UIC has a good team: 30-13 overall, 13-7 in a tough Missouri Valley Conference. BU is 12-32-1 (yes, one tie) and 1-9 at home. The team is trying but, well, circumstances are tough.
My workout: PT, deadlifts, 4.3 mile walk (W. Peoria via Moss plus a 1.2 Campus loop) in 1:02:05. First mile was predictably slow. Weather: glorious. Perfect.
The deadlifts: I was sort of a head case this morning: low: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 7 x 225, 7 x 225 (wanted to not bounce my reps) Wagon wheel (4.25 inch) 5 x 255, 10 x 255 6 inch: 10 x 280
Legs were quivering and that was the goal.
Deadlifts: today went well.
The monster walks: this is part of my daily PT that is boring, time consuming and unrewarding, at least in the short term. There are no PB, PRs to set. But I do them anyway because I sure don’t miss being in pain 1/4 of a mile into walking.
I am 64 and will turn 65 at the end of the summer. I’ve been lifting weights in some form or another since 1972, when I lifted to get ready for 8’th grade football.
I was never good; for the curious, my bests (late 1970’s to mid 1980’s) were, in the gym, 310 touch and go bench press (butt on the bench), 410 deadlift (probably not powerlift legal) and 195 in the clean and jerk (intramural meet); my pull up PR is 27 (early 1980s)
So, it isn’t as if I am pining for past glories; I had none. Still I miss being able to bench 2 plates. I think my last time was in the mid 1990’s. 1993 was the last time I got 300 on the bench.
So, what’s up now? Like most lifters my age, I had some chronic conditions; I’ve had 5 knee operations and putting power with my knees bent at 90 degrees hurts. I have spondylolisthesis (foraminal stenosis as a result) which means that I have to make a few modifications, and os acromiale (minor shoulder defect that make me prone to rotator cuff problems)
But again, most people have some sort of chronic condition and these tend to show up at this age.
The real issue, for me, is just plain age. Here is what I have to watch for:
Am I pushing myself or am I trying to lift for the ego by handling a weight that is too heavy for me, right now? Yes, there was a time when I used 225 (two plates) for 7-10..then that became 205, 185, then 12-14 years ago, 170. Now..I am ashamed to say, that is 145. I admit that part of the issue is that I now have to bench with my feet on a chair and a flat back; arching (even a legal arch) causes radiating pain due to my lumbar conditions.
Are my gains (local gains) real? Example: I felt I was making great progress in my high incline press; I even maxed at 134 and did a set of 10 with 105 and sets of 5 with 115. BUT video showed I was sliding my hips away from the back support, and tying myself to the support…well…I am not as strong as I thought I was. It is so easy to compensate to make myself appear stronger than I actually am.
Recovery time. During a workout: if I am working regular hours, I have only so much time. If I compress the rest periods, I have to lighten the weight used, period. If I walk first (usually brisk, vigorous walks), I need to lighten the weight used. Fatigue last longer. I recover slower. And it, say, pull ups go very well, the lifts afterward suffer.
One rep maxes: usually a bad idea, especially for the deadlift and bench press. At all out efforts I lose form discipline and that leads to my chronic conditions firing up.
Small aches and pains: here, I compensate by using different equipment: different handle heights for trap bar pulls, different hand positions for pull ups and chin ups (and sometimes mixed grip), Swiss bar (football bare) for bench on occasion.
Sometimes, I get down and need an attitude check. My old levels of strength are not coming back. BUT I am stronger now than I would be were I to quit. And my wife reminds me: “be grateful you aren’t picking out tennis balls for a walker.”
Yes, it is a different mentality now that I don’t have PBs to look forward to. I am working to slow my slide. That is all I can do.
And I am just about caught up. It won’t last. But my final exams are front loaded and I should be able to finish a mini referee’s report soon.
Workout wise: due to an early meeting, I had two 3 mile commuter walks yesterday, then a 3 mile plus a 2 mile today. That’s not nothing.
This gives me 163.5 miles for the month, the most in a very long time (several years; well before COVID)
I also did some weights: outside, 4 sets of 10 pull ups, 2 sets of 5 chins, then 44-45 second hold (no, the sound was NOT gas) then down stairs:
bench: 10 x 134, 5 sets of 3 x 155, 7 x 145. Weak..I know.
high incline (strapped in), 10 x 80, 10 x 80, 10 x 85
curls: 3 sets of 10.
Wow..keeping the hips fixed really makes that high incline press different. I cannot recruit other muscles and the final few reps just burn.
Lifting as an older person is different. I have to watch for compensation and keep form discipline. The pull ups are improving due to my body weight going down.
But here is what is really different: before, having a good set of one exercise usually coincided with the other exercises going well. Now it means that I’ll be fatigued. LOL..
