As We Age

mjbrenner

At 33 I am by no means old, but I am also forced to recognize that my body does not respond like it once did. I see guys in their twenties doing their lifts one day and then running the next. The day after I lift, I am sore and weak. It is not just some light delayed onset muscle soreness that I should power through - I do not have the same strength or endurance the next day.

I can lift three days per week and make consistent gains without a problem, but my cardio and endurance training suffers for it. Are any of you guys or gals experiencing the same thing? What tricks do you use to get back in the game faster?

DaveRCF

Speaking as a soon-to-be 49-yr old I feel your pain. I move a lot slower in the morning the next day but by the time I get to work the kinks have been worked out..

In your case, sounds like you need to eat more carbs. We all worry about packing on pounds but it doesn't hurt to play around with your calories and macros to see if that makes a difference.

And get lots of sleep.

jdhosier

At 55, I haven't really noticed a problem with the cardio. In fact, I also do cardio on the days I lift and it doesn't seem to bother me (yet). Tomorrow, I will be on day 15 with Squats (115), Bench (80) and Row (100). I am just now starting to struggle with the later reps, so I may run into the same problem very soon.

I also have to deal with Gout and take an Indomethicin most nights. Because it is a prescription strength anti-inflammatory, it may mitigate some of the possible effect of the muscle soreness. I don't know for sure.

petchib

Dont forget guys that this whole program is aimed at losing body fat and building muscle without doing cardio. If your 5x5 starts to suffer because of your cardio, my advice would be to stop doing the cardio and let your body recover properly before your next workout.

Also, to help with the soreness try to eat as much protein as possible every day to help with muscle repair, also a vitamin C and omega-3 supplement taken every day will help with soreness - they are a must when doing regular heavy lifting.

The heavier your workouts become the more intense they are and the more calories and fat you will burn, and if you eat regular meals your metabolism will sky rocket. which can last for days after - thus eradicating the need for cardio.

mmapags

What about recovery. I had posted a question about that over on the fitness forum but I'm going to put it up here. I am on about session 30 and I'm 61. It seems like recovery time is more of an issue as the weight increases. Normal? I'm occiasionally getting to failure but rarely enough to have to deload. I was getting 3 session a week but lately I'm only getting 2 as I'm just too fatigued to get in the 3rd.

MoveTheMountain

Dont forget guys that this whole program is aimed at losing body fat and building muscle without doing cardio. If your 5x5 starts to suffer because of your cardio, my advice would be to stop doing the cardio and let your body recover properly before your next workout.
...

This is the question that I had. I'm almost 45, and am switching from P90-X over to SL5x5 (and could there be any two programs that are more different?) This is my first week on 5x5, and on P90-X, I'm used to pretty intense cardio 3 days a week, and burning about 700 calories doing it. Now, I'm just resting, and I feel like I'm slacking. But it sounds like I should just deal with the guilt in favor of making sure I fully recover.

I will say this, the program really does feel fantastic, even tho I'm still using really light weights. I just got my squat rack on Friday, and I'd forgotten how much I missed doing deep squats!

lauleipop

Everybody is different. I am doing 5x5 and training for a marathon. I run T W Th St and lift M W F. Wednesdays I lift in the early AM and run in the late PM. The only time I notice inordinate fatigue is when I don't have a protein shake (1 scoop whey mixed with chocolate milk) after I lift or after my long run on Saturday. I get about 40% of my calories from protein.

Also, I get 8 hours of sleep a night, every night, or I'm worthless.

mmapags

Everybody is different. I am doing 5x5 and training for a marathon. I run T W Th St and lift M W F. Wednesdays I lift in the early AM and run in the late PM. The only time I notice inordinate fatigue is when I don't have a protein shake (1 scoop whey mixed with chocolate milk) after I lift or after my long run on Saturday. I get about 40% of my calories from protein.

Also, I get 8 hours of sleep a night, every night, or I'm worthless.

That's great but, you know, at 29 I could do that too! Talk to me if you can still do that on the plus side of 60!! LOL

lauleipop

That's great but, you know, at 29 I could do that too! Talk to me if you can still do that on the plus side of 60!! LOL

:flowerforyou: Yes, but you see, at 28, I couldn't train for a marathon, I could barely run a half. And at 27, I could barely run a 10k. And at 26 I couldn't run a block, and if you slide back to when I was 21, I smoked 2 packs a day and got out of breath thinking about running. The OP is 33 years old, close to my age, nowhere near 60. I think, in his case, the issue is not age.

mmapags

That's great but, you know, at 29 I could do that too! Talk to me if you can still do that on the plus side of 60!! LOL

:flowerforyou: Yes, but you see, at 28, I couldn't train for a marathon, I could barely run a half. And at 27, I could barely run a 10k. And at 26 I couldn't run a block, and if you slide back to when I was 21, I smoked 2 packs a day and got out of breath thinking about running. The OP is 33 years old, close to my age, nowhere near 60. I think, in his case, the issue is not age.

