Creaky Days: How to Adjust Training as You Get Older

Father Time waits for no man or woman. He's a cold and unforgiving prick.

To say it in plain terms, getting old sucks. But the wonderful and possible redeeming quality of Father Time is that it's an incredible teacher.

With time, things get broken down. It's normal wear and tear and when you do the things we do for "fun" breakdown is expected. But what has to happen as you get older, is that the intensity has to be maintained so you can continue to make gains in muscle and strength.

Seeing as I turn 39 this year and celebrate my second anniversary of my 20th birthday in 2019, I've picked up a few things as I transition to an "older" lifter that I'd like to share. Trust me, this isn't an exhaustive list.

1: Load is not as important as it once was

When you're in your 20's and early 30's, I'll make this controversial statement....LOAD IS KING. Heavy as you can go in correct form will put plenty of size. But as you get up there in age, the ability to handle heavy poundage gets diminished a bit. Elbows get hurt, knees get a little sore and you don't recover as fast as you once did. So what to do?

2: Use more intensity techniques

While you can't pile on negatives, drop sets and giant sets all the time. However, if they are used intelligently, you can stress the muscle and not have to put unnecessary stress on the joints. They should be used sparingly

3: Watch your recovery 

As you move up there in age, recovery won't be the same. The day after heavy sets of compound movements will hit you a bit harder. Soreness will linger around a bit longer as well. A few ways to keep you plugging along is making sure your diet is in check. Another thing to look at is intra-workout nutrition (for the purposes of this blog, I won't go into super detail about this) and just make sure you're getting enough rest.

4: Adjust training volume

This is an up and down thing that can be adjusted.  Some older guys need more volume in certain spots. Some need less. This goes back to how much can you recover from and not be in a huge deficit. I'm a believer that the body goes through cycles of how much it can take. Generally for me, it's seasonal. I can take more work in the summer/early fall months while the sun is out. For the winter/early spring, things generally get scaled down. But again, it can be cyclical.

5: Limit stimulant use 

In today's world of super duper pre-workout mixtures, it's best to not use those that carry a ton of caffeine. Too much stim use, especially in one dose, can rob you of strength and make you tired. With that being said, there are some great products out there. I recommend Arc Reactor by Granite Supplments, Impact Igniter by Allmax and Rhino Black by MuscleSport. All have a decent amount of caffeine without killing you. They also have ingredients that help with focus such as alpha-gpc and Lion's Mane.


6: Just be smart

If you ever heard the words "listen to your body"? They ring true as you get older in actual age (note I didn't say training age, which is a totally different argument).

Like my friend Ryan Doris say's......don't be a dingus. Training is a piece of a holistic puzzle that needs to be adjusted and looked at from time to time. Especially as we approach AARP age.

Free Program!!!! Que Strength: Phase 3

HEY QUES!!!!

Well hopefully you have been challenged with Que Strength phase 1&2, and hopefully you've made big time changes. This is the last phase to hammer your body even more. The weather is warm, so lets turn up the heat.

Phase one and Phase two here.

Day 1: Back

Day 2: chest/shoulders

Day 3:off

Day 4: Legs

Day 5: Upper Body Flush

Notes: I want you to buy a notebook. It will serve as a logbook for your workouts. In it you’ll record the exercise, sets, reps. This will serve as sort of a map. The goal is to increase weight (or even reps) a bit each week. This won’t always happen, but you should push for it. 

Day 1: Back

Chins: 3 sets of 10. We’ll keep these in, but lower the volume a bit. But the volume goes up for another back exercise

Bent over Barbell rows: 4 sets of 12, with two warm-up sets

This week its done at a 45 degree angle, this way you can use a bit more heavier weight. However, I want the barbell to touch your abdomen on each rep. Make sure you pull the elbows back and not out. 

One arm dumbbell Rows: 3 sets of 10

When you do rows make sure you’re also completely bent over at the waist. Again, pull the elbow on the rowing arm back. Almost like you’re starting a lawn mower.

