Can a guy of a certain age put on muscle - my journey

speedysteve

speedysteve

Legend
I had been off playing tennis due to hip over extension.

In the down time I embarked on a new (for me) journey.

Over the last year I have undertaken the 'monumental task' (words of a training specialist Google threw up) - to put on significantly more muscle.

Plan was a circuit of 8 exercises, I do 3 sets, each of 8 to 12 reps mostly near 12).
Focus on upper body apart from a deadlift.

At least one of the sets is to concentric failure, sometimes all 3 depending how I feel - really can't do just one more rep or fail part way though (in a controlled manner).

Do this every 3rd day without fail!

Weights have over the year. Almost doubling them over that time.
0.5 to 1kg each month.

On the other days I do core strength and a PHAT exercise routine.

I also upped my core strength routine from 1 set of 7 core exercises for tennis every 3rd day, to 3 sets of the 7 exercises every 3rd day.

My only significant dietary change has been to eat 30g of lightly roasted sunflower seeds three times a day after meals.
Been doing that since around August last year.
That really gave the protein boost I needed.
Other food intake as usual.

Over the course of the year my body weight has gone up 6.5kgs / 14lbs.

My smart scales tell me my fat level is the same, muscle ratio is up, water and bone density the same.

I'm still pushing on to hit my goal of a 10kg increase from my start of 2024 weight.
Then will go into maintenance mode - not sure what that looks like yet though.

I still do walks every day, cycle road or exercise bike (more like low level spinning).

I didn't think I could do it at my years, but with right technique, nutrition, time etc, I'm well on the way.

My wife feels the difference

Do you have body change stories, what worked for you etc?
 
For maintenance, what I've heard is that you need about a third of the weekly volume it took to build the muscle in the first place. So if you were using 6 sets a week of a certain exercise, cut it to 2 sets at the same weight/rep numbers.
 
GodlessEndeavor said:
For maintenance, what I've heard is that you need about a third of the weekly volume it took to build the muscle in the first place. So if you were using 6 sets a week of a certain exercise, cut it to 2 sets at the same weight/rep numbers.
Click to expand...
Yes that sounds very doable and much less effort than the acquisition phase.

What would I do with the extra time?

Will be hard to close the throttle.

Got a fair way to go yet though, so no rush:)
 
speedysteve said:
Not a woman.

61 years young.
Click to expand...
There are studies showing that strength training of various forms can allow someone to maintain or even gain strength as they age. The goal should be to offset sarcopenia (age related muscle loss) and increase the number of years you can live without being disabled. I've played tennis with guys in their 80s, and most of them would have also benefited from doing some lifting.

In the United States, I think the goal should be to remain in the top couple of percent for people your age once you're over 50. Unfortunately, that's easier to do than you might think as Americans tend to be obese and horribly out of shape.
 
WildVolley said:
There are studies showing that strength training of various forms can allow someone to maintain or even gain strength as they age. The goal should be to offset sarcopenia (age related muscle loss) and increase the number of years you can live without being disabled. I've played tennis with guys in their 80s, and most of them would have also benefited from doing some lifting.

In the United States, I think the goal should be to remain in the top couple of percent for people your age once you're over 50. Unfortunately, that's easier to do than you might think as Americans tend to be obese and horribly out of shape.
Click to expand...

Definitely aim to offset.
Have always worked out etc.
Cardio fitness not a problem.
Have always had low BMI.

Putting on muscle seemed pretty impossible before. But I was aiming for fitness, swung lighter weights too fast.
I'd get toned but not any bulk.

Good form on every rep, slow and concentric failure often, is what has helped I guess.

Doing things like using a long pole hedge trimmer at fill extension for hours is now much easier than before / ever been really.

I'm British / Swedish
Live in UK now.
 
Last edited:
speedysteve said:
...

Putting on muscle seemed pretty impossible before. But I was aiming for fitness, swung lighter weights too fast.
I'd get toned but not any bulk.

Good form on every rep, slow and concentric failure often, is what has helped I guess.

Doing things like using a long pole hedge trimmer at fill extension for hours is now much easier than before / ever been really.

I'm British / Swedish
Live in UK now.
Click to expand...
Muscle protein synthesis is said to go down as people age, which means that you need to up your protein consumption if you want build/keep your muscle. I had trouble putting on muscle when I was young because I wasn't eating enough.

I think you are correct about doing slower or more reps for muscle building, but I think it is also important to balance that with faster lifting for power some of the time. Retaining explosive power is very important for those of us who want to keep playing sports as we age.

From my limited perspective of what I see online, I'd guess the UK isn't doing much better than the US in terms of the health of the population.
 
All the things you do to gain muscle when you're younger still work. Just limit reps and focus on quality volume so you don't develop RSI's, eat properly for your goals, and sleep.

That 30g of sunflower seeds doesn't make a difference man. It's just some fat and a little bit of protein. Read up on nutrition and hit your compound lifts until you're 15% bodyfat and reasonably strong (beginner gains equivalency), then go from there.
 
My 90 to 100g sunflower seeds equate to around 20g of extra protein a day on top of all else.

