So, what general training guidelines do you actually recommend Paul?
Losing muscle mass is one of the prime characterisitcs of aging and training for hypertrophy (whether the hormonal environment is “optimal” or not!) IS an anti-ageing strategy and therefore would be an obvious focus?
If you’re talking HRT that’s not something I’m going to recommend online. that’s something that has to be done with bloodwork and by the help of someone well versed in this, aka a doctor.
“general training guidelines”, not trt; training!
I would also be interested in mr carters genersl training guidelines for say 50+ athletes. I don’t believe in tc luoma’s recent article about cranking up the volume will suit me well and another take on the topic eould be welcome.
I don’t agree with TC on that at all.
Generally speaking you are dealing with a slower metabolism, you have a loss of fast twitch muscle fiber, and are fighting anabolic resistance. All of these things mean that your recovery is going to be hampered as you age.
It means that recovery becomes vitally more important per training session and training week.
So what you really have to look at is not so much at training per say, but what all factors you’re including daily that enhance your recovery and anabolism.
Micro nutrients become more important. Good nutrition and not including a lot of pro-inflammatory foods become far more important.
Getting lean becomes more important to reduce potential inflammation (adipose tissue increases inflammation and estrogen) and create a better hormonal profile.
Sure, training needs to be smart, but what has to be smarter are all of the factors that improve recovery.
Your “trainability” is the area defined by how much stress you can tolerate. That means if your life is also stressful then you have less room for trainability than someone older with less life stress.
So it’s not about offering up training programs. It’s about how much stress you can tolerate and recover from as you get older in order to facilitate the desired outcome from training (via recovery).
To be fair, I don’t think anyone here would expect “random programs” to be offered up! You write for tnation, and there might be an article there!
Personally, I was just curious as to what training focus might be feasible for that age group further to your statement regarding “hormonal environment” inferring training for hypertrophy isn’t feasible? You also don’t agree with TC about increasing rep count. So give us a clue Paul!
Thanks.
I don’t think that anyone is going to be growing muscle at 60+ unless they are a total noob.
I’m not sure what to say other than my last post. You’re not working in an optimal hormonal environment as you get older. The loss of muscle fibers, the fight against anabolic resistance and life stress in general make it harder for older guys to train really hard and recover properly.
As far as training focus, I think you’re training at that point to retain as much muscle as possible, and using more of a shotgun approach where you’re trying to optimize overall health. So muscle retention, some strength development or strength retention, etc.
But the key with all of that is truly the recovery aspect. That’s going to be the area you’re going to want to optimize.
So, this thread has opened up the proverbial ‘can of worms’ for me. I’m 59, 5’10", 194 lbs this morning. Been back in the gym for about 18 months now, and have managed to drop about 40 lbs from my heaviest when I started. I’d still like to drop another 5 or 8% in body fat.
Paul - your comment on mTOR above -
You can’t avoid it all together lest you want to just outright die. mTOR gets turned on during significant caloric surplus from training. So if you train and eat protein, your mTOR signalling gets turned on. It’s responsible for cellular growth. That means it’s also connected to things like cancer and aging.
caught my eye - technically speaking, I have stage 4 cancer, and just had my fourth tumor removed in as many years. Thankfully it’s a non-aggressive cancer, but still something that I have to live with. Could my ‘push’ to lift heavy, lots of protein, calorie restricted diet, etc. be a contributing factor to my cancer? What changes should I be looking to make, if any?
Worry about getting in awesome shape and putting health and wellness first.
I honestly think at 60 you focus on a foundational level of strength, and allow the muscle to come to you if that’s going to happen.
If mass isn’t an option anymore, what should I be doing? By foundational strength, I’m assuming things like prowler sled pushes/drags, loaded carries, etc., with supplemental isolation work?
I should also note that I am on TRT replacement, twice a week shots at 150mg for 300mg total. I also use Curcumin and an NO supplement. Any other changes you’d recommend?
TIA.
300mg of test a week is NOT TRT. That’s a cycle. Just being real with you about that. I take 75-100mg of test a week all depending on what my blood work says and that keeps me in the mid normal range. Which is legit TRT. 250+mg a week is not and never has been TRT.
If you’re over 60 then your days of building mass are gone, and not being a dick (always seem like it when that phrase comes out) but why are you trying to build mass in your 50’s or 60’s when your focus should be health and longevity? That’s where your focus should be.
I can’t tell you that turning on mTOR more often contributed to your cancer. All I can say is there are definite links of mTOR to cancer because it increases cellular growth. Which includes cancer cells. I’m certainly not going to give out advice about what to do about that on a forum. That’s stuff you need to work with a doctor on.
I would be working with someone who specializes in this area to figure out what is best FOR YOU.
Neither am I by any means a medical, but I remember reading about mTorC1 and mTorC2, of concern in cancer research, being positively influenced by the existence of Glutamine in the system.
That’s why I assume there are companies offering complete whey protein containing glutamine …
IMHO