Hail to the Dinosaurs!
I was talking with a friend and fellow
Dinosaur the other day. He's about my
age (I'm 58), and like me, he's been
training for pretty much his entire
life.
He's in excellent shape, and he looks
*much* younger than his age.
And that's true of many lifelong Iron
Slingers.
But it doesn't happen by accident. It
happens by living what Bob Hoffman
called "the Strength and Health lifestyle."
In other words, it's the result of eating
the right way -- and training the right
way -- and (very important) keeping
your weight under control.
Anyhow, we talked about those topics
a bit, and I thought I'd share some of
what we covered. So here are seven
rules for lifelong strength and health:
1. Follow a Dino-style strength training
program.
a. More than any other form of exercise,
progressive resistance training helps keep
you young and healthy -- in part because
strength training helps you maintain
healthy hormone levels as you grow
older.
b. Cardio training helps (if it's the right
kind of cardio training), and so does
stretching and what they now call
"mobility" work -- but progressive
resistance training is far and away
the most important thing to do.
2. Follow a training program that you
enjoy.
a. If you don't enjoy your workouts, you
won't keep doing them.
b. If you like kettlebells, use kettlebells.
If you prefer to use barbells, use barbells.
If you would rather do bodyweight training,
do bodyweight training. If you prefer to mix
things, up, that's fine, too.
c. No one type of training is "best." What's
best for YOU is what you enjoy doing. That
varies from person to person, and it may
change for you over time.
d. If you are a mature trainee, you have
earned the right to have FUN when you
train.
3. Train hard, but train smart.
a. Older trainees need to listen to their
bodies. There's a time to push hard, and
a time to ease up a bit.
b. See Gray Hair and Black Iron for advice
on sensible and effective training programs
for older Dinos.
4. If it hurts, don't do it.
a. You'd be surprised how many trainees
ignore this rule.
b. Things that work great at age 20 or 30
may be very bad for you at age 50 or 60.
c. Dings and dents may require work
arounds and/or different exercises.
5. Pay attention to rest, recovery and
recuperation.
a. If you don't recover from your workouts,
they will gradually wear you down, not build
you up.
b. Get enough sleep every night. Your body
rebuilds and recharges itself while you are
sleeping.
6. Pay attention to diet and nutrition.
a. When you're young, you can eat almost
anything and get away with it. Things are
different for older trainees.
b. See Knife, Fork, Muscle for more information
about diet and nutrition for lifelong strength and
health.
7. Keep your weight under control.
a. You don't need to walk around flashing your
six-pack -- or posting six-pack selfies on Face-
book -- but you do need to keep your gut under
control.
b. Excess stomach fat is linked to a whole host
of health problems, including diabetes and
heart disease.
c. The vast majority of physical culture heroes
who maintained good health and active lifestyles
well into their advanced years were men and
women who prided themselves on staying lean,
fit and muscular.
So there you have it -- seven rules for lifelong
strength and health. You probably follow them
already, but a little reminder now and then is
a good thing.
As always, thanks for reading, and have a great
day. If you train today, make it a good one.
Yours in strength,
Brooks Kubik
P.S. I mentioned Knife, Fork, Muscle and
Gray Hair and Black Iron. Go here to grab
them:
http://www.brookskubik.com/dinosaur_nutrition.html
http://www.brookskubik.com/grayhair_blackiron.html
P.S. 2. We're also releasing Knife, Fork, Muscle
as a series of Kindle e-books. Same content,
but broken into four books. Books 1 and 2 in
the series are available right here -- books 3
and 4 will be available soon:
http://www.brookskubik.com/knifeforkmuscle01_kindle.html
http://www.brookskubik.com/knifeforkmuscle02_kindle.html
P.S. 3. Thought for the Day: "The ultimate goal is
lifelong strength and health." -- Brooks Kubik
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