Help this middle-aged man shed my dad bod.

September 14, 2024 6:12 AM

I'm 50, and just joined a gym for the first time. I need some pointers on a good workout.

Firstly, again I am 50, in relatively good health. I have jogged regularly for the past ten years, usually averaging about 10-15km a week (though that can fluctuate to a lot less some weeks). Due to the horrid heat, I've finally slapped down some money for a monthly gym membership so that i can run on a treadmill in glorious air conditioned comfort.

Anyway, I have been a few times and the indoor running is indeed great. I see the weights and the workout machines and would like to work on my whole body, but don’t know where to start. Actually I did try out various machines two days ago and my muscles are pretty sore; I’m thinking I probably overdid it somewhat.

So my question is: what are some good workouts for 50 year old men such as myself? I’ve got the running part down, but weights? Machines? To be clear my goals here are to a) lose maybe 10-15 pounds of fat, mostly the soft belly and love handles, while simultaneously b) getting as close to a six-pack as I can, and c) hopefully filling out my pecs and arms. I am not expecting to get ripped, just nicely toned. And yes, I know that most of the work of losing weight comes from diet, and I am working on that as well. I know a personal trainer would be best, but I’m not going that route, at least for now.

So weights? Machines? Where do I start? What routines would be good for an absolute gym beginner?

posted by zardoz to Health & Fitness (13 answers total)

Best answer: Previously: Suggestions to build muscle after 50

Repeating my answer from that one:
There is no "right" way to strength train. Machines, barbells, kettlebells, bands, bodyweight - they all work. High reps/low weight works. Low reps/high weights work. Doing the same exercises every time works. Mixing up routines and exercises works. Full body exercises are generally better, but isolation exercises are fine. The only two musts are: 1) you must do it consistently, and 2) you must challenge yourself: You don't need to lift to exhaustion, but the last few reps of whatever you do should feel difficult.

Even though you only talk about "beach muscles" (arms, chest, abs), you need to focus on legs and full body exercises, both for functional fitness and because they will contribute indirectly to the beach muscles and weight loss.
posted by Mr.Know-it-some at 6:43 AM on September 14 [4 favorites]

Best answer: I did Couch to Barbell earlier this year, and think it's a great program. I'm still doing the same workouts and making progress. It has three phases, bodyweight, dumbbell and barbell, but each phase uses the same basic lifts. I booked sessions with a trainer through my gym when I did the first two weeks of the barbell phase because I wanted to make sure my form was good. I happened to see her today at the gym and when she asked how things were going and I told her I was still following the same program, she said, "It's all you need!"

One of the things I like about it is how efficient it is - the movements are functional and compound, so it doesn't take a lot of time to do the workouts. Also, the author, Casey Johnston, used to write the "Ask A Swole Woman" column and seems pretty great.

I didn't follow the advice about resting and recovery and eating as strictly as I could have, so I didn't progress as quickly as the program recommended, but I was ok with that.
posted by amarynth at 6:48 AM on September 14 [13 favorites]

Came here to suggest Liftoff/Couch to Barbell! I found the program really beginner-friendly as someone who had never lifted a weight. I came in with similar goals of prioritizing weight loss and it helped me to rethink the sequence a bit: starting with a focus on getting strong and building muscle, then doing a cut once I'd progressed through the initial program. Casey Johnston talks about body recomposition here. Becoming strong has been truly lifechanging for me and shifted my relationship with my body in amazing ways.

If you want a supportive community around the program, you can subscribe to her (excellent) newsletter to get aess to a Discord with other people doing Liftoff or strength training. There's a dedicated channel for lifting over 40 where people talk about the specific challenges and needs of lifting in that age range.
posted by earth by april at 7:19 AM on September 14 [3 favorites]

I’m 54, and started from zero just before my 50th birthday. I use Mark Rippetoe’s Starting Strength programme - nice & simple, just four main lifts at the beginning - takes about 45-60mins, three times a week. It’s taken me from the empty bar to squatting 130kg. He wrote a book that very comprehensively covers the method & the form for each lift - there’s also plenty of information online, and an app that you can use to plan your sessions & track progress.