Reverse Grip Lat Pulldowns: 3 sets of 12

Last cycle these were done with an overhand grip, but this cycle I want you to use a reverse grip. Pull the elbows back and squeeze the lats hard. 

Seated cable row: 3 sets of 12

Make sure you get some what of a stretch on this. Nothing crazy, just enough to make a slight pull in your lats. 

Day 2: Chest/shoulders: 

Machine flye: 3 sets of 12

Do these with a HARD squeeze at the top of the movement and a good stretch. 

Incline press with a pause : 3 sets of 8

I want these as heavy as you can go for a set of 8. But touch the bar to your chest, hold it there for a second a explode up. These are tough. If you have shoulder issues, just hold it slightly above your chest and explode up. 

Dips: bodyweight for 3 sets of 12. Only 60 seconds rest between sets. 

Shoulders: 

Laterals: 3 sets of 10

Military press: 3 sets of 10

Nothing special here. Don’t even go real heavy as the previous pressing has you a bit worn out.

Rear laterals: 3 sets of 15

Do these on a free weight incline bench at a 30-45 degree angle.

Triceps: Pressdown, 3 sets of 12, seated dips: 3 sets of 12

Day 3: Rest, that means REST. Not go run a mile, play volleyball, play basketball or anything like that. Because tomorrow is a HAZE!

Day 4: Legs

10 minute warm-up on the bike. I want this moderately intense to where you’re not tired, but break a sweat. DO NOT SUBSTITUTE THIS WITH A RUN OR JOGGING!

Leg Curl (seated or lying): 3 sets of 12:

Rotate seated and lying leg curls by the week, so if you start off this week with lying leg curls, start up with seated leg curls next week. I want these with a hard squeeze at the bottom (or top) of the movement.

Squats: 4 sets of 8

These should feel good after leg curls. Take as many sets as you need to warm up and then dive into your work sets. Notice I dropped the reps. That means the weight goes higher.

Leg Press: 3 sets of 20

Put your feet narrow and low on the platform with your knees straight as you lower the weight. I want these to beat the shit out of your teardrop and quads. Keep the weight moderate and rest periods low. Around 60 seconds. Push hard on these. 

Stiff Leg Deadlifts: 3 sets of 12

Good stretch at the bottom: DO NOT ROUND YOUR BACK!

Day 5: Upper Body Flush Pump

This is a pump day, think of this as active recovery. This will be done in giant set format

Lat Pulldowns

right into

Machine press

right into

Laterals

right into

Bicep Curls

Right into

Tricep Pressdown

4 rounds: 10 reps each, 2 minutes between each round. This is not meant to be a very difficult workout, but to push nutrient rich blood into the muscle to help recovery. Adjust weight accordingly

Rest: THAT MEANS DO NOTHING AGAIN!

If you notice, the workout stays same for the most part, but I want increased weight. on the exercises. 

After you finish this phase, I want you take a week where you lower the volume significantly. You can do phase 1 over again, but drop all the sets by 2. This is meant as active rest. You may be pretty beat up by the time this program is over, so you’ll need the rest.

Going forward, there are options you can do. You can repeat the program in full or you can restart phase two, then phase 3, then drop back to phase 2 or just repeat phase 3.

Meaning it would like this:

Phase 2

Phase 3

Phase 2

or

Phase 2

Phase 3

Phase 3

Burned Out: Getting the Mojo Back for the Gym

I have a confession....I had/have a stretch of time where I HATED training right now. I actually haven't enjoyed the shit in couple weeks now. And you may be in the same boat.

Why? Could be overtrained. Could be lack of a goal (training to not choke people is not really a goal), could be just pushing through when I don't feel like it.  All of that equals up to just good ol' stress.

Well pushing through has finally caught up to me. If you have to have to constantly be pushed to do something in the gym and you're offseason, meaning you're full of food and resting a ton, then there's a problem.