You are correct about the OP of course. I'm just totally projecting my own issues. LOL Great job on the changing your life in such a positive way! :flowerforyou:

Prahasaurus

It's not recommended to do cardio on your off days. Especially when you start the program, you need plenty of rest time for your body to recover.

I hardly think your age is an issue, you're only in your 30's.

--P

UponThisRock

It's not recommended to do cardio on your off days. Especially when you start the program, you need plenty of rest time for your body to recover.

I hardly think your age is an issue, you're only in your 30's.

--P

This. Knock off all the cardio.

MoveTheMountain

I also agree that at 33, you shouldn't let your age even creep into your head as a limitation. I'm not sure how I got to the point where I can look at someone in their early 30's and say this with authority, but you really are still quite young, with plenty of testosterone to help you recover.

Even though I just started the program, I'm sitting on my hands to keep myself from doing cardio. Of course, I could handle it this week and next week, with the weights still light. But once the weight starts going up, I figure I don't want to have unlearn my cardio habit then. I want to try the program with no changes for at least the first 2 months, maybe even the first 3.

jfan175

Dont forget guys that this whole program is aimed at losing body fat and building muscle without doing cardio. If your 5x5 starts to suffer because of your cardio, my advice would be to stop doing the cardio and let your body recover properly before your next workout.
...

This is the question that I had. I'm almost 45, and am switching from P90-X over to SL5x5 (and could there be any two programs that are more different?) This is my first week on 5x5, and on P90-X, I'm used to pretty intense cardio 3 days a week, and burning about 700 calories doing it. Now, I'm just resting, and I feel like I'm slacking. But it sounds like I should just deal with the guilt in favor of making sure I fully recover.

I will say this, the program really does feel fantastic, even tho I'm still using really light weights. I just got my squat rack on Friday, and I'd forgotten how much I missed doing deep squats!

I'm in the same boat. 51yo, I did a round of P90X and finished in June. I started a 5x5 program July 1st, and I feel great. I do some cardio and yoga on my off days....but only if I feel energetic and have gotten some good sleep. I think sleep is the most underrated factor in fitness, especially once you get older.

MoveTheMountain

Dont forget guys that this whole program is aimed at losing body fat and building muscle without doing cardio. If your 5x5 starts to suffer because of your cardio, my advice would be to stop doing the cardio and let your body recover properly before your next workout.
...

This is the question that I had. I'm almost 45, and am switching from P90-X over to SL5x5 (and could there be any two programs that are more different?) This is my first week on 5x5, and on P90-X, I'm used to pretty intense cardio 3 days a week, and burning about 700 calories doing it. Now, I'm just resting, and I feel like I'm slacking. But it sounds like I should just deal with the guilt in favor of making sure I fully recover.

I will say this, the program really does feel fantastic, even tho I'm still using really light weights. I just got my squat rack on Friday, and I'd forgotten how much I missed doing deep squats!

I'm in the same boat. 51yo, I did a round of P90X and finished in June. I started a 5x5 program July 1st, and I feel great. I do some cardio and yoga on my off days....but only if I feel energetic and have gotten some good sleep. I think sleep is the most underrated factor in fitness, especially once you get older.

Lol, I think we might have been separated at birth - I really enjoy yoga, and try to do that at least a few times a week. Still, for now, I'm trying to do *nothing* on my off days, just to see how my body reacts to the new workout schedule and exercises.

I also agree with you on sleep... last night my idiot self somehow managed to take over my rationale self and I stayed up way too late. I still did my workout this morning, but by 11am I was nearly passing out from exaustion. I ate a good lunch, and bounced back, but still, I'm looking forward to sleeping tonight!

chuckyp

I still run a couple times a week. Either the evening of a 5x5 workout or an off day. Not real far and not real fast. Usually a little over 5k at about an 8:30 to 9:00 pace. It's not for the purpose of "cardio" but because I enjoy it and it keeps me in running mode for the obstacle races that I run in. I'm not trying to be a competitive powerlifter. I just want to be well-rounded in my fitness.

I'm 42. This week I'm in week 11 and yesterday my sets were 195lb squats, 105lb presses, and 240lb deadlifts. I ran 3.3 miles the same evening and if I felt slower it was more likely because I stuffed myself with pizza a couple hours earlier rather than because of my Stronglifts workout. So far my first missed sets have been on presses, and I have a feeling I'll probably miss sets on rows in the next workout because my form is losing strictness. So far my minimal running hasn't seemed to interfere with my Stronglifts. I don't feel particularly sore after either pursuit.