The main thing is to keep going regularly, and add weight at every session. That’s easy when you’re starting out, or if you’re young & fit - for us older people, progress gets slower after a short-ish period of noob gains, and it’s harder to add weight consistently - but you can keep your gains moving if you buy a set of small plates & keep them in your gym bag - they mean you can add weight in smaller (0.5kg) increments.
posted by rd45 at 7:48 AM on September 14 [2 favorites]

YMMV but at every gym I’ve been to, there are staff available who’ll set you up with your opening workout routine, based on what machines they have, your current abilities, and your goals, and also tell you how to progress it sensibly from there.

So it’s not a PT because they’re not following your progress, and you don’t have to pay extra for it, but it is an expert eye on what level you should be starting at and how to use their particular machines safely and effectively. I’d start there.
posted by penguin pie at 7:51 AM on September 14 [2 favorites]

I used to use the free-weights and machines a lot more but now my routine's come down to two miles on the treadmill followed by, at a minimum, four different exercises on a Gravitron assisted pull-up machine or its equivalent.
posted by Rash at 8:50 AM on September 14

Minor suggestion — make sure you put in as much back, pulling, rowing work as front pecs work — chair and screen life curls us up like shrimp and opening your torso will be healthy and extremely flattering.

It’s the one thing I find hardest with pure body weight, just for geometry reasons, but you’re at a gym!
posted by clew at 9:14 AM on September 14 [2 favorites]

was going to say what penguin pie did. check with your gym for some starter training sessions. you'll get a goals-oriented work out plan sorted, and they can help make sure your form is correct to avoid injuries, and help you calibrate an appropriate rate of ramping up (to avoid injuries!)

good luck! from a fellow old
posted by supermedusa at 10:13 AM on September 14 [1 favorite]

Yet another vote for Couch to Barbell, and the paid Discord. It's an amazingly positive place, for people of all levels of experience.
posted by The corpse in the library at 10:22 AM on September 14

At 41 I'm a little earlier than you but am doing the same. I never went to the gym before and the whole thing was foreign to me. My wife and I have been doing couples physical training this year and I've found it to be extremely helpful in showing me how to properly use the gym. I'm now going independently a few times per week and it's great! If your financial situation allows, even a few sessions of personal training will help you understand proper form and give you a baseline that will be very helpful going forward.
posted by kdar at 12:23 PM on September 14 [1 favorite]

I am a huge, huge fan of StrongLifts which was recommended to me by this very community. It's terrific, easy to follow and provides some structure and tracking capability. Cannot say enough good things about it.
posted by Thistledown at 5:45 AM on September 15

Seconding the starting strength program by Mark Rippetoe. It's dead simple and very effective. Here is a nice book based on his method which sounds exactly like what you need:
The Barbell Prescription: Strength Training for Life After 40
posted by SweetLiesOfBokonon at 4:13 AM on September 16

I'm now 55. I started Orange Theory, begrudgingly, 3+ years ago. They utilize a treadmill, rower and dumbells/trx straps/ body weight exercises. My general fitness is sooo much better now. Endurance, strength, power are all higher than the last 15 years. Which, honestly, feels great.

Over that time, I have experimented with extra dumbbell workouts, runs and more or less strict diet.

For my goals, investing time in diet, paid the biggest dividend. When I watched my macros and ate appropriate amounts in each, I lost weight. I decreased my body fat percentage. I liked all of that. In the end, it was a LOT of management and something I did not want to continue doing. I learned how my body felt eating less and better food (spoiler: AMAZING) but also how much I disliked always saying NO to different opportunities (no pasta!). So, making peace with my feelings and capacity was part of this journey. Being able to adapt my expectations was very important.

For example: Orange Theory does an 8 week "contest" called the transformation challenge. The object is to lose the highest percentage of body fat. I ate no sugar, 50 grams of carbs or less daily, high protein and high fat. I ate at about 250-500 calorie deficit, daily. In 8 weeks I lost 15 pounds and went from 28.2% body fat to 23.9% body fat. i was very happy with the result.

As said above, consistency is what matters the most with exercise and diet. Orange Theory was perfect for me in that all I had to do was the workout. No thinking about what to do. No waiting for a machine to be open and then not being able to do the exercise because someone else was waiting. No spending hours trying to get in a workout. One hour class, to my energy level, every couple of days. Run, row, lift. Bam.

All this to say, you can start achieving your goals through diet and add to them by consistently working out. The lifting part is up to your comfort. I found dumbbell work quite satisfying however, the big muscle group benefits you get (I think) from barbell deadlifts, squats and bench are more significant.

Good luck and have fun!
posted by zerobyproxy at 11:43 AM on September 16