Covid: it is hard to discuss this at times, because there is such a great variance in experiences.
Here is my experience with my age peers.
2 of my good friends got it, but only found out they had it via a test. It wasn’t even a cold for them.
2 of my other friends got it and ended up hospitalized; one of them had their oxygen levels drop into the 80’s. He was hospitalized for a month and almost died. He has recovered since. Mind you, he was an accomplished ultramarathon runner.
The other also was hospitalized and, 3 years later, has not recovered. She went from being an ultra marathon runner to barely being able to walk.
I knew of someone else who ended up wheelchair bound and lost a limb!
Me: sick for 2 weeks (worse than any flu I had) and it took me another month to get up to speed, physically. But I did recover at home.
My point: people’s experiences are all over the map, so it is hard to generalize.
Age: So, are you really “too old for that?”
It depends. Most of us have chronic conditions of some sort. My right knee now precludes my trying to run; the last time I tried I could feel the pounding on the top of my shin bone. My back precludes squatting and going for max deadlifts, and it makes open water swimming all but impossible (the “sighting” motion where one lifts their head to look puts the back into extension).
But others do not have this set of difficulties, and still others have the body awareness to know how NOT to put their respective condition into a painful position.
So, the answer to the question is “it depends.”
I do know that my days of jogging to the pool, swimming, lifting, jogging home and then going to work are pretty much over. I have to be selective and I have an “energy” and a “back” budget.
I thought the recent episode of some glute ache flare ups was going away. But this weekend, my wife went places with me. Why that matters; she is old: 81 right now, and she walks very, very slowly. And such slow walking is tough on me if I don’t remind myself to brace properly: it is one of the hardest things for me to do. I have to really work on the pelvic tilt and abdominal bracing when I am walking so slowly.
About all of those trips: last night, we went t0 the Illinois State at Bradley men’s basketball game (9200 showed up; best crowd of the year) and Bradley won a very ugly game 48-45.
Today’s women’s game: It was very tight for the first 3 quarters; back and forth. But ultimately Indiana State’s inside game prevailed (Bradley was hurt by having a key big player out with an injury) 75-68
Still, there was better offense today than last night.
While there was good action on the court, few were there to see it. It has been a rough season.
Workout notes I am stopping goblet squats for a bit and experimenting with other movements. I have to balance the limitations of my back and my knees.
I finished with a 4.25 mile walk (Cornstalk hill) in just over 1 hour. In terms of discomfort, the walk went very well, if just a bit slow. Perfect day.
Full PT
deadlifts: low: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, 10 x 225 (went well)
4 inch: 3 sets of 5 x 274 (these went ok; glutes and quads were throbbling.
I experimented. I ended up doing 3 sets of squats with the farmer’s walk handles and a step stool (arms?); not quite enough range of motion. 52 lb each arm. Then I did 3 sets of belt squats (10 reps); heaviest was 74 lb (pretty weak, I know). My legs are toothpicks!
I might try these (the bar on the thighs squats) again. For belt squats: I got better results holding the balance bar lower.
I like the way these felt, but the range of motion is lacking. Maybe try these with the trap bar?
I went on an exploratory walk; was not sure as to how much ice would be left on the blocked off park roads. There was SOME but I now consider the course walkable. Garmin got it at 6.36; call it 6.5 miles. I had some left glute/hip ache early but it went away later as I picked it up and got into my stride.
THEN I tried to lift and where I did all of the exercises (save curls), the fatigue did affect me.
Pull ups: 2 sets of 10 (recorded one of them) then 6 sets of 5. Well, one was a set of 7. Downstairs. Bench was a disaster: 5 x 134, then 1 x 155, 1 x 155, 2 x 155, 3 x 155, 3 x 155, 3 x 155, 2 x 155, 2 x 155. It just felt so heavy, and of course, it wasn’t. Yes, I keep my feet on a chair because of my back and I have to remember this costs me about 15 lb of strength.
High incline: 10 x 94, 8 x 105, 1 x 115 (felt heavy), 5 x 105 and I just quit. For rest: free squats.
This was one of those days when I felt that I needed to rest 10 minutes between sets but I didn’t.
Yes, the women’s game was a disaster from the very start. Northern Iowa (not a good team) shot 78 percent from the field and 83 percent from 3 point land in the first quarter; the lead 34-11 after 1, and 60-30 at the half. Overall, they ended up shooting 67.7 percent for the game, out rebounded Bradley 40-13 (not a misprint) and lead in assists 25-8.
The final was 105-59 and …well, the game was not even that “close.”
I caught the last 8 minutes of Illinois’ 70-62 victory over Indiana and then watched the Bradley men lose 95-86 in overtime to a good Indiana State team. At least those games were competitive.
