Ok so as I’ve mentioned in past posts, over decades of lifting weights and doing a hundred other things, I’ve developed a regimen that I believe is perfect!
Four days on, one day off. Legs, Push, CABS, Pull, Day Off. Rinse, Repeat.
If it’s not perfect, it’s close. It has worked really really well for me as an over forty fitness whacko. I’ve seen it work wonders for similarly-situated females, and I see no reason it wouldn’t be just as amazing for those enjoying the absolute splendors of youth (which they will no doubt fail to appreciate until it’s too late (yeah that rhymes), but that’s life – am I right, people?). Testament is that I have my children on the program, and they are doing great. My daughter might have the best squat form on the planet.
Sorry if I sound overly enthusiastic, but I often start posts as I guzzle pre-wo. Happening right now as I gear up for a push. Gettin’ my tingle on and writin’ this jawn! I am a rhymin’ fool today! Anyway. . . There it goes again. I can’t even help it now.
LEGS!
Today I started with box squats. Find something to sit on. Has to be sturdy, preferably a bench or fitness platform. Cardboard box – no good! Height needs to be right (it just won’t stop).
When you’re sitting on it, you want your butt below your knees. In other words, your thighs shouldn’t be parallel with the ground, but slightly below parallel. Or one last way, your knees shouldn’t form a 90 degree angle, but should go slightly below that. Like these ladies.
Feet should be shoulder width or more apart. Just get comfortable.
Test run. Butt to platform. On the way down, stick your butt and chest out, keep your weight on your heels. There will come a point at the bottom of the motion where your butt won’t be able to stick out anymore, but rather your hips will curl under a bit. There is research that says it is necessary to reach this change in hip trajectory in order to get the fullest benefit possible from squats of any type. So do it!
When you have the platform set up and the height right (uh huh – yeah it happened again), put a bar on your shoulders. I rest my hands on the weights on the bar, but you put ’em where ever they are comfortable (as long as it is on the bar).
Start light! The goal is to feel your muscles expand and stretch as they support the weight on your way down. Keep your butt and gut contracted. Control the weight. Slow movement. Don’t bounce and don’t jerk – perfect way to injure yourself. Get down to the platform and let it support all of your weight. Full stop.
Then get strong, tight butt and gut, and feel the muscles in your thighs, butt and back push the weight upwards. Slow, controlled movement. All the way to standing. Take a deep breath on the way down, again, repeat the above and exhale on the way up.
I do a lot of warm up sets. I start with nothing. Then the bar, then quarters, then 35s (although if I’m feeling randy, I do skip these sometimes), then plates. Then I get into the working sets. Working sets are the ones that count.
I do three to five working sets. I try to keep my reps between eight and twelve, and try to not dip below five reps ever. Use free weights. Not the Smith machine, not dumbbells. Bar on your back. Add weights, if you can.
GET HEAVY! Without bouncing. Dudes will want to get heavy. Do it, and keep your form right, or you will hurt yourself. Ladies are gonna say oh OldAFFitness guy if I lift heavy I’m gonna get big muscles and look like her:
Ain’t gonna happen – unlike that lady who is shooting more testosterone (T) and other PEDs than Arnie ever did, you do not have enough T in your body to develop muscle anywhere near that. Just a physical fact. You can develop strong, sculpted, sexy muscles (like the ladies below) that will burn lots of calories while you’re resting and help you reduce body fat percentage quickly, but you won’t get all manly looking.
Please also remember the saying that abs start in the kitchen. You don’t have to aspire to have chiseled abs (but if you’re reading this kind of stuff you probably do), but you won’t lose fat if you eat like a pig. See prior posts for some eating guidelines, which I can get into in more detail at a later date.
Cardio, aerobics and tons of light reps aren’t the optimal way to burn fat. Increasing muscle is. Ever wonder why that spinning instructor or aerobics instructor teaching five classes a day is heavy? ‘Cause like I just said that’s not the optimal way to burn fat and change body composition. It’s a nice thing to mix into your repertoire, but there is no substitute for heavy lifting. PERIOD. Do it!
Alright alright alright. I’m gonna get back to my wo at this point, and next post we’ll talk about Jefferson squats. The second part of this leg wo.
Cocktail of the day is called Two Strong Legs (in honor of course of the leg wo). It is very reminiscent of the Boulevardier but with a touch of peach. And who doesn’t like to touch a peach?
Of course any bourbon will do, but you know I prefer to use finer stuff in my drinks. If you can, why not? Makers and Knob Creek are consistent performers and pretty easy to find, Michter’s, and Few are a little rarer and sometimes a bit pricier. Just to name a few. See what I did there?
Exercise song of the day is by Disturbed. Was deadlifting today and that requires some powerful music. Down with the Sickness is powerful music.
Until next time – enjoy!