Requesting advice on weightlifting

wulfax

Good morning everyone.

I have a question about weightlifting for those who are in the know.

As a bit of background, I am 40 years old and I am about 65 lbs. overweight. I got my butt in gear and started using MFP on September 1st. Around September 7th I started walking a few miles a day. On October 7th I started the C25k program and am now on W7D2.

I lifted weights in my early 20s, but I never really knew what I was doing. I was in the Navy and I just lifted as I saw other people doing. It worked for me, but I did spend about 3-4 hours a day in the gym (1.5-2 hrs x2/day), plus I was 22 or so (at that age almost everything worked well).

I have a few dumbbells at home and this weekend I am going to go out and buy a power rack, bench, and Olympic barbell set.

My goal in weightlifting is not to look like Arnold in his prime or a fitness model. My goal is not to do powerlifting or bodybuilding. Heck, my goal isn’t even to lose weight (this is because I know that no matter what I do I will lose body fat simply because I am getting off my fat butt). My goal is to gain real world strength. When I was young I was a mountain man (as I liked to call it). I lived up in the Cascade Mountains and I spent my spring up in the mountains gathering wood and most of my summers cutting and splitting it. Except for my sophomore year of HS, I did not lift weights, but I was stronger than almost anyone I knew. That is what I want to get back to. I can’t do what I did before; I work at a desk, am married, have a few kids, live in the suburbs, and I am 40 years old (not ancient, but not a kid either).

I was looking at a few different programs for lifting, trying to keep it simple here in the beginning (KISS). One was the stronglifts 5x5 program, which is very simple and may be a great place to start after not lifting for over a decade. The other is the Body for Life program which seems to have more variety. I may start one cycle of these programs then move to the other one to mix it up. I know that doing anything is good, but I am looking to maximize my time and effort here (I really only have about an hour a day to dedicate to this, thus buying the home gym so I don't have to travel to the gym). Any advice (especially based on personal experience) would be greatly appreciated.

GymRatGirl13

Hi there. Good for you on getting "your butt into gear". Isn't it fun!? I think you have your head in the right place and have some realistic and obtainable goals. Strong Lifts 5x5 is a great starter program because it is so basic. I think you will have great success with it for strength. You say you want "real world strength" and referenced splitting wood. For this reason, I would assume you are hoping for fluid, powerful, quick movements, with your raw strength? If so, I would recommend working into the Outlaw Way program. You can find it at www.theoutlawway.com. I used 5x5 and was looking for something more advanced, so I could learn new movements, and gain quick burst power, to be used in "real life". The program is geared towards strength and power, and utilizes oly lifts and power lifts. It has conditioning at the end most days, which leaves me feeling alive, exhausted, and so excited for the next day that I am studying the next day's lift. I hope this helps. Good luck!

dbmata

As far as the strength sports go, have you looked at any of the strongman stuff? That seems to suit the mountain man sect fairly well.

Stronglifts is good. I'd also suggest Starting Strength over Body for Life. In fact, for a guy who wants to get strong, I wouldn't suggest Body for Life. After running a cycle of SS or SL, then you can look into something like Wendler's 5/3/1 as an intermediate to really crank up the power and strength creation.

Work the big 4 lifts, some accessory work as needed and you'll get strong.

paj315

dbmata wrote: »

As far as the strength sports go, have you looked at any of the strongman stuff? That seems to suit the mountain man sect fairly well. quote]

I agree (but I'm probably biased since that's what I train for) sounds like strongman training might be a good fit for you. If you're interested you might check www.startingstrongman.com or their facebook page. They also have a free 12 week program that they'll email you when you sign up for the newsletter.

Cherimoose

wulfax wrote: »

When I was young I was a mountain man (as I liked to call it). I lived up in the Cascade Mountains and I spent my spring up in the mountains gathering wood and most of my summers cutting and splitting it. Except for my sophomore year of HS, I did not lift weights, but I was stronger than almost anyone I knew.

If you want to get into mountain man shape, instead of a power rack, i'd invest in things like a tractor tire, sledgehammer, sandbags, a battling rope, and a prowler.

TossaBeanBag

As someone with a similiar story and a few weeks ahead of you, I would do the following (only based on the fact it is working for me). Now, that I am older, I need a little more rest, but the strength is coming back fast.

Stick with what you can do 10 reps for 5-7 sets. Day 1: upper body, Day 2 lower body, and Day 3 rest; then, repeat.

Be ready for an exertion headache! Got that in my first week or two back. If you don't know what that is, look it up. I almost guarantee you will get it unless you ease into it in the first month.

I do cardio - walking on a treadmill, everyday, since I sit around like you at desk. 40 minutes. I walk fast on an incline. I do a little HITT out of it, but not too intense - just playing with the incline.

Rest and diet are so important to good workouts. Up the protein, drink lots of water, rest, and kick but on your work outs. Do it!

dbmata

I really want a prowler.

rick_po

If you have a power rack and bench, do Stronglifts!

Since you were strong in the past, you might get your strength back fast. One of the important things about Stronglifts is learning good form with light weights, so resist the temptation to progress too quickly. Take your time, practice good form. If you need more challenge, you can add accessory work - look at Ice Cream Fitness 5x5.

If you're going to be your own coach, I would suggest picking up a copy of Starting Strength (by Mark Rippetoe). It has lots of good info on form. The Starting Strength program is good, too, but SS does power cleans, you probably don't want to do heavy power cleans in a home gym.

ebfmfp

jbach2 wrote: »

Now, that I am older, I need a little more rest, but the strength is coming back fast.

This and someone else mentioned staying with the prescribed progression. I destroyed my elbows and shoulders and it cost me 4 months.

civilizedworm

I took five years off and I knew that I couldn't barbell immediately when I got back into the gym. (I'm 43.) I knew that after taking such a long time off and since I am an office drone, that barbell work was going to be potentially injure-some, so I avoided it for 6-8 weeks and worked on my mobility, with dynamic stretching, cardio (boy a mile was heck for the for the first few weeks) and just lifted only with dumbbells. I did a two day split twice a week. 1) Chest/Back/Arms. 2) Quads/Hams/Shoulders. I went light and worked way up to the point when I thought I able to manipulate a barbell again.

I am not recommending against SL, just a little caution before starting a program like that.

Cherimoose

dbmata wrote: »

I really want a prowler.

My gym doesn't have one, so i load up their back extension bench with plates and push it across the floor, and pull it too.
Might want to check with your gym's staff before doing this.

civilizedworm

Cherimoose wrote: »

dbmata wrote: »

I really want a prowler.

My gym doesn't have one, so i load up their back extension bench with plates and push it across the floor, and pull it too.
Might want to check with your gym's staff before doing this.

Other great variation is grab an exercise ball, grab a plate if you want, prop your feet against the wall and do the extension.

dbmata

I'm already testing their patience with my deadlift shenanigans. I think they'd have a stern word for me if I did that.