Tips for Older Lifters + Free Program

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Older lifters, regardless of experience level, won’t be able to train hard as frequently as younger lifters.  That’s not a bad thing.  It does not have to mean that you will progress more slowly.  It just means that you will need to train differently and demonstrate more discipline to keep up with your juniors. 

It’s easier said than done, of course, so here are a few tips that will help. These strategies are beneficial for all lifters, regardless of age — but they’re especially important to keep in mind as you get older.

Establish baseline sets.

Regardless of age, training style or experience level, you will find that some days you go into the gym and just don’t feel up to setting a new PR or pushing to RPE 10.  Younger lifters can often get away with pushing through on these days, but older lifters are more likely to get injured if they try to force a lift.

Instead, establish a baseline or minimum level of strength on the major lifts that you can use as a backup when you’re unable to complete your scheduled programming.  For example, my baseline deadlift set is 585x8.  Whenever I”m supposed to deadlift and just don’t think I can hit my scheduled weights, I’ll pull 585x8 instead and know that I’m not too far off my best.  

There are no rules for establishing baseline sets, but they should accomplish two things:

1. Allow you to train somewhat hard without risking injury.

2. Build a sense of confidence for future training sessions.

585x8 is my baseline because shortly after I deadlifted 800 pounds in competition for the first time in 2016, I pulled 585x8, and that was a personal best at the time.  So, I have a pretty good idea that if I can pull 585x8 without too much of a struggle, I’m not terribly far off 800 pounds.  

 Lengthen your microcycles.

One of the best things about being older is that you tend to have more control over your life outside the gym.  (Coincidentally, I believe this is why many lifters stop training as they get older – they don’t need the gym to help them deal with stress anymore.)  Take advantage of that, and don’t chain yourself to a calendar week.

Instead, spread your training split over as many days as it takes for you to feel fully rested.  Let’s say you follow a standard upper/lower split.  You might plan to train every other day:

• Day 1: Upper

• Day 2: Off

• Day 3: Lower

• Day 4: Off

• Day 5: Repeat

If, on a scheduled training day, you’re still feeling run down, just add in more rest days:

• Day 1: Upper

• Day 2: Off

• Day 3: Lower

• Day 4: Off

• Day 5: Scheduled upper, but still very sore, so off

• Day 6: Upper

And so on.  If, over time, you notice that you’re taking extra days off very frequently, just change your split so that you train every third day:

• Day 1: Upper

• Day 2: Off

• Day 3: Off

• Day 4: Lower

• Day 5: Off

• Day 6: Off

• Day 7: Repeat

This method tends to be far superior to following a seven-day week as long as your schedule allows for it.

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Use a full range of motion.

I do not agree with the idea that everyone should use a full range of motion all of the time.  However, as we age, our mobility tends to decrease, and if the goal is to be strong and healthy, that’s bad.  Training using a full range of motion helps to preserve mobility.  It also lessens the amount of load required to create a sufficient stimulus for progress, therefore lowering the risk of injury.

Obviously, there are some caveats.  Never push through a movement that hurts.  I also believe that most exercises have an effective range of motion that is somewhat less than a full range – but that’s a topic for another article.

Avoid stimulants.

As with most of these tips, this one is beneficial for everyone, but especially important for older lifters.  I recommend that everyone avoid stimulants as much as possible, for several reasons:

1. Stimulants increase your ability to train hard but they do not increase your ability to recover.  Chronic use of stimulants can therefore sabotage long-term progress.

2. Stimulants decrease your perception of effort.  What feels like an RPE 8 on a day when you take preworkout might feel like an RPE 9 or even RPE 10 when you don’t.  Therefore, stimulants make it difficult to evaluate progress.

3. Stimulants can impair your ability to get a pump.  Most stimulants are vasoconstrictors, so they will decrease bloodflow to your muscles during training.  While this can be offset with other supplements or dietary strategies, it’s still best to avoid stims altogether if possible.

“If possible” is important – if you work night shifts, have a new baby, or something else in your life has you running on empty, better to use caffeine strategically than to struggle through on insufficient sleep day in and day out.  

Get a training partner.

The reality is that at a certain age, your body won’t be able to handle training balls to the wall like it used to.  That’s sad, because all-out training is a lot of fun.  However, it’s usually pretty counterproductive to train with reckless intensity, regardless of age, so from an objective perspective, this is not a disadvantage.

Instead, find a training partner to help you implement safer forms of intense training if you don’t want to give it up entirely.  A partner can spot you on heavy sets, give you some forced reps on machine-based movements, and assist with things like handoffs or wrapping knees.  It might not be easy to find someone who trains as hard as you do, but if you can, the quality of your training will increase dramatically.

As a closing note: thank you for reading this post. I would really, really love to have an active community here, so the more people that read, the better.