Lifting weights is one of the most beneficial forms of exercise. It builds muscle, which is incredibly important for strength and energy so you can reach your full potential. There are tremendous benefits to lifting weights in seniors for this reason alone. You want to be able to continue doing many of the things you did when you were young.
Those who figured out how to lift weights in their senior year not only maintained their strength, but in many cases improved their strength beyond what they were a few years earlier! So, how are you going about lifting weights in your senior year? Here are 3 steps to safely start building muscle:
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| Steps for Building Muscle Safely |
1. Lightweights. This needs to be emphasized as I see many older people who have played sports in the past and thought they could pick up where they left off.
Light weights are recommended for ALL who lift weights. In the elderly, it is imperative. You just have to warm up your body longer than younger ones. For each exercise you begin, always find the lightest dumbbell available or put the peg in the lowest notch on the machine. Sure you will gain weight, but first you just have to make sure that the shape is as perfect as possible before you gain weight.2Do Free Weights (With Exceptions!) Free weights are the most effective muscle building exercise. Machines have come and gone, but the gym's weight rack has always been a mainstay and is often the busiest area of a gym. You should focus primarily on dumbbell exercises. These are convenient and easy.
You can do many exercises sitting in a chair. Well, the free weight exercises you want to avoid are the more demanding ones like deadlifts, squats, bench presses, etc. Of course there are definitely exceptions to this, but generally these are very demanding exercises with higher risk factors. The lower back, knees and shoulders will all be affected by these exercises and many older people should not risk putting additional pressure on these areas.
I have many years before I hit the senior mark of, but I've already had to give up some of these exercises, even though my form was good, due to the toll required.3. Use the machines! Some trainers are totally against machines, while others only put their older clients on machines. There should be a good mix of free weights and senior fitness equipment. The machines are good.
They have come a long way and were designed to isolate your muscles so you can train them more easily and effectively. The main problem with the machines is that since there are so many, you can get overwhelmed. Focus on just two or three machines to master.
