Recovering from workouts as you get older ...

[chris250]

Hey guys,

For the older vets on the board, who have put in 15-20 years in the gym...What age did you notice that you cant recover from your workouts...Im 35 now (36 in late November this year) and this past year or so...Back in April or so, when I decided to go all out for Nationals, I notice that if I train 3 days in a row (hard and heavy) I cant seem to recover as fast, as I use to...I mean, I just felt tired, didnt want to get up, sore as hell,ect,ect...I kinda have dropped back to doing one bodypart a day program, but trying to go 2 or 3 days in a row, before taking a day off...I've been doing more L-Glutaimine (dont know if it really helps), extra creatine, ect, ect (vit/minerals)...Im still pretty tired after hitting it hard (when I go heavy with lower reps 8 or less) I have to take a day off...

I have talked to LATS, (we actully live pretty close to each other) and he said he does more a every other day program...He also has said a few of the Euro guys spread there bodyparts way apart..Hitting everything over a 7-10 day spread...What do you guys think about that ? Hitting everything way far apart...I know guys like Phil, DC ,ect...Believe in hitting things closer together for a better chance for growth (twice over a 8 day period)..But I honeslty think that would be to much for me now...

Give me some thoghts guys

chris

 

[DatBtrue]

Insulin in older guys speeds recovery.

 

[gridlock]

I was saying to Mike1107 the other day how i'm just not recovering Like I used to. I know i'm not a vet in the sense of many others but I'm 25 now and have been training since i was 13 with bodybuilding being a focus for 10 of those years.

i'd say since 2007 i've found it tougher when i'm waking up the next morning. and no matter what i do to make my diet better the ache gets more and more intensive

i've started to look into the spread program and know a guy not to far from me who does every body part once in an 8 day period. and i cant knock him. he's a giant, looks healthy, is 40 years old and works in the same 16 hour a day industry as me.

it's definitely something worth looking at. even more so for me as I'm not competing so it wont hit too much on any deadlines. I'm gonna speak to Main about it and see what his thoughts are

 

[Mr.G]

I am the same age as you, I will be 36 next month & i started training around 18 with a few breaks dew to injuries. I like training everything twice in 8 days with proper supplementation & cardio. Right now I am taking more time to rest the connective tissue, elbows & knees are killing me right now but muscles feel fine. I have found building muscle is easier as I get older, it may be that I am lifting smarter & listening to my body.

 

[Dens228]

I've been training hard since I was a freshman in high school, 14 years old.
I'm 45 now and still hitting it hard and heavy. Most of my past training was powerlifting, now it's bodybuilding.

I feel I recover as well, but I also listen to my body more now (smarter?) so if I feel I need a day off I take it. The only noticeable change I've seen is that it takes longer to warm up. More sets, still lower reps, but smaller weight jumps between sets.

 

[chris250]

Insulin in older guys speeds recovery.

Dat,

can you go into more detail about this ? I mean I understand, that insulin pushes nutrients into the muscle faster, as insulin is a storing hormone...But, what protocol would you suggest for older guys ?

thank you for your time

chris

 

[GymDudeVA]

48 years old here, been at it 35 years, 15 years or so "hardcore". I never could go balls-to-the-wall more than 2 days in a row, but even that got harder, with basically one big bodypart per workout.

Now doing DC training...I think it actually what I need right now...3 workouts a week, period, just one execise per bodypart. The workouts are killer, but the whole system/split seems to work right now

Otherwise, LOTS of sleep, avoid stress, etc. I also find avoiding alcohol, etc. helps with recovery at my age.

 

[Ness]

insulin

Try pwo IM w/ GH.

 

[gooey]

I hear ya!

I am now 30 and I can feel the difference from going from 29 to 30... I get home from the gym at night and I am wiped out! And just dragging ass alot more then I used to after a heavy weight session. Try and get to bed earlier. My ol ass is in bed by 9:45-10:00pm and up @ 6am M-F. That helps me!

