—
By the time most men reach the age of 50, their testosterone levels have pulled an Elvis and “left the building.” They tire more easily and simply don’t possess the strength and the stamina they did in their younger years. In a word, they’ve succumbed to soft middle-age.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. Studies show that men in their 50s and 60s, and even 70s can still build real muscle by training and eating right. But lifting weights and eating lots of protein isn’t enough when you pass 50 years of age. You also need to take the right supplements.
For instance, if you’re looking to put on muscle and improve your stamina, you’ll want to take some time to review top testosterone boosters that can help you achieve your goals. According to a new article, creating and maintaining muscle mass in your 50s, 60s, and 70s is extremely beneficial to all aspects of your life. Lean muscle mass assists you with burning fat while at rest. It makes you stronger and gives you more stamina too.
Building solid muscle mass after 50 is very possible so long as you put in the effort. But it’s important you learn how to “pack on lean mass” at 50 and beyond so you can not only achieve a body that feels and looks great, but that becomes “ageless.”
Building Lean Muscle After 50
As you age, it becomes more important that your workouts are engineered around muscle-building “compound exercises.” As opposed to isolation exercises that concentrate on one muscle group like bicep curls or shoulder shrugs, compound weight training exercises will work large muscles groups all at once.
Some the are most effective compound muscle-building exercise are as follows:
Legs: deadlifts, lunges, burpees, and heavy squats.
Back: Pull-ups, rows, deadlifts and cable pull-downs.
Chest: decline bench presses, incline bench presses, flat bench presses, and dumbbell bench presses.
Shoulders: military presses, pullups, Arnold presses, and dumbbell presses.
Arms (bis and tris): chin-ups, bicep curls, Blaster curls, triceps curls, seated dumbbell curls, and cheat curls.
Core (abs): hanging leg raises, crunches, ab-wheels, and Roman chair (be careful not to strain your lower back).
Sets and Reps for Optimum Muscle Building After 50
In general, the heavier the weight, the fewer the repetitions (reps). The lighter the weight, the more reps. Therefore, if you’re going heavy, do 5-8 rep sets. If you’re going with moderate weight, go with 8-12 rep sets. If it’s a light day, you can do 15-plus rep sets or until you achieve muscle exhaustion.
Keep in mind that you should not always go heavy, nor should you always go light. Going with moderate weight all the time is not good either since eventually your muscles will not react to your efforts and your lean muscle building will come to a halt.
Instead, plan on doing one workout per week in each of the three ranges. That means you’ll have a heavy day, a moderate day, and a light day. You will also work out all muscle groups.
For your back, plan on doing 12-15 sets every week.
For your legs, plan on 12-15 sets per week.
For your chest, you’ll want to do 8-10 sets per week.
Shoulders and arms will require around 6-8 sets per week.
Your core should be worked every day since this is where all your strength is centered. It’s also where the bulk of your organs including your intestines and stomach are located. Daily core workouts will assist greatly with daily waste elimination.
Plan on 10-12 sets of every exercise every week.
Remember, these are just guidelines. Every person is different, so you need to experiment and stick with a workout that not only feels right to you, but that gets results. If people in the gym start noticing the changes in your physique and are kind enough to compliment you (“I hope I look like you when I’m 50,” for instance), you know you are doing something right.
Less Is More When it Comes to Building Muscle in Your 50s and Beyond
Do not overdo it. More lifting is not always better than when it comes to building lean muscle mass. Too many men make the mistake of doing way too many reps for a particular body part on a weekly basis. This can result in gross muscle breakdown.
Remember, training with weights along with taking the right testosterone supplements, should stimulate your muscle-building process. You don’t build muscle in the gym, but instead at home when you’re eating, supplementing, resting, and sleeping. This is called “muscle recovery” and it’s a necessary component of building a better body.
One final item to add to your weekly workouts is cardio. Too many men are so focused on building mass to keep up with the younger set that they forgo the cardio. Do not do this. As men age, so do their heart, lungs, veins, organs, and brain matter. It’s important to engage in jogging, rowing, bike riding, speed-walking, or whatever works for you, not only to stay lean, but to maintain maximum blood flow throughout the body.
—
This content is brought to you by Wahab Ullah.
The post Can You Train and Eat Your Way to Big Muscle Gains After 50? appeared first on The Good Men Project.