With that being said, I'm not the greatest at managing stress all the time. I can fly off the handle easy when I should let things roll off my back, I internalize a lot of frustration (not healthy) and my goals frustrate me (and all the exterior things that mess with me), as I try to accomplish them. Adding to an already stressful time.

So how can you recover from a self imposed ass beating be combated? Try these steps.

1: Just take time off

I had been grinding pretty hard for awhile in the gym. While my training partner had a bit of a deload between his hypertrophy phase and powerlfiting prep phase, I didn't....because my dumb ass didn't take a few down days. Looking back now I should taken some down days with lower intensity. But like most meatheads, I used "I feel fine" to continue to push. Such is life.

2: Take your deloads

When you run a pre set program,  one that you build or use from someone else, try to put in a deload somewhere in the program. Now everyone is different and really shouldn't deload at the same time, but keep them in. General rule of thumb is a deload every 10-12 weeks, BUT this is highly individualistic.

3: Look at your food intake

Here's an aspect many don't look at. We think of training as this individual monolith when it's only part of the equation. Food intake plays a VERY important part of the puzzle. When I say watch your food, in this context, I mean upping it. Are you taking in enough quality protein, carbs, fats? If you aren't, you're digging a hole for yourself. Take stock of what you're eating and up it. That being said, this isn't an excuse to eat like shit, or add to the junk you've been eating. Clean (you what is considered clean, stop bullshitting) and quality food wins here.

4: Quality of Sleep
Fuck these whole "work when you're dead" people. Yeah, there's a little truth to it, but really, you'll screw yourself without sleep. Your recovery, hormone profile and general mood depends on your sleep. If your sleep quality is low, then guess what? Good luck being productive. Make sure the quality of sleep you get is just as good as the amount. GABA, valerian root and good ol' ZMA helps with sleep. Keep in mind, they only help with preparing you to get to sleep. They don't actually put you to sleep. So keep that in mind. And get off the smartphone and DON'T READ NEWS before bed.


My Plan Going Forward: 

I went back on Monday after a couple of complete days off from the gym. Moving on I'll be....

1: Reducing my training days to 4 days per week and build up from there
2: Decreasing overall training volume
3: Cut back use of intensity techniques and special additions (i.e. drop sets, giant sets, bands, etc) and go with straight weight
4: Manage my stress better and get blackout curtains for my bedroom.


Pushing hard in the gym is important, but the rest and recovery is just as important to avoid burnout. Don't push until you hate the gym. No when to take the gas off.

The Power of Choice

I have a confession guys........I'm really not enjoying the gym or even work right now.

Call it Mercury Retrograde.....call it the changing of the seasons. Hell, call me a lazy piece of shit for all I care. But the bottom line is this, I'm not really enjoying what I do.

But here's the thing, I've made a conscious choice to eat shit and like it for right now. Let's take today for example, I did want to go to the gym. I wanted to leave work, take a nap, and then train.....if do it at all.

I check on my training partner as he's kind of beat to shit (but highly motivated as he's in prep for a powerlifting meet.) I only wanted to see how he was doing. I mention I want a nap after work.....and he tell's me to slam a pre-workout and get it done.

Now keep in mind, I'm a grown man and can make decisions for myself.....and I still had the CHOICE to go home, but reading my friends words reminded me of a chapter out of one of the current books I'm going through (told you I'm reading a lot).

The chapter was out of the "Discipline Means Freedom Field Manual" by Jocko Willink. Now I don't get into rah-rah self help talk, but Jocko I can get behind. The chapter is called "Not Feeling It" and it aptly describes how I felt this morning. But I want to share a brief excerpt with you.

"How do I handle those days when I'm just not "feeling it? Those days when I'm tired or worn out or just sick of grind. What do I do on those days?

I GO ANYWAY, I GET IT DONE"

Making your Choice: Don't Fuck Off

What Jocko and I are saying to you, is that you make or break yourself in every decision you make.

The power of choice is a strong. It can literally make or break you. I didn't want to write this blog, but I made a choice to share my thoughts, in hopes it will push someone to go and do something.

