Best Fitness Advice for Men over 40

Best Fitness Advice for Men over 40

Full Body Workouts are More Effective than Upper and Lower Body Splits
When you were younger, you were always told to split up workouts based on Upper and Lower Body. Naturally, as you age, things change and the same routines aren't as effective as they used to be. Research now shows that full body workouts are better for building muscle in your 40's. When you workout 3x a week with proper strength training routines and adequate rest periods, your body will work optimally. 

Programs that incorporate large muscle groups like squats, deadlifts, clean and presses, and pull ups are a great way to get a full body workout. However, if you want to really build muscle and stimulate growth, you need proper periodization and intensity. For that a personal trainer can be instrumental in building a program that will help you see results. Investing in the help of a professional will save you time in the gym and give you the boost of confidence you need to train long term.

HIIT is Effective One to Two Times per Week
While HIIT training is less effective in women over 40 to lose weight, it's beneficial to men over 40 see the cardiovascular and strength improvements you haven't been seeing from using cardio machines multiple times a week. These workouts are quick, efficient, and can be done in less than 30 minutes to see the benefits. HIIT offers variety so you don't get bored doing steady state cardio.

Functional Training and Athletic Performance 
You don't need to be a professional athlete to do functional fitness. Functional training incorporates your entire body which means it has an increased fat burning capacity compared to bodybuilding or steady state cardio. Having a strong core will help you prevent back pain, which becomes increasingly prevalent as we age. Some great core exercises include crunches, woodchops, oblique twists, and planks. Your golf swing would benefit greatly from trunk rotations and core stabilizing exercises. 

If you enjoy running sports like soccer, football, hockey, or slo pitch, functional training can improve your athletic performance. Endurance, stamina, strength, explosiveness, and agility are all required for these types of sports. Plus it doesn't feel like working out when you're hitting the squash court with your buddy, or playing basketball with your friends. 

Flexibility and Mobility Exercises Once a Week Can Really Level Up your Fitness
Yoga and Pilates are not just for women. Men over 40 lose flexibility and mobility as our muscle mass decreases and we start encountering joint pain from having excess weight on our frames. Stretching and mobility routines can help us increase our range of motion, improve our balance, and lower our stress levels. Pilates helps to build muscles that can improve our posture and hip flexor mobility especially if we are sitting at a desk all day long. By adding slower and controlled movements, we can repair our muscles more effectively and get long term relief from pain.

Eating the Right Food is the Key to Longevity 
As we age, it becomes harder to stay on track when it comes to food choices. Our lives are busy and we are juggling kids activities, work, caring for aging parents, and other obligations. If you want to increase lean muscle mass, you need to incorporate a variety of nourishing foods including leafy green vegetables, fruits, proteins, and fats. Decreasing your alcohol consumption and junk food intake will make the biggest difference in seeing your waist size go down.

When you eat 1g of protein for each pound of body weight, that's when your body composition will really change. If you are looking to transform your body, we have fat burning nutrition plans that will not only help you lose weight but also increase your muscle building capacity!

Improve your Sleep if You Want Gains in the Gym
Ultimately, rest and recovery is vital to you seeing results. If you have trouble sleeping, it's time to get the right help. That may be seeking the guidance of a mental health professional, completing a sleep study to determine if snoring or sleep apnea is impacting your rest, or doing meditation to reduce stress before bedtime.

Turning off electronics an hour before bed is beneficial to your body to prepare for slumber. If this is not possible due to your being on call, consider turning down your blue light setting on your mobile devices or switching to "night mode". If you have trouble sleeping, you will have a much harder time losing weight or keeping it off. 

If you are a man over 40 and ready to get in shape

Our personal training services have helped people improve their lives by building programs that take your goals, limitations, and lifestyle into consideration. As a busy professional, you don't have all the time in the world to dedicate to your health and fitness. That's why getting help from a professional coach who is certified in movement science can be time saving and more effective than running on a treadmill every day. A coach can help you increase your intensity at the right intervals so that you can bust through a plateau.

When you are ready to make a change, please contact us at 1-825-945-7733 or fill out the online contact form so that we can help you get started on your journey to health and fitness.