Exercise Program for Men over forty (strong at 40)

You are looking for a plan, and they all suck. You end up hurt, unable to keep up with the requirements, or it's just a shit plan. In this article, I am going to layout a program I ACTUALLY use myself, and a program I designed for a man over forty who we will call Jed. Jed is a computer worker, he has achy hips and back, and he only wants to exercise 2 hours a week. In the following article, I will build out Jed’s program, and provide details. Let’s get to it!

3 boxes to check for a successful exercise program for men over forty.

1. Time Commitment
2. Time Distribution
3. Time Cycle

1. Time Commitment.

Ole Jed only has 2 hrs to commit. Well step one is to step into reality. Jed’s goals, and time commitment do not match up. I'll give you actual time expenditures for comparison. I spend approximately 10 hours and 10 minutes a week exercising. This amount of exercise will provide strength, flexibility, and veins that look like road maps. If 2 hrs is too little and 10 hrs is for fitness professionals, what is Jed's time expense? 4 hours a week. This exceeds the recommended time expense by 90 minutes. My foundation for this is strictly anecdotal. It has been my minimum during rest and recovery cycles. I have never over, nor undertrained. Any client of mine who met this minimum saw consistent, repeatable results. Consistent repeatable results in a fitness program for men over forty, SHOULD be the main goal.

1. Time Distribution

Ole Jed wants to stay strong, but he also needs a healthy heart, and flexible joints. Based on Jed’s goals, 4 hours of exercise a week is the minimum. Jed has 4 categories to work on to hit his goals: aerobics, stretching, mobility, strength. For aerobics, we allocate 60 minutes. For strength, we allocate 120 minutes. For mobility, we allocate 30 minutes. For stretching, we allocate 30 minutes. 60m + 120m + 30m + 30m = 240 minutes(4 hrs). Now we will distribute them across four 1 hour training periods. 

Day 1. Stretching: 10 minutes. Mobility: 10 minutes. Strength training: 40 minutes. 

Day 2: Stretching: 10 minutes. Mobility: 10 minutes. Strength training: 40 minutes. 

Day 3: Aerobics: 60 minutes. 

Day 4: Stretching: 10 minutes. Mobility: 10 minutes. Strength training: 40 minutes.

Jed’s plan is coming along with ease! We just need to identify the exercise selection, and voila! The week-long plan is complete.

For comparison, here is my plan:

Day 1: Stretching 10 minutes. Mobility: 20 minutes. Skills training: 60 minutes Conditioning: 60 minutes. Total: 150 minutes

Day 2: Stretching: 10 minutes. Mobility: 20 minutes. Aerobics: 20 minutes Total: 50 minutes

Day 3: Stretching 10 minutes. Mobility: 20 minutes. Skills training: 60 minutes Strength & Conditioning: 60 minutes. Aerobics: 60 minutes. Total: 210 minutes

Day 4: Stretching: 10 minutes. Mobility: 20 minutes. Aerobics: 20 minutes. Total: 50 minutes

Day 5 : Stretching: 10 minutes. Mobility: 20 minutes. Strength & Conditioning: 60 minutes. Total: 90 minutes

Day 6: Aerobics: 60 minutes. Total 60 minutes.

Day 7: Rest.

150 + 50 + 210 + 50 + 90 + 60 = 610 minutes(10 hrs 10 min)

1. Time Cycle:

Jed is already feeling the results. A good week of solid exercise is complete. Next we are going to roll that week out into a whole year!  We have a week figured out. Now we need to scale it up. 6 weeks is the recommended time for each micro cycle. After each 6 week cycle, volumes, and intensities must be adjusted. After 12 weeks, we will change Jed’s style of exercise.

12 Week cycle 1: Power: Heavy lifts, raw strength.

12 week Cycle 2: Hypertrophy: Explosive lifts, conditioning

12 Week Cycle 3: Aerobics: Endurance strength

12 Week Cycle 4: Bodyweight Recovery: 

*Additional 4 weeks are reserved for rest, holidays, etc. I do not exercise Thanksgiving week, Christmas week, New years week, or my annual vacation week.

Well Ole Jed has a whole year of fun and exciting exercise to look forward to. It has all the necessary requirements. A short term plan. A long term plan. Checkpoints along the way to adjust based on results. What more could a man ask for? All that is left is for Jed to execute the plan to the best of his ability, and reap the benefits! If you are struggling with your fitness, comment on this article. I help men over forty stay fit, mobile, and strong.