I also eat eggs, chicken breast, lentils, various beans, fish and some nuts, on rotation.

Not a fan of red meat or dairy. In fact, I never eat them.

Interesting you mention 15% body fat.
That's exactly what I'm on.
 
Growing up, I was a hardgainer. But I didn't know what to do at the gym and how to eat correctly, so I wasted time and gains. I was always active and thin with very low BF. When I hit 40, my metabolism slowed down, and I became skinny-fat. Then, I started to read up on things and dive into eating correctly and lifting properly. I kept it simple by going to the gym 3 times per week and doing 6 compound exercises each time. The same 6. And I made sure to eat 1g of protein per lb of body weight. This worked wonders, and I gained over 30lbs of muscle while losing 15lbs of fat. I'm at 14-15% BF now and just maintaining. I still go to the gym 3x/week and still do the same 6 compound exercises. It's simpler than most would think, but you gotta stay disciplined. In addition to the gym, I do some form of cardio on my off-days, with a rest day on Sunday. That can be running, tennis, etc.

Without meat and dairy, I would find it hard to eat 160g of protein a day.
 
ghostwind said:
Growing up, I was a hardgainer. But I didn't know what to do at the gym and how to eat correctly, so I wasted time and gains. I was always active and thin with very low BF. When I hit 40, my metabolism slowed down, and I became skinny-fat. Then, I started to read up on things and dive into eating correctly and lifting properly. I kept it simple by going to the gym 3 times per week and doing 6 compound exercises each time. The same 6. And I made sure to eat 1g of protein per lb of body weight. This worked wonders, and I gained over 30lbs of muscle while losing 15lbs of fat. I'm at 14-15% BF now and just maintaining. I still go to the gym 3x/week and still do the same 6 compound exercises. It's simpler than most would think, but you gotta stay disciplined. In addition to the gym, I do some form of cardio on my off-days, with a rest day on Sunday. That can be running, tennis, etc.

Without meat and dairy, I would find it hard to eat 160g of protein a day.
Click to expand...
What are the six compound movements you do?
 
nyta2 said:
@ghostwind im gonna guess:
1. Deadlifts
2. Squats
3. Pullups
4. Rows
5. Bench press
6. Shoulder press
Which is the 6 I’m doing ;p
Click to expand...
Pretty much.

  1. BARBELL BACK SQUAT (LEGS PUSH)
  2. BARBELL DEADLIFT or TRAP BAR (LEGS PULL)
  3. BENCH PRESS (HORIZONTAL PUSH)
  4. CHEST SUPPORTED T-BAR ROW with 2 GRIPS (HORIZONTAL PULL)
  5. BARBELL OVERHEAD PRESS (VERTICAL PUSH)
  6. LAT PULLDOWNS / CHIN-UPS / PULL-UPS (VERTICAL PULL)
I alternate #6 each time as shown. Doing these 6 consistently, adding a bit of weight (or reps) to each progressively, has been all I needed. These are not tennis-specific but will build and strengthen all your muscles, tendons, etc., which will help your game. The whole routine takes me about 60-75min, depending on gym traffic, so not a lot of time out of the day. Then I just eat healthy and make sure to get my 160g of protein.

EDIT: When I first started, I couldn't do a single pull up or chin up. So I was doing lat pulldowns and inverted rows until I was able to. For the others, I just started with very little weight, focused on form, and went from there.
 
ghostwind said:
Pretty much.

  1. BARBELL BACK SQUAT (LEGS PUSH)
  2. BARBELL DEADLIFT or TRAP BAR (LEGS PULL)
  3. BENCH PRESS (HORIZONTAL PUSH)
  4. CHEST SUPPORTED T-BAR ROW with 2 GRIPS (HORIZONTAL PULL)
  5. BARBELL OVERHEAD PRESS (VERTICAL PUSH)
  6. LAT PULLDOWNS / CHIN-UPS / PULL-UPS (VERTICAL PULL)
I alternate #6 each time as shown. Doing these 6 consistently, adding a bit of weight (or reps) to each progressively, has been all I needed. These are not tennis-specific but will build and strengthen all your muscles, tendons, etc., which will help your game. The whole routine takes me about 60-75min, depending on gym traffic, so not a lot of time out of the day. Then I just eat healthy and make sure to get my 160g of protein.

EDIT: When I first started, I couldn't do a single pull up or chin up. So I was doing lat pulldowns and inverted rows until I was able to. For the others, I just started with very little weight, focused on form, and went from there.
Click to expand...
You bench, deadlift and squat in the same session? That's kinda wild to me.
 
nighthawkrr said:
how long have you been doing this?
Click to expand...
Almost 3 years now. I started with very basic versions (goblet squat, etc.) of each exercise and worked my way up. Then I added weight. Now I'm maintaining, so it's easier. For me it worked, because I was thin and a "hardgainer". But besides the muscle growth and fat loss (of which diet is the more challenging part), it strengthened my whole body. Anyhow, the gym was the easy part. Eating proper was the hard part. And still is. It's just a lot of discipline.
 
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