 

[JUSTKIDDING]

i,m 40 and i noticed it 2-3 years ago that i didnt recovver thatt fast as years before.
have changed my work-outs several times before i did 3 muscle groups a day and later 2 and sometimes only one a day mostly 5 on and 2 off.
2 muscle groups a day is f*cking hard, but it still gives me good gains to get true the training i always use efidrine it gives me the boost like i,m a 25year old guy
only when i train legs i have more problems with the recovery so the second leg work-out for that week is always harder thats why i split legs in 2 begin off the week quads and later that week hams that works fine now.
also in summertime i take 3 months rest and go to the gym everymorning for my cardio and in the afternoon i train only one muscle group but not that hard.

JK.

 

[JETHRO TULL]

Chris, isn't it fun?! lol.

I spend a lot more time warming up. Also, even when I was younger I gained much better when I went two days of lifting followed by a day of rest. If I start doing more days in a row and get enthusiastic... Then my joints kill me.

These days, if I sense something is gonna get hurt I back off. My strength is still good, but sometimes that's a problem. When everything feels light and I am tempted to go heavy ....I get really careful. If you feel that deep twinge in a shoulder or quad..LISTEN. I've dinged myself really good a few times and that sucks.

Like Mr. G mentioned. I actually think I do better now listening to the signals my body is telling me. I don't work as hard and still do okay. I don't need to lift nearly as heavy as I thought I did.

Oh, and my flippin' body aches sometimes. The fish oil really helped and taking days off when you need them. When I actually do that...I feel great.

Something else that makes a HUGE difference in my case is stretching. I know there are some guys who say you don't need it, but all I can say is I don't hurt when I do it.

44yrs old here. I want to keep doing this, so I am starting to throw out all the "rules" I used to believe were so vital. I am also telling you that I see some huge dudes in golds who are definitely offseason who are NOT using heavy weights.

That was the most stunning observation I made while there.

 

[Stewie Griffon]

Hey guys,

For the older vets on the board, who have put in 15-20 years in the gym...What age did you notice that you cant recover from your workouts...Im 35 now (36 in late November this year) and this past year or so...Back in April or so, when I decided to go all out for Nationals, I notice that if I train 3 days in a row (hard and heavy) I cant seem to recover as fast, as I use to...I mean, I just felt tired, didnt want to get up, sore as hell,ect,ect...I kinda have dropped back to doing one bodypart a day program, but trying to go 2 or 3 days in a row, before taking a day off...I've been doing more L-Glutaimine (dont know if it really helps), extra creatine, ect, ect (vit/minerals)...Im still pretty tired after hitting it hard (when I go heavy with lower reps 8 or less) I have to take a day off...

I have talked to LATS, (we actully live pretty close to each other) and he said he does more a every other day program...He also has said a few of the Euro guys spread there bodyparts way apart..Hitting everything over a 7-10 day spread...What do you guys think about that ? Hitting everything way far apart...I know guys like Phil, DC ,ect...Believe in hitting things closer together for a better chance for growth (twice over a 8 day period)..But I honeslty think that would be to much for me now...

Give me some thoghts guys

chris

i am 34 myself and trained since i was 15. always heavy training more toward powerlifting than bodybuilding. every thing you have said holds true for myself as well. i now do each bodypart once per week, but i hit each one hard. sometimes if i feel really tired i will rest an extra day or two. i guess thats like the 7-10 spread you referred to.

sucks getting older! then again there are many guys older than us on the board who still are very strong and look great. we have many good years left for us if those guys are an example

 

[knucklehed]

I am 42, training since high school. I am doing Phil's program 3 on 1 off. I find that I have to slip in an extra day off now and then. Normally if I hit the 3 days consecutively I absolutely need the off day. About half the time I take a xtra day after leg training so i train 3 days out of 5.
I can't say that it's gotten harder >wont let myself go there. I use the "act as if principle" > Act as if I am still a 25 year old ha ha

 

[Tom]

training

i'm 55 and still train pretty intensely. i do very well with 2 on 2 off and just keep rotating 3 different workouts. my major issue is lack of flexability but it's my own fault for not doing stretching on a consistant basis.