I need to pay rent, so I get up and go to work and make decisions that affect my team, the presentation of my show and ultimately.....choices that make me look good. Therefore, affecting my paycheck.

I slammed my pre-workout and went to the gym because I want to look good and feel good. Were they easy choices to make....for me, yes, in a way. I could be a little bitch and call off. But where would that get me. It would have me looking in the mirror knowing I screwed myself out of getting better.

Good Choices and Bad Choices: Know the Difference

Now lets be aware...there are good and bad decisions. We've all made them.

That food we shouldn't eaten...

That phone number we shouldn't have made...

That sex we shouldn't have had with a person we are trying to cut out...

We know what bad choices are. So we need to quiet that voice that says "It's ok to eat those chips, drink that drink" etc.

It's a son of a bitch to quiet. But if you can, you are well on your way to doing the things you need to do to be better.

Push a little harder today to make those good choices. I promise you, you won't lack for it.

FREE PROGRAM!!!! Phase 2 of Que Strength

If you remember, not too long ago, I wrote out a program that I gave out to some of my Fraternity brothers. It's based on stuff I have experience with was doing with with my training partner. 

Well this is part two of the program. It's not rooted in science, or studies. No fancy buzzwords or shit like that. Just hard training. 

You can find phase one here.


Que Strength Phase 2: 

Now that the first four weeks are done, you have a decent (or better base) of not only

conditioning, but now you know how to execute sets, reps, rest periods, etc.

However, be real with yourself. If you feel you need to do a another four weeks of the first

phase, do it. just increase the weight a bit on your exercises. Because shit only hits the fan

from here.

Now you are going to move into a bodypart split. Meaning you are going to start working some

parts on individual days. If this sounds easier, it isn’t necessarily. More volume for individual

parts and some intensity techniques await, although not a lot.

Day 1: Back

Day 2: chest/shoulders

Day 3:off

Day 4: Legs

Day 6: Upper Body Flush

Notes: I want you to buy a notebook. It will serve as a logbook for your workouts. In it you’ll

record the exercise, sets, reps. This will serve as sort of a map. The goal is to increase weight

(or even reps) a bit each week. This won’t always happen, but you should push for it.

Day 1: Back

Chins: I waan 50 reps to start out. Ideally I want 5 sets of 10. Rest as long as it takes for you to recover.

Bent over Barbell rows: 3 sets of 8, with two warm-up sets

This is a bread and butter exercise, but the way I want them done is at a 90 degree angle. That means you pause each rep on the ground for one second and row up to your lower abdomen.

Pull your elbows back towards your waist. Do not go very heavy on these until you get the form down.

One arm dumbbell Rows: 3 sets of 12

When you do rows make sure you’re also completely bent over at the waist. Again, pull the

elbow on the rowing arm back. Almost like you’re starting a lawn mower. On the last set I want a drop set. Do your heaviest set of 12, drop the dumbbell and grab a lighter one for a set of 8, do another drop and do a set of 8, so it should be 12-8-8.

Lat Pulldowns: 3 sets of 12

Standard lat pulldown. But make sure you emphasize squeezing your back and I want a one

second contracton at the bottom. Pull the bar to your chest.

Seated cable row: 3 sets of 12

Make sure you get some what of a stretch on this. Nothing crazy, just enough to make a slight pull in your lats.

Day 2: Chest/shoulders

Machine flye: 3 sets of 12

Do these with a HARD squeeze at the top of the movement and a good stretch.

Incline press with a pause : 3 sets of 8

I want these as heavy as you can go for a set of 8. But touch the bar to your chest, hold it there for a second a explode up. These are tough. If you have shoulder issues, just hold it slightly above your chest and explode up.

Dips: bodyweight for 3 sets of 12. Only 60 seconds rest between sets.

Dumbbell press: 2 sets of 8, then 2 sets of max reps.

Heavy on these. On your max reps, you will drop the weight 5-10 lbs. Put your weight and reps in your log book. Try and beat that number each week. May not happen, but the main thing is that I want you to push hard. 

