Over 50 Exercisers?

[mugsy]

This thread is for the over-50 crowd (like me) who do, or want to start, exercising.

What do you do?
Have you always been an exericser or is this recent?
Basically, just share what works, or maybe what hasn't worked.

I know that I have modified my exercise over the years and since hitting 50 have had to lay off of some things that I used to do routinely (exercise - watch yer dirty minds).

Used to do lots of push-ups but had to reign that in a bit (cut down total reps) and alternate with other activities.
Again had to replace my daily heavy duty sit-ups with a mad-russian/plank alternating plan that seems to work well and has cut way down on back strain.
Likewise I've had to stagger my running days and alternate with other less injury prone aerobic activities.
Plus I now have a well defined - I am not exercising day each week as well and I really don't sweat it if life activities require me to lay off two days every once in a while.

What do you do?

 

[dennishoddy]

As a retired person, I don't have a regimen of a fixed exercise. Not a couch potato by any means. Daily activity takes care of it mostly. Walk 3/10 mile from the house to the newspaper box daily that involves a 129' rise in elevation, climbing on an off a tractor, Walking back and forth from the shop and so on. I weigh the same that I did in the mid 70's. Same waist line in jeans.

 

[Shoot Summ]

Hit 55 this year and work out 6 days most weeks.

I hit it really hard for my age, work out 3 days a week with a trainer, and the other 3 days with workout partner(s). My lifting has pulled in a bit, more reps and less weight, except on leg day, I can run it really hard on leg day...

All of my workouts incorporate HIT to a certain extent, there is a lot of value to me to get my heart rate elevated. HIT for me takes a lot of different forms, Med ball slams, battle ropes, box jumps, burpees, etc. I wear a heart rate monitor, and my goal is to get as close to my max HR as I can, and then spend about 5-10% of my workout time(60 minutes) in that zone. It's taken me about 3 years to get to this point, but it's paid off, I feel great, and most people don't believe I'm 55.

Did a great set Sunday with a Trainer:

Dead lift
Squat
Burpee

Start with 1 rep of each, and progress to 10 reps of each, stop only when you have to. Went great until 5 reps, then it started to get tough...

Bands are great, sliders can kick your butt too. Good old push ups, even from your knees are good. Planks are great for core.

 

[Buzz70]

Getting close to 50.....my advise is to make sure you stretch! No matter what you do, you gotta stay stretched out to avoid throwing you back out. Heck I stretch before, during and after any workout. I used to have horrible back problems and they all went away when I started stretching and rolling.

 

[lkothe]

I am just starting to work out.....slowly easing into it. I don't feel like I'm in bad shape but not IN shape. Shoot Summ made me feel like a couch tater!
Hard to get motivated it seems.....I'm tired, I'm full (food), It's windy, cold, etc etc.......... yeah, I'm a loser it seems.
6'2", 235#

 

[Boehlertaught]

Just turned 59. Been athletic since junior high school. Manapause hit at 52 and all seemed to fall apart. I went from an athletic 180 pounds and I gained 40 pounds uncontrollably no matter how hard I tried to stop it. Lower legs began to cramp when I would run so I quit running. And felt terrible when I rode my bike. Had no energy and just seemed to be out of gas. Started testosterone last summer and began making progress in the energy department on the bike. Started loosing weight in January and Im down 20 pounds. Going for another 20 plus a few maybe.

 

[Shoot Summ]

Getting close to 50.....my advise is to make sure you stretch! No matter what you do, you gotta stay stretched out to avoid throwing you back out. Heck I stretch before, during and after any workout. I used to have horrible back problems and they all went away when I started stretching and rolling.

I didn't add that my routine starts with about 10-15 minutes of rolling, and stretching. Rolling is just as important, really loosens up the muscles.

 

[Podman]

I walk at the local rec center. I try to walk at least 3 times a week and go a mile. It's free, indoors and only a couple of blocks from my house. I hate exercise though and only do it for health reasons.

 

[Rod Snell]

Being WAYl over 50 and a VA certified partial cripple, the most important things for me are 1. Do SOMETHING several times a week because your condition deteriorates faster with inactivity than it used to, and 2. Be kind to your old connective tissue that can tear easier, and takes longer to build up than muscle tissue does.

I have encouraged some friends to join me in returning to the gym and despite warnings, have seen them go like gangbusters losing weight and building muscle until they tear a tendon and then just quit.

 

[badrinker]

Well, I'm over 50 as of yesterday, but have always been active I guess. I've lifted weights 3-4 times a week since college, ride the exercise bike first thing in the morning 6 days a week for the last 15 years and started running a couple days a week 2-3 years ago. I try to change up how I do each of them frequently, e.g. instead of biking at a steady pace, I ride hard for 2 minutes, then easier for 10, rinse and repeat.
What I don't do enough of is stretching, need to fit that in somewhere.