 

[chris250]

I spend a lot more time warming up. Also, even when I was younger I gained much better when I went two days of lifting followed by a day of rest. If I start doing more days in a row and get enthusiastic... Then my joints kill me.

These days, if I sense something is gonna get hurt I back off. My strength is still good, but sometimes that's a problem. When everything feels light and I am tempted to go heavy ....I get really careful. If you feel that deep twinge in a shoulder or quad..LISTEN. I've dinged myself really good a few times and that sucks.

Like Mr. G mentioned. I actually think I do better now listening to the signals my body is telling me. I don't work as hard and still do okay. I don't need to lift nearly as heavy as I thought I did.

Oh, and my flippin' body aches sometimes. The fish oil really helped and taking days off when you need them. When I actually do that...I feel great.

Something else that makes a HUGE difference in my case is stretching. I know there are some guys who say you don't need it, but all I can say is I don't hurt when I do it.

44yrs old here. I want to keep doing this, so I am starting to throw out all the "rules" I used to believe were so vital. I am also telling you that I see some huge dudes in golds who are definitely offseason who are NOT using heavy weights.

That was the most stunning observation I made while there.

Great post JT...and thank you for the information...

How much fish oils do you use a day...what brand/how many times you take them during the day, ect, ect...

thank you

chris250

 

[pesty4077]

Chris, as you know I will be doing a show in 6 weeks. One thing, I believe you need to do, when you get older, is warm up properly. That includes, if need be 2-3 warm ups for exercises. You need to train stricter to prevent injuries, because it will take alot longer to recuperate. I also believe in eating healthier. It takes alot longer to burn that fat off, as oppose to your younger days. I train 1 body part per week, 5 days on 2 off. It seems to work the best for me, as far as recovery and training harder. Did I mention, you might need a nap once in a while? There is absolutley no reason, that anybody at 50 can't look impressive with the right consistancy and diet. I been training for close to 30 years. I am not giving up any time soon. Alex, put that competitive spark back in me.

 

[BEASTZ6]

I am 57, and have been training since I was 21. I totally agree that a complete warm up is essential to avoiding injuries. If I am doing incline dumbells as my first excercise for chest, I start with 30 lbs and do low-rep (4-6 reps) warm up sets going up in 10 lb increments until I get to my working weight. Then I do 2 heavy sets, and that's it. By then my chest is warmed up, and I can skip the warm up on the next chest exercise.

 

[doug1]

a very effective split which avoids training large muscles two days in a row that i have been using for a while and put some thought into, im 38 now and started at 14, so 24 years at this stuff:

mon: chest/medial head of shoulders
tues: off/ maybe calves
wed: back
thurs: off/ maybe calves
fri: arms
sat: legs
sun: off/maybe calves

i like to train calves almost everyday in the morning if i go into the gym with my wife, presently in a bulking cycle so i do some morning cardio, but if not i will train my calves and forearms while she does the cardio thing.

 

[cjjrwe]

I still do a 5 on 2 off routine, one body part a day. I still recover fairly fast at 40, however I do suffer from far more tendonitis. When it acts up I take a few days off, also a week off every couple of months seems to help out quite a bit.

 

[musha03]

Good thead.
I have been thinking about posting this before also.
I lift fairly heavy and intense most of the time.The next day i`m dead tired. My job doesnt help being a mechanic (lots of effort required ).
At this stage I find it even hard to go one day on ,one day off, so i go 2 days off for sure and maybe a role of 1on/off for a while.
I have tried many things to get back my energy levels the next day but haven't found anything that works.
I am doing gh and slin and aas with good diet and nothing seems to work.
I kinda gave up saying this is how it will be from now on.
I`m 46 years old training intense for 21 years.
Good luck in finding yor happy medium.