Help for Aging Working Stiffs

[Polyus]

Hey all, finally decided to come out of the shadows.

So here I am. . .47 y/o male, I have spent most of my working life on my feet. Currently employed as a warehouse manager, which you would think means I actually get to sit behind a desk, right? Nope. 8-10 hours per day on my feet, sometimes standing at a work bench for long periods, lots of moving things around, lifting a lot of boxes, wrapping pallets, etc. I probably don't have to tell you that takes quite a toll on the lower back, hips, and knees. About 15 mos. ago I decided to get serious about working out (mainly free weights), and it has made a world of difference, particularly for my back. 

NOW. . .the trouble is, I feel like I have hit the dreaded wall. I still make it in to the gym a few times a week, but I am at a total loss as to where to go from here. Just can't find a routine that I can stick to. Complicating matters is the fact that I seem to have injured my left knee, so I need to find a temporary workaround for squats and lunges, which really make it sting. My gym does have some pretty good trainers, but obviously that gets pretty expensive.

So. . .anybody else in this particular boat? I would love to hear your experiences.

[sylph]

1. Welcome!

2. If you're injured, get healthy before going too crazy.

3. What are your goals? You said you'd hit a wall. What kind of wall? Where are you trying to get/what are you trying to do that you feel has stalled out?

3a. If you want to weight lift and don't have a good program already, find a good beginner-ish program that has your workouts planned for you. Many are aimed at boys in their teens, so you may have to progress more slowly/take more rest, but they are grat frameworks to start from. Starting Strength and StrongLifts (both easily google-able) are decent options. if you're up to an intermediate level, something like MadCow is a good option.

3b. If you want to do something else (body weight stuff, run, acrobatics, parkour, hike, whatever) what is that thing?

[Polyus]

I think maybe part of my problem has been that my goals have been a bit vague. As I said, I originally got into lifting weights in an attempt to counteract the dual effects of age and workplace wear and tear, and have definitely made progress there. But now the challenge is to not only protect those gains but keep getting better, in terms of both strength and mobility. I have been having trouble finding a routine that feels right; for instance, I did SL for a while, but found it a bit too much. Since I don't get down time at work and I lead a pretty busy life otherwise, recovery was becoming a bit of a problem. Lately I have been trying a simple 2 day/week upper-lower split, which seems alright, but I have been wondering if I would be well served by working in some new tricks such as kettlebell exercises. In short, yes, I am probably overthinking all of this, but it's hard to make sense of all that information out there.

[sylph]

It's hard to determine whether you're progressing on a goal when you're not quite sure what it is, that's for sure. We've all been there.

 

This post: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2013/05/30/why-you-should-join-the-next-nerd-fitness-challenge/from the blog has some advice about goal setting.

 

If you decide to join up on the 6 week challenge (starts Monday!), there are some mini quests over the course of the challenge that will help you define your goals as well.

 

For me, goal setting looks like this:

Where do I want to be?

Where am I now?

What are some serious, concrete steps that I can take to get from here to there?

Do I need to break those steps down further?

How do I measure said steps?

 

 

 

So, for you, "counteract age and workplace wear and tear" is a good goal, but hard to measure or take concrete steps toward. What specifically?

 

Maybe you start with something like this to define the problem: At the end of a 10 hour shift my feet hurt, my lower back is sore and I'm worn out

 

Okay, how do you address those goals?

 

Sore feet-  Maybe your goal for that is to research appropriate footwear or strain reducing mats or whatever so you have the right equipment to do your job.

 

Sore lower back- Maybe your goal for that is to work on core strengthening exercises--say, squats and deadlifts. So the goal becomes something like squatting and deadlifting 1x/week to ensure your back stays healthy and to give you more strength to physically do your job. Add a few more exercises to make sure you have a well-rounded program and then work on doing that consistently.

 

Worn out- you'd have to take a look and figure out why you're really tired. Are you sleeping well/enough? Eating appropriately? Burning yourself out by trying to work a physical job and go to the gym and really push it? Whatever the issue, create some measurable goals around that: In bed by 11p, good sleep hygiene habits, or increasing your consumption of healthy foods and less heavy greasy stuff so you feel better at work, or adjusting your time in the gym as "heavy days" or "light days" depending on how intense your work week has been.

 

If you're just feeling burned out by what you're currently doing, there's nothing wrong with exploring kettlebells or crossfit or yoga or strongman training or rock climbing or parkour or whatever tickles your fancy. Give each a good solid shot and see what you like. There's no "magic bullet" there's just time, hard work, and consistency.

 

It's really easy to overthink. There is no shortage of information out there on how to "be healthier." The problem is, then, that "be healthier" means something different to everyone. 

 

Folks around here are generally friendly and more than happy to answer questions. We all remember what it was like to be new, to have analysis paralysis and to feel a bit lost. Poke around, read a bit, ask some questions, join the 6 week challenge if you like and get support from the community. We'll be here. We like to help people succeed and the definition of success is different for everyone.

[Mark D]

Welcome!  I've got a few years on you (age 51), and the opposite working situation (I spend all day on my butt in front of a computer), but I've also been trying to improve my health.

 

First, just what did you do to your knee?  Did something pop, or is it just achy?  Some knee injuries require physical therapy, some require rest, some require higher levels of intervention.  (I tore a meniscus a few years ago, hurt like Hell when I did it, felt like someone stuck an ice pick into my knee. I knew exactly when it happened, someone texting while walking ran into me and twisted my knee. Responded well to physical therapy).  If it hurt real badly you may need to have it looked at to determine what (if anything) you damaged.  If you require PT you could work that into your work-outs.

 

I've been researching weight training at middle age too (and yes, i DO plan to live to 102!).  While I haven't started a program yet I like the look of Stronglifts, but my research says I may have to increase weight more slowly and take more time between work-outs.  Is it possible you did too much too fast, and your body is telling you to slow down?

 

Next, as has been pointed out, figure out just what your specific issues are, and see if you can address them.  For instance, in my case part of what I want to address is pain/stiffness in my back and neck as a result of sitting in front of a computer keyboard all day.  What's your complaint?  Some things may not have an exercise component (as sylph said, if your feet are bothering you the problem may be with your shoes, work surface, or you may need orthodics).  As far as age, again, what specific problems are you encountering?  I know in the few months I've been eating better and exercising I've felt younger and healthier than I have in years, but there's no getting around the fact that I've made over half-a-hundred trips around the sun and haven't always taken the best care of myself.  So again, what are the complaints and what can you do to address them?

 

Something you'll read repeatedly on NF is that the best work-out is the one you'll actually DO.  If you don't enjoy weight lifting, don't do it, find something you DO enjoy.  Otherwise it's an unpleasant task you'll avoid if you can find a reason.  

[LovePBandJ@aol.com]

48 yo female here.  New to Nerd Fitness.  Would love to be part of a team, maybe  a team of middle-agers .  I am new here, so don't really know what I am doing, but I am determined!