Strength vs. Hypertrophy After 40: Find YOUR Best Workout
Staying strong and maintaining muscle is crucial after 40. But should you prioritize strength training or hypertrophy? The truth is, there's no single "best" workout for everyone. It all comes down to your goals. Let's break down the essentials from my recent podcast episode.
Understanding Strength and Hypertrophy
These are the two main goals in training:
While these rep ranges maximize the outcome, you can build strength with higher reps and gain muscle with lower reps. It's about where the primary benefit lies.
Should You Train to Failure After 40?
My answer is a firm no for most people, most of the time. Training to absolute failure (where you can't do another rep with good form) on every set isn't necessary for strength or hypertrophy. In fact, it can be detrimental, leading to excessive fatigue. I recommend stopping a few reps short of failure. You'll still get great results without overdoing it.
The Key to Progress: Progressive Overload
No matter your goal, progressive overload is the most important factor. This means gradually increasing the demands on your muscles over time. This principle is how we get stronger and build muscle.
Compound Excercises
Compound Exercises are a great tool for both strength and muscle growth. In fact, this is what I recommend primarily for anyone over 40 who wants to live a healthy, high performance life.
Lifting Weights can be dangerous ONLY IF...
You are unsure how to move biomechanically correct. When you learn quality movements, the risk of injury when lifting heavy is almost zero.
What's the Best Workout After 40?
1. Start with a warmup specific to your needs.
2. Work on movement skills needed for the workout ahead
3. Pick a single strength/power exercise for the day
4. Finish with a multi-movement conditioning session
----------
Three Highly Debated Topics in the Fitness World The fitness world is full of conflicting advice, and it can be hard to know what to believe. Three topics that are often debated are optimal training frequency for muscle building, flexible dieting vs. strict meal plans, and the role of mobility and flexibility in strength training. Let’s
Read MoreLow Carb vs. High Carb, HIIT vs. Steady State: The Best Approach After 40?As we enter our 40s and beyond, the questions about the “best” approach to diet and exercise become even more pressing. Should you go low-carb or high-carb? Should you be focusing on HIIT or long-distance cardio ? And what about rest days? Low
Read More3 Hotly Debated Nutrition TopicsThe nutrition world is constantly evolving, with new trends and diets popping up all the time. It can be hard to know what to believe! In this post, we’ll explore three of the most debated nutrition topics:1. Eat Meat or “No” to Meat: That is the QuestionThe debate around meat consumption
Read More