Shoulders:

Military press: 3 sets of 10

Nothing special here. Don’t even go real heavy as the previous pressing has you a bit worn out.

Laterals: 3 sets of 10

Rear laterals: 3 sets of 15

Do these on a free weight incline bench at a 30-45 degree angle.

Triceps: Pressdown: 3 sets of 12, seated dips: 3 sets of 12

Day 3: Rest, that means REST. Not go run a mile, play volleyball, play basketball or anything because tomorrow is tough!

Day 4: Legs

10 minute warm-up on the bike. I want this moderately intense to where you’re not tired, but

break a sweat. DO NOT SUBSTITUTE THIS WITH A RUN OR JOGGING!

Leg Curl (seated or lying): 3 sets of 12:

Rotate seated and lying leg curls by the week, so if you start off this week with lying leg curls, start up with seated leg curls next week. I want these with a hard squeeze at the bottom (or top) of the movement.

Squats: 4 sets of 8

These should feel good after leg curls. Take as many sets as you need to warm up and then

dive into your work sets. Notice I dropped the reps by two. That means the weight goes higher.

Leg Press: 3 sets of 20

Put your feet narrow and low on the platform with your knees straight as you lower the weight. I want these to beat the shit out of your teardrop and quads. Keep the weight moderate and rest periods low. Around 60 seconds. Push hard on these.

Stiff Leg Deadlifts: 3 sets of 12

Good stretch at the bottom: DO NOT ROUND YOUR BACK!

Day 5: Upper Body Flush Pump

This is a pump day, think of this as active recovery. This will be done in giant set format

Lat Pulldowns

right into

Machine press

right into

Laterals

right into

Bicep Curls

Right into

Tricep Pressdown

3 rounds: 12 reps each, 2 minutes between each round. 

This is not meant to be a very difficult

workout, but to push nutrient rich blood into the muscle to help recovery. Adjust weight

accordingly.

Rest: THAT MEANS DO NOTHING AGAIN!


As you can see above, just hard ass work. Try it and let me know what you think!

Sick Trip Home: Vacation Doing's, Some Thoughts and Plans

Trips home are always great, in fact, very much needed. But they aren’t that great when you’re under the weather. Which is pretty much what I was. 

Home Sweet Home: Back in 2019

I left for Chicago last week, but earlier that same week I started to get a bit under the weather. That Monday before the trip was the fucking worst. I barely ate, could only keep down light liquids and struggled to make it through my shift at work. It persisted for the week and I went on my trip that Friday. Saturday…….oh boy. I went to Quads Gym to train legs and it was complete ass. I mean, the shittiest workout I’ve had in awhile. But I just chalked it up and did what I could. 

Monday came around and I felt a bit better but un-inspired as as an Amy Schumer Comedy. At this point my seasonal asthma started to kick in (I get it around spring and asthma runs in the family.) Thank God my cousin had a spare inhaler for me to use.

Back day was good at BrickHaus Fitness in Wheaton (great gym with great equipment.) My goal was to row the 200 lb dumbbells for 8 reps. But guess what? I’m not strong enough. 

While I’m on the subject of gyms and what not, just had a revelation. There is a severe lack of bodybuilders in Quads Gym. I mean pretty bad. I find it funny. Some will drive miles for bad weed, shitty sex and a goddamn cheat meal, but will bitch to the high heavens about driving to Quads and they live in the city. 

Does the parking suck? Yes…..

Is the North Side congested? Yes…….

Will you find a better equipped gym in Chicago? No……

Will you have great workouts? Yes…..

Look, I’m not going to sit here and say you have to go for EVERY training session. But shit…..bust out your comfort zone, get the hell up and train where you can get better. 

If you’re living in the burbs, this does not apply to you, because I know you guys hate going to the store for bread (“Oh, I thought we had some already……)

And if you have weak legs or a shallow back….you should for absolutely be training at Quads. 

