Why You Should Lift Heavy After 50

Have you ever wondered why most Pro athletes retire in their 30’s?

Part of the reason is how the body changes as we age.

If you’ve noticed you aren’t quite as strong as you were in your 20’s, there is a reason.

All of us- both female and male- lose lean muscle and strength as we age.

If you do nothing, you’ll lose 8% of your strength every 10 years after age 30.

This process speeds up after age 60 for all of us.

Maybe you’re like me and started wondering WTH is going on as I approached midlife and my normal strength training workouts didn’t seem to be working as well.

Luckily, I ran across research that helped me make a major shift this year.

The result is that it has made me feel stronger than I’ve ever felt.

What was it?

One of the changes I made was to lift heavier.

I bumped up my resistance training- less reps, more weight.

Lifting weights with the goal of tearing fibers isn’t enough as we age. 

Among other things we’ve got reduced estrogen- a main driver of muscle mass & strength.

You’ve got to lift heavier weight in order to get the attention of your brain to turn IT up and recruit all the muscle fibers for that power move you are asking it to do.

But there’s a catch.

We aren’t talking about lifting heavy for isolated muscle movements like bicep curl or rotator cuff exercises.

You want to lift heavy with functional movements of pushing, pulling, squatting motions that require a lot of muscle groups to perform them- i.e. squats, deadlifts, chest presses, row (bent over). 

Power Moves > Heavy Weight > Low Reps- 3-6 reps is what you are targeting as you age.
 
Why?

Resistance training helps increase your metabolism and immune system, strengthen bones/tendons, improve blood pressure and lean muscle, and decrease inflammation.

Lifting heavy will accelerate all of these benefits as well as build better posture and burn fat while you exercise.
 
How do you know how much to LIFT?

Step 1: Figure out the heaviest weight you can lift for one rep for one of the power moves (squats, deadlifts, chest presses, bent over rows). Once you know that you’ll build up to it.

Step 2: Build up your foundation and endurance overtime. Get your joints and tendons ready to lift heavier weights. Start with an amount that you can do 8-15 reps for 2-3 sets. 

Step 3: Increase weight and lower reps every 4-6 weeks until you reach your “heavy” lift goal of 3-6 reps for 3-6 sets.
 
REST REMINDER: You need more rest when lifting heavy so make sure to take 2-5 minutes of rest between sets. Do NOTHING while resting.

WEEKLY GOAL: Aim for resistance training 3x/week. 
 
PREP WORK SAFETY TIPS:

You need to know how to have good technique when doing resistance training to avoid injury or straining your joints.

You want to have a good foundation and know how to engage your core and pelvic floor.

You may need to use a mirror to watch your form if you are new to lifting.

You can lift heavy with dumb bells or barbells. Dumb bells require more stability since you have to coordinate each side of the body.

Most importantly BUILD UP to lifting heavy OVERTIME.
 
NOTE: This is one of the rare times that I’m going to tell you to go hard and I’m assuming you’ve already got some type of resistance training with weights, machines, or bands under your belt.
 
I’m also assuming you DO NOT have osteoporosis or osteopenia. If you do, then you will need a health professional to guide/modify for you after you get clearance from your physician to lift heavier weights.
 
NEED MORE SUPPORT?
 
If you need support building your foundation (core) and mobility so you don’t injure your tissue lifting heavy, then you’ll want to check out our online camps here.

If you want 1/1 instruction & are in the Austin area, you can book a private session with Ender here.

Always listen to your body. If it needs more rest, give it rest.

Build up lifting heavy overtime.

Take the time to learn good technique and to get your daily mobility & recovery program in place.

The pay off is worth it- better bones, posture, strength, & energy.

​P.S. Not sure how to get started with lifting heavy? Start with your form & mobility in our online camp or book a 1/1 with Ender to learn techniques for these power moves.