As someone who works with people in their 30’s-60’s, I hear these quite a bit… 

“I can’t lift that! I’m not young like you are.”

“I’m afraid to do x because of y and z.”

It is something I’ve expected to hear when first starting to work with a new client. This is really unfortunate, considering that 30-60 years old is still considerably young. 

Why do people automatically assume that the inability to do certain physical activities comes with age? Why has this been widely normalized and accepted? What is really holding you back from strength training? 

The fitness era they lived in as a late teen/young adult (when you’re naturally at the peak of your physical health) is likely to have affected the present person in their 50s. Low carb diets with pilates or fitness classes were popular in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

The concept of muscle building and strength training was highly promoted among bodybuilders and professional athletes, but not nearly enough was promoted among the general public. As a result, they spent their entire early adult lives avoiding carbs and never strength training, yet still making it to pilates three times a week to stay “healthy”

That same person, now in their 50s or older, is more prone to injury than the average person, more likely to deal with joint/back discomfort on a regular basis, and believes that fitness is based on overly restrictive diets and jazzercise. Why? Misinformation from the fitness industry.

It’s not your fault, and it’s not even the fitness industry’s fault. In reality, there just weren’t enough studies to back up anything so everything you’ve learned has been virtually debunked or updated in some way after countless studies showed that they were full of crap.

I need you to trust me when I say this: Health and fitness is just not what it was 30 years ago. Unlearn what you’ve learned.

What is strength training? 

Strength training includes activities that use free weights, resistance bands, or your own bodyweight to increase strength & build (or maintain) muscle mass. Strength training can look like many things: pushups, bodyweight squats, and bicep curls are considered strength training just like max effort squats and deadlifts are considered strength training, the concept is the same but the goals & exercise background of the person performing it are different.

Does that mean you have to become a competitive weight lifter? No. But making an effort to increase your strength will benefit you in more ways than one.  At the end of the day, you’re trying to get as strong as you need to so you can live your life the way you want to live. After all, things that are weak tend to break easily.  

If you live a predominantly sedentary lifestyle (desk job, work from home, retired and no longer working), your body naturally does lose some muscle, your bones become less dense, and your tissues become less elastic as you age. Your metabolism slows down making it harder to maintain healthy muscle mass and easier to hold onto body fat. Strength training, however, can actually stall that process and maintain your joint health, muscle health, and a healthy metabolism. 

Regular strength training (1-3x per week) has been shown in recent studies to be effective in combating osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis & sciatica while simultaneously increasing muscle tissue elasticity & strength. In fact, a two-year study of newly diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis patients discovered that strength training enhanced muscular strength by up to 59 percent while also improving physical function.

On top of that, strength training has also been shown to manage & prevent other chronic illnesses like: 

• Heart disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• Obesity 
• Asthma 
• Cancer &
• Even Dementia 

Not to mention the loads of other benefits that come along with it like increased cognitive function, improved posture, and a healthy boost of confidence.

What type of strength training is right for me? 

If you’re reading this, you’re probably above the age of 40 and just starting to get into strength training. That’s great, I admire that.  It’s important to remember that strength training is a SKILL, and like any other skill, it must be learned and practiced before you’re actually “skilled” at it.  So starting out with the basics is crucial if you hope to build a strong foundation that you can build on. 

That means addressing current muscular imbalances, improving joint stability & working on your primary movements like:

• Pushing
• Pulling
• Squatting
• Hingeing
• Lungeing
• Carrying 

Now, these movements are extraordinary for building strength with the real-world application but you need to know how to do them correctly or you can potentially cause more harm than good. My advice? Hire a QUALIFIED coach in your area that you can trust & feel comfortable working with. Investing in a coach can ensure you’re progressing safely and potentially save you months of trial, error & frustration. Once you’ve learned the basics and feel comfortable on your own you can go on your own  and keep on winning with the knowledge you’ve gained. Can’t afford a coach but still want to learn as you improve? Join The Bulletproof 

Bodies Facebook Group. 

Here are a few tips to help you get started

• To get the most benefit from strength training, aim to do it 1 to 3 times a week for at least 30 minutes. You’ll want to include stretches and exercises for all major muscle groups. Try not to avoid training body parts because of joint pain, often times the site of joint pain is a result of a muscular imbalance in the surrounding area

• You don’t need to join a gym with weight machines in order to strength train. You can do exercises at home using dumbbells, resistance bands, or resistance trainers.

• Do your training at a time of day you feel 100%. If you have stiffness in the morning, avoid strength training then.

• Make sure to warm up for a few minutes and do some type of mobility before diving into weight training. 

• If you’re experiencing an arthritis flare-up, give weight training a rest until your inflammation subsides. In the meantime, you can focus on low-impact activities like walking or completing some Controlled Articular Rotations (joint circles)

A little muscle soreness after strength training is normal, but sharp pain is not. If an exercise or movement causes significant pain, stop doing it & reach out to your primary care physician.