Still luvin my workouts!

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Still luvin my workouts!

by Franco
(Western Colorado)

Resting during a Colorado hike!

I'm just a few weeks shy of my 62nd birthday. I inadvertently discovered 'weight lifting' (as it was called in those days ), when I was about 14 years old. A neighbor kid, 2 years older than me, had a set of barbells in his basement. He invited me over one day, and one workout was all it took to get me hooked for life.

I worked out regularly until about age 22, after which time I spent little time in the gym. At age 19 I benched pressed 290lbs with a two second pause on my chest and no back arching. I weighed about 175 at the time. I was a pretty strong kid. After age 22, I lived such a physically active lifestyle for the next 15 -20 years that I rarely visited the gym or touched a barbell. I was doing such things as building log cabins and cutting firewood. I made my livelihood as a tree-planter in the forests of British Columbia. These activities kept in in good shape without going to the gym.

I started back with weight training in 1989, and I've missed only a few weeks here and there between then and now. My longest layoff was 6 weeks. Quite honestly, I'm addicted to working out with weights.

I've eaten a vegetarian diet for the past 39 years, with occasional fish during the last 2 years. My current body-weight is 165+ or - a couple of pounds.

Most of my workouts since 1989 have been with weights that allowed for 6 to 12 reps. I recently made a big change. I am currently using lighter weight that allow for 15 to 25 reps. Using lighter weights with higher reps has completely revitalized my workouts. I switched to lighter weights because I felt that I wasn't getting much out of the heavy weights, I dreaded my workouts, and my joints were hurting. With the lighter weights, I'm having fun, I luv the pump, and I'm looking forward to my workouts again!

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Still luvin my workouts!

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Aug 19, 2011
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Great Comments . . .
by: Logan

Thanks Franco and Bob for the smart discussion about training. You are living proof that there is more than one way of working out and being successful.

Aug 18, 2011
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FREQUENCY OF WORKOUTS
by: BOB WHITE

You might find the book BODY BY SCIENCE by Cisco & Little interesting regarding minimum frequency of HIT workouts.

Aug 17, 2011
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for Anonymous
by: Bob White

As time under load is another way to train intensely, using lower weights or expanders superslow will give you a real workout. It requires Zenlike concentration and is very safe.
Also, I've done Yoga every morning before my workoout for years but lately I've added holding very light dumbells (HeavyHands 6 lbs each) while doing the postures. Mr America Walt Baptiste and his wife started this technique I believe. It is sometimes called Iron Yoga. In any case it has enhanced my Yoga experience
Bikram Chadhoury (Bikram Yoga) also trained with weights as did his teacher Bishnu Gosh, younger brother of Paramahansa Yogananda (SRF Kriya Yoga).

Aug 16, 2011
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Less exercise is better than more!
by: Franco ( original poster )

The gym in Grand Junction - Co that had been the home of my workouts for the past 4 years just recently went out of business, so I've joined the ranks of the 'gymless'. During this period of 'gymlessness' I've further simplified, and greatly shortened my workouts, though I am now working out 7 days a week instead of just 5. I'm doing mostly bodyweight only exercises like pull-ups, dips, push-ups, & walking lunges with and without weights, along with some high rep, moderate weight dumbell exercises like curls, tricep extesnsion, shoulder presses and lateral raises.

My daily workouts are broken into four 5 minute mini-workouts so I'm always working fresh and rather intensely. The funny thing is, this new and improved, shorter, and 'gymless' routine is allowing me to maintain muscularity and conditioning. I've lost nothing at all during the 2 months I've been following this routine. This seems to validate my theory that going beyond a certain threshhold of exercise provides a diminishing return. I've found the least amount of weight training that I can do and still maintain what I've got. Doing more exercise is not providing more benefit.

Maybe this is totally age related, but for me anyway, I'm finding that 'less intense exercise is better than more'! Less time working out leaves more time for taking long walks in the desert, where I have walked 6,353,197 steps during the past 330 days, an average of 19252 steps per day. Now that is just pure fun.