I post videos of some of my sets so I can post the videos here. And from time to time, I get encouragement and someone will say “someday you’ll be able to do more”, when in fact, that “someday” was in the past.
Working out is different for older people.
I am trying to slow the downward slide down.
Back: I’m pleased that I can walk much further than I could 2 years ago..even 1 year ago. But..the number one signal is my feet: tingling in the soles. That is a classic S1-L5 stenosis symptom. I need to be a bit more intentional with my lower lumbar stretches…several times a day. The radiating glute pain and the lower back stiffness is much, much, much better. But that is L3-L4 stuff.
And no…tingling feet is not a reason for surgery, I think.
Workout notes: PT with pull ups (chins too) and push ups. Pull ups: sets of 5 singles to 20, then 8 + 3 pull ups 7+3 chin ups, 5 pull ups, 5 chins and 2 hold sets (one pull up, one chin). Push ups (mixed in): 4 sets of 10 flat, 3 sets of 20 slant.
Downstairs: 4 sets of 5 x 94 high incline, in between: 10 x 134 4 inch, 10 x 134 low, 10 x 184 low, 10 x 225 low, 10 x 266 4 inch (tough set)
belt squats: 2 sets of 10 x 45 kg plus pin.
Later: 2 commuter 2 mile walks (15:56, 16:36 pace) with an outrageous hat.
Not sure what to make of it: right wrist is sore, neck is slightly stiff and oh-so-slight pain down the back of the left arm; almost surface.
Dang..think my body is wearing out.
Still…had enough to work on my paper, workout and go to a Chiefs game (Harry and Vickie were there).
About the Chiefs: fell down 4-0 in the 4’th. Cut it to 4-2.
Then they were down 5-3 but in the 8th, managed to tie it at 5, but could not win it in the 9th (stranded 2).
But good relief pitching (innings 9 and 10…some scare with control toward the end) and then smart “small ball” in the 10’th: bunt then, eventually, a fly ball in the outfield sealed a 6-5 win.
The workout: PT, deadlifts (light today):
10 x 134, 10 x 184 (low), 10 x 234 4 inch (modest effort), 10 x 260 8 inch.
Then the walk went very well. I started out on the “Barbara” 3 mile course, though I went to Parkside to the entrance of Bradley Park, took the Cornstalk loop in reverse order then followed the traditional way back home. I almost added more miles but did not want to push my luck.
I made last night’s Chiefs game and this afternoon’s game; then I went to dinner with Barbara and Lynn (who bailed on the game due to it being cold)
I’ll say more about the games at the end of the post.
Today: PT, deadlifts, walk.
The walk: some slight discomfort around mile 3, but it did not last. It was effectively painless. Course: 1 mile to the start of Bradley Park, 2 loops (one Cornstalk, one lower) which meant I had 4 hills altogether; 2 dog park, 1 upper Bradley, 1 Cornstalk. This is perhaps my best post-COVID walk.
And speaking of COVID and sports: if you have a big competition coming up in the next 3-4 months, avoiding COVID might be as important, if not MORE important, to your preparation. We are in the final week of April and I am finally back to where I was mid January. Finally. Of course, in my case, you have age and the fact that I have a chronic back condition.
Deadlifts: 10 x 134, 10 x 184, then: 5 x 234 low (not hard but my form was disappointing), 3 sets of 5 x 265 (4 inch), 5 x 300 (8 inch). My last two sets were the best. Then the walk.
They took out the pitcher for a reliever in the 8’th when it was 3-2. Then 6 runs or so later, relief pitcher no 2..the disastrous 8’th saw the Chiefs use 3 pitchers total. It ended 11-4.
I got in a workout and then made the Bradley vs Illinois State baseball game. Ok, it was never much of a contest: 9-0 Redbirds. Yes, it snowed a few times, this was the heaviest period.
Today’s workout: full PT, then weights (no push ups today)
pull ups/chins: 3 sets of 10 singles, alternating chins and pull ups. Then 2 sets of 5 pull ups, 2 sets of 5 chin ups.
Swiss bar bench: 10 x 134, 3 sets of 6 x 145 (no wraps)
3 sets of 10 x 134 shrugs
2 sets of 10 x 94 high incline, 1 set of 6 x 105
curls: 3 sets of 10.
Then I did my 4.1 mile hill walk (dog park and lower Bradley hill) 55:11 for 13:28 mpm pace, with a 12:37 final mile. Not swift, but pain free (30’s, windy) and probably my best post COVID walk. I do have to watch for the left knee: behind the knee, upper calf, kind of the way my right one acted prior to the meniscus tear.
Life of an old goat 