On a broader scope, there needs to be some level of sacrifice if you’re going to compete. It just is. I understand if you don’t have any other gyms around, but if you have to take a commute to a QUALITY gym…..get on the goddamn train. 

                                            Quick Note on "Tha Ahhnold"

The Arnold Classic went about how I expected it to go. I picked William Bonac to win and he did it pretty convincingly. Dexter Jackson took second and looked phenomenal like he always doe’s, but Bonac just had too much muscle with tight condition. In my opinion, the distance increased when Bonac and Jackson turned around to the back. 

And the funny thing is that both men will be in GREAT shape at the Olympia.

Cedric McMillian rounded out the top three after being last years champion. He was clearly off this year in condition, and nowhere near his award winning form. Not sure what happened, but hopefully he squares it away soon. He’s too dominant of a body to not be onstage in Las Vegas, but he has to improve on what he showed in Ohio to be a factor. 

Getting some interviews lined up for the blog that I hope you all will enjoy. Looking to talk with some dynamic and unique up and comers in bodybuilding and beyond. 

-Larry

Easy Listening: Podcasts I'm Listening To

We live in a mobile world where everyone is constantly on the move. Some people don't like to carry books, newspapers or things of that nature on a commute, or may not even be able to. Such is life these days.

However, even though we are "busy" and on the go, there are tools you can use to listen to get better, more educated, etc. The tools are on your phone and the internet.

                                                               Enter Podcasts

I love podcasts. They're a great tool to use for listening to music, keeping up with current events, hearing interviews with interesting people, or just learning new things in general.

Much like my reading list right now, I have a list of podcasts that I'm listening to. Again, not an exhaustive list or anything like that. Just some that I like listening to to be entertained, educated, etc.


Bad Boy Bill Behind the Decks:

Anyone that knows me, knows I'm a house music fan and Bad Boy Bill is an old school dj from Chicago. I've been a fan of his since the early 90's when he was featured every week on B96 on Friday and Saturday nights.  I often use his mixes to train to and just get in the zone. Back when I was doing the Chicago Wings of Strength, his May 2013 mix got me through MANY a shitty cardio session.


The MFCEO Project:

I know I put Andy Frisella's IG profile in my last blog, but I think his podcast is golden too. It's usually him and his co-host speaking on business, but he brings guest entrepreneurs as well. The language is very colorful, but if you're sensitive, it's not the podcast for you. The one I'm listening to now is dated 2/19/18 and he has a guest on that has totally transformed his life after tipping the scales at more than 300 lbs.

The wonderful thing is that some of the podcasts are as short as 15 minutes. The longest I've seen is around an hour and a half. So they aren't long.



The Tim Ferriss Show:

I make no bones about me being a Tim Ferris Fan. I have most of his books (but have made excuses as to why I don't put plans in action.) His podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show, has numerous celebrity guests on and what they've learned in their journey going from good to great. My favorite one is with Terry Crews so far. And the cool thing about it, is that the podcast is done in front of a live audience.



Table Talk:

No so much a podcast, but close enough to be one for government work. This is more geared towards powerlifting than anything and is hosted by Dave Tate of EliteFts. Dave is a coach who's been there, done that, a Westside Barbell Alum and has literally ripped his body to shreds and is still going as best he can. He does the "podcast" in question and answer style, grabbing questions from Instagram and giving his opinion, which given his status in the industry, holds weight.

WenningStrength Podcast:

If you've been around powerlifting, you'd be hard pressed to not have heard the name Matt Wenning. His name is up and down in the record books for his hugely impressive squat.
I may be wrong, but I believe he was one of the first to focus on tactical training, which is how police, firefighters and first responders SHOULD train. He recently had Brian Shaw and Stan Efferding on his Podcast, so pick up some gems while you work, clean on drive.                             



Again, not an exhaustive list, but the goal this year is to expand what I'm reading and listening to! What do you have banging in your eardrums? Throw it in the comments section and let me know! Would love to hear them!