Jun 08, 2011
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Less weight
by: Anonymous

I'm 58 years old and work 12 hour shifts as a registered nurse. I can tell you that 58 is not 28. When not at work I am taking care of 2 boys 4 and 5 years old that we adopted. I keep a pretty active life style but without the weights would start losing ground. I like one exercise per body part with 12 reps to fatigue but not failure. It allows me every other day to get in a workout that doesn't take very long and leaves me enough energy for all the other parts of my life. By not going to failure with heavy weight it gives me results without undue fatigue and allows me to remain consistent. Occasionally I switch off and use the kettlebells. It's a good change and a lot of fun. It's important for me also that my 2 boys see exercise as an important part of their life so if I keep working out perhaps this will give them something to help them throughout their lives.

Jun 02, 2011
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Still luvin my workouts!!
by: Anonymous

Logan - I think you've found your replacement when you're ready to retire!!

Jun 02, 2011
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Right on Franco!
by: Bob White

I've found that light weights Superslow, 10sec up, 10 down give me a real pump and a Zenlike intensity. However the reps are usually no more than 6 until failure.
I've added Bodylastics bands and the Junglegym XT bodyweight suspension trainer recently and they both feel great.

Jun 01, 2011
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Still at it pushing 70
by: Anonymous

Well I've certainly had to make some adjustments also. Although I've been working out for years, mainly in my gym in the garage, a new gym opened up very close to me. I loved my routine. I'd take spinning classes Tuesdays and Thursdays then Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I workout with the machines plus free weights. Then on Saturdays my wife and I take a yoga class and Sundays I'd just do Tai Chi (been doing this for about 20 years now) Suddenly (at least it seemed that way) my shoulders starting hurting when doing the push/pull machines and kept hurting so much that I had to quit. Plus lighten way up on my free weights. I was feeling so darn good too after a good weight workout. Although my shoulders didn't feel so hot. Ended up having a few cortisone shots in my shoulders but the doc said no more machines or weights. This was pretty devastating to my whole lifestyle. Many of you know what it's like looking forward to your workouts and the great feeling it is afterwards. I ended up pushing my spinning classes to Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays. Wednesdays I just do very light weights at home. I still feel pretty darn good after those spin classes (without that great pump feeling though) and am going to try to keep this up for as long as I can. Like Logan said, have to make adjustments of some kind or another. I will always do something even if it's just the slow motion tai chi or stretching. It's the way I start every day.
Dale Miller
Temple City, Calif.

Jun 01, 2011
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Health and Wellness Lives on!
by: Bob

Great article, Franco!

As you know, I eat an assortment of foods - with an emphasis on sufficient quantities of vegetables, certain fruits (mostly berries)- along with adequate protein from fish, eggs, legumes, and whey protein. I eat primarily "organic" foods including free-range high Omega 3 eggs and wild Alaskan salmon. I avoid all factory-farmed eggs and fish.

I try to keep carbs to a minimum as they tend to encourage tissue inflammation. Inflammation is bad news and can be linked to almost all disease processes, including cancer and diabetes.

Regarding gym workouts - I have recently reduced the number of sets I do from 3 to 2 while performing each repetition in a given set very slowly for the full cycle. I do anywhere from 7 to 12 reps per exercise.

I find that doing the exercises very slowly gives me the control I need to maintain good form and avoid injury - plus less strain on the joints.

I also incorporate interval training on the elliptical machine into my overall workout plan twice each week. This consists of a 3 minute warm-up period followed by 8 cycles of 30 second sprints with 1 minute of walking between sprints. I cool down another 3 minutes at the end. The whole routine takes about 18 minutes to complete. It's gruesome but very rewarding.

Within an hour of completing a workout, I consume a whey protein drink to aid in muscle recovery.

Bob

Jun 01, 2011
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Strong and soft
by: Anonymous

There's nothing sexier than a strong and soft man. How 'bout adding a little yoga to your routine?

May 20, 2011
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You look great Franco!
by: Anonymous

I switched to lighter weights also four years ago and do my reps Superslow to retain a Zenlike intensity. I'm 78 now and have been a lacto-ovo vegetarian since 1960.

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Still luvin my workouts!

Comments for Still luvin my workouts!

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Still luvin my workouts!