The saying “Age is just a number” means a lot to different people. Some people say it to motivate themselves to push harder, others say it to comfort themselves when thinking about how old they are. I say it when I have self-doubt about whether or not I could or should try something. Age is just a number but combined with a proper workout routine you can enhance and “change” the age of your body.
So, what is a workout? Is it truly just a set of exercises combined in a time frame to complete in a gym? If so, then I should be able to write the same program for every individual and get the same results. But that is not the case. If you are truly trying to change your health and your lifestyle, then a workout should be the most important part of that journey.
I must remind myself that I have limits. My limits are due to many factors such as age, injuries, and lifestyle. So, if I don’t have the correct workout that fits my life, I could make my body age even worse. However, if I find a workout that compliments my lifestyle and my abilities, I could make my body age slower, become stronger, and in fact, improve the overall health of my body. But how?
I approach this by finding out what my top three goals are for this next journey. Is it weight loss? Is it for more endurance? Muscle gain? Many different goals mean many different workout styles. Right now, my top three goals are more endurance, more mobility, and more Vo2 Max. So, my normal body building routine will not meet any of these goals.
Approach a workout program like this:
- First, know your body’s limitations.
- Second, write down your top three goals.
- Third, how do you achieve your goals while bypassing your limitations?
Limitations are important but not a wall you cannot climb over. For every injury there is a workaround. For every limitation you may have there is a movement or an answer to that limitation that will still allow you to achieve your goal. After you have planned and made your workout, test it out. Don’t put a time limit on it at first.
Do the full workout and see how long it took, how hard you worked, and adjust if needed to shorten your workout time or increase the difficulty of the workout. Finally, keep the workout for 6 weeks. That is the average time a body will really start adapting to a workout if you go three times a week every week. Then, if you still feel like you are making progress, keep the workout. Or if you feel like you have plateaued, change that workout and start again. A workout should enhance your lifestyle, improve your conditioning, and make you feel overall better than you did when you first started.
Doug Robinson is a trainer at Merritt Clubs Canton.
