Just want to say Hi, Rip from one old man to another. Glad to report that at 70 years of age I'm still powerlifting. But, to be honest I have not been lifting for nearly as long as you. In fact I discovered powerlifting late in life. That is why I'm still competing. As a matter of fact, last weekend, at the Alaka'i Reel Steel Lift Off I Squated:374, Benched:281 and Deadlifted:424. Won Best Master's Lifter and Age group( but again, let's be honest, everyone in my age group,70-74, is either dead or in prison ). Just saying Thanks from this old man for getting me interested in strength training.
Kudos Stefano! As an old lifter (and bodybuilder) myself, I love to here these stories. Such a great testament to a lifetime of training. Thanks paisan!
Thanks for this one Rip...Your authenticity really shined through on this episode and was greatly appreciated. You were brutally honest and may I say, it almost looked like you were going to get a bit emotional when thinking back on your life. You’re a good man and I wanted to thank you for your experiences and your teachings.
Really .... the exceptions prove the rule man. There are a few adults, but they are a bunch of boring unimaginative assholes. And really, if you lose the young spirit what is left worth a damn!! Do make a difference between "adult" and "mature" though. Elon Musk is a mature person, but he still has that hunger for knowing that is normally there with kids and young people. Schools normally do a great job of KILLING that side of people. Still, you say it took you from late teens to early twenties to realize that... a bit slow to see something like that says something about you too.
have you seen that grandma that got jacked at like 75 or something ? shes on hormone replacement but b4 that she was as good as dead. really inspiring ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-R-d7_Ij4geE.html
@@davidjd123She has claimed to not be on hrt where are you getting your misinformation from? If you are just gonna accuse her of it then I will do the same and accuse you of being a methhead, cause you are just as hollow skulled as ome
At 58 years old, I agree and understand your comments. It won’t get any easier for sure as the years go by, and my sleep is not good even without the injuries. However, I’d rather do some training and stay in reasonable shape and strength, than nothing. I also enjoy a Vespa Martini, Gin and Tonic, and beer etc. so a belly to some extent in inevitable. So for me, train to live life, not live life to train 😀👍
50 years old here. I started training for strength last year and it's been a fountain of new youth for me. I deadlift 160 kg, OHP 55 kg. I squat 120 kg for 3 sets of 5. Pendlay row 90 kg for 5. Numbers are still going up. I wish I had started that earlier in life. But it's never too late. I enjoy your podcasts and appreciate your honest, realistic outlook of life! Thank you, Mark!
I'm 61 and do more sets and reps now than when I was young. I can't go heavy anymore, so more volume and lower intensity, and less rest between sets is my mode of training. I chase the pump and do exercises that don't hurt. :-)
Rip you have been an inspiration to me since I started utilizing StartingStrength in Afghanistan 2008-2010. I am almost 67 years old and I’m listening to you Christmas morning as I’m lifting weights. I have spoken to you by phone since I returned from Afghanistan in 2010 regarding advice on squats and bad knees. I have since had both knees replaced and I’m still squatting and deadlifting. The weights are not heavy but I’m lifting because I like it and most men my age can’t do what I do. I look around me and they’re not there. Keep doing what you’re doing for guys like me. Btw, regarding your gut, if a man didn’t have a little loose skin in the middle he would break when they bent over. C.E./Elkland, Mo.
Hands down, the most honest truthful trainer there is. Getting older is hard to accept, however I believe you can always become a smarter lifter. I will turn 60 in July and still plan on hitting a 1000 pound total for squat, bench, and deadlift via 360, 250, 390. I have hit all 3 of these in the past and hit 300X10 on the squat at age 58. Keep training stretch warm up eat well and get rest.
Greeting Mr. Rippatoe. I am 53 now.... have competed as a raw powerlifter. my best numbers were 600, 410 and 620 at around 44, now 9 years later with busted back due to a motorcycle crash and with "Semi" regular training i can still do 540, 375 and 550. You are a legend and i wish you all the best
You know, I really hope people appreciate what rip has done for the industry and health/fitness/strength when he’s gone. All this guy has done was try and tell us the fucking truth to the best of his ability.
I'm 80 and am stuck on the novice program once a week. "I hear you ! Good Talk" . But your numbers and heavy weights you lifted in the past scare me and its hard to relate to you other than the age! You were the exception not the rule ! I am not a hater. Love to hear you reminisce old fella". Keep it up!
