By "complete," I mean it should include one exercise for each major muscle group at every session: one for the legs, one the back and one for the upper body, or shoulder girdle. Then you can add two or threeauxiliary exerrcises for the smaller muscles such as the biceps, triceps, deltoids and calves.

Now comes the tricky part-selecting the specific exercises for the various muscl

es. Should moveements like deadlifts, good mornings and squats be eliminated entirely? What about snappy, high-skill exercises like power cleans or power snatches-are they too risky for older athletes? Not necessarily. If any exercise irritates an old injury or causes undue pain, then it may be wise to exclude it fromthe proogram. On the other hand, I don't beelieve in giving up on a useful exercise simply because you can't do it correctly the first time you try it.I've had trainees who wanted to do power cleans but found their shoulders were far too tight to rack the bar properly. Instead of avoiding the lift, they workedon their flexiibility and in a matter of weeks were able to do the lift quite nicely.

Older trainees often shun deadlifts and good mornings, believing the exercises are much too demanding for their bodies. Again, any exercise that is beneficial t

o younger athletes is also helpful to older ones. The numbers may be much lowerfor the older people, but if vou can do the exercise withhout pain, then put itin the program.

A perfect example of an older lifter incorporating some tough movements into hisroutine is Mike Hyland. Mike is in his late 50s and has a background in Olympicweightlifting. He started training with my Hopkins athletes last fall. He'd never done good mornings and had performed very few deaddlifts, but he became intrigued watching my athletes do the exerrcises. Naturally, he was wary that he might hurt himself, but I assured him that he'd be just fine, so he proceeded. Not o



nly did Mike do both lifts, but he excelled at them. He told me the day after his first series of good mornings that he'd never felt better in his life. He wasfull of energy, and his lower back tingled with strength. He was so taken with the results of the good mornings that he now does them two or three times a week.

The selection of exercises revolves around a number of factors. Do you want to improve strength in a certain area, perhaps to help you achieve in some sport? Are you wanting to add size or just get stronger without gaining weight? What exercises should be excluded entirely due to past injuries? There is also the factorof choosing an exercise for a certain area of the body over another. Inclines and flat benches both work the upper body nicely, but you may decide to do only inclines, since flat benches tend to irritate your rotator cuff.

The more variety you can build into your program the better. Different angles for the shoulder girdle, different exercises to hit all the areas of the back-upper, middle and lower. Squats are certainly the best single movement for the legs,but if you can't do them, use the machines. The leg press, leg curl, leg extension, adductor and calf maachines will get the job done if you apply yourself fully.

Two key areas are the abs and lower back. Ab work should be a part of every session, with attention given to the upper and lower abs each time. Back hypers aregreat for the lumbars, and you can do them as part of the warmup.

The set-and-rep sequence is the same as it is for any strength athlete. Performthe core exercises for four to six sets of four to six reps. Some people like todo higher reps when they first start an exercise, and that's fine. You should also do auxiliary work for the smaller groups with higher reps: lOs, 12s and 20s.

Your time spent in the gym should be filled with concentrated work-an hour and ahalf tops. Do the three core movements, add one or two auxiliary exercises, stretch and leave. Note the point about stretching. That isn't a luxury for older athletes, it's an absolute necessity. Stretch between sets and immediately afterthe workout and then do more stretching later that night. More is always betterwhen it comes to this discipline.

If you don't do it right away, eventually include some aerobics. Keeping the heart and lungs fit is critical to long term strength fitness. Do at least two 20-minute sessions per week on an exercise bike, ski machine, rowing machine or a running course or track.

Start conservatively. Learn proper technique on all the lifts before pushing thenumbers up. Age isn't really a deterrent to becoming stronger, unless you allowit to be. Some people use it as an excuse to do less, while others accept the challenge and use their knowledge as an advantage.

strength training and the older athlete

Documents