Rip, THANK YOU! I’m about to turn 51 and I started weightlifting in my early 20’s, and have had one surgery (rotator cuff & labrum repair) and everything you stated is SPOT ON! I ran into some of the very issues you mentioned- overtraining for one. I feel as strong as I did in my late 20s/early 30s but over the last 6 months just started dragging and losing motivation to go to the gym. I was trying to push through my workouts attempting to do what I was doing 20 yrs ago. Now common sense should have told me otherwise but you know that inner ego can get the best of you. I started easing off on my volume and noticed I was looking and feeling better and actually feeling stronger. It wasn’t making sense to me other than I was giving myself more recovery time. You have applied sanity to what I had tripped up on and was trying to figure out the “why” it was working. Thanks again for all the great content, and as one of the minority older guys still trying to figure out how to do things better I appreciate you taking some time to focus on lifting as you get older. Young dudes pay attention to Uncle Rip he’s trying to educate you so hopefully you age better than our generation.
This is what I have been experiencing lately at 51. A little less on reps and more rest and my joints feel better and I actually feel stronger. Great advice.
10 minute part onward - He sounds like me - Ive lifted heavy - screwed my shoulders up, fell off ladders , wrecked motorcycles , been to the middle east, got hurt bla bla bla. I was 49 yrs old , still running a 5.5 50, squat 620 , and bench 465- now 57 ha squats are 300ish , bench 135 - and on a treadmill is all I run .... But I did write a book called The Healing by Ron Nick. I would like to send Mr. Rippetoe a copy if he reads this comment. also I have a connection he should talk to...
Thanks for talking on this, I'm 56 had both knees and hips replaced and still hitting the gym 5-6 days a week. I enjoy it, I shifted from deadlifting everyother day to rack pulls, trap pulls, RDL's through the week and deadlifts once a week to everyother week. I use my pins and lighter weights to breakdown the movement's down to manageable volume. Benchpress, same thing I use my pins, I move my Max 3 inches at the top and press for reps off the pins at different parts of the movement. Young people look at me funny but I'm being smarter and hopefully I'll still be enjoying hitting the gym for years to come
I really like what you have to say, a lot of wisdom. Having only picked up a barbell 2 years ago and I am only 61 years old. Thanks for the reminder to change the oil in my lawnmower. I'm going to keep moving as long as I can.
The biggest thing the kids today don't understand is that 99% of youtube fitness folks are on drugs and those are their influences. They don't understand what a natural lifter looks like or goes through with recovery and aging. Love the content all these years.
I'm 57. I can relate to shoulder injuries, soreness, pot belly, remembering my hay days of dead lifting 315. I appreciate your honesty and humility. This video helped me kinda take stock in my recently reentering power lifting because of starting strength and how to approach it. Oops. Meant strengthtraining not powerlifting
RIP. Gonna cut back on squat due to age. What you think? 3 times every two weeks or 4 times every two weeks. Also what is max days between squat days before my squat could suffer.
It’s true . When my hands were tied behind my back ... I lost all semblance of speech 😂😂😂😂👏in addition you hit the nail on the head with the sleep issue .. at our age 😨glad to know I’m not the only one ☝️
Great stuff. I just turned 61 and have been lifting in some form or another for 30 years, but never to a level of real strength when I had the chance. Not sure why, just not very intelligent I guess. Now I really have the drive and intelligence but my body keeps getting injured when I really go for it. So, I have to be really smart and back off and go slower to avoid injury. Won't stop thought, I realize I have to lift until I drop dead.
Training to not be dead? Walking around with good functional strength is laudable but plenty of middle aged and very strong people die everyday from heart disease, which weight training does not in any way address. That's more in the realm of nutrition and blood lipid profiles. Hence, walking around with too much subcutaneous fat and visceral fat deposition which inevitably accompanies declining or absent growth hormone levels is really more important than how much one can rep out in the gym.
I really appreciate this episode. My shoulders are shit. I'm 49 and I haven't been sleeping well lately. It was only recently that I realized that I've been saying that for about two years now. Shit just creeps up on you and never really goes away. I've never completely healed from any injury I've sustained since I was 40. Not only do you heal more slowly, you never really completely heal (and my numbers aren't even what Rip's are at 63). I also really relate to the therapeutic/stress-release theme. The most hectic and the darkest times in my life were the times I was out of the weight room. For a long time, I thought I wasn't in the weight room because my life was hectic or depression had a hold of me but it was really the other way around: I was a mess because I was out of the gym. For whatever reason that's the thing that centers me.
49 as well and been in your gym since I was 12 competed in OL PL and rugby. I am still in "good shape" but I feel your shoulder pain. I would definitely change they I approached training if I had a time machine. I would also have not compared in PL till I was 41 . I would have shut it down at 35 when I knew that was the moment my body changed but I kept pushing and even took up a notch jumping in PEDS for the first time in my training career because I reasoned with myself that is what I needed to get over the "hump"...that was an unreasonable decision. To all the young guys pay attention to the old guys . Young bull old bull 💪
Finally the truth from a fella who has "walked the walk" and a Texan at that. A fella who tells me how to keep from getting put into a nursing home cause I can't get out of a chair I'm interested in listening too.
I started lifting weights at age 15. In my 20s I trained for bench press contests. I have squatted, deadlifted, and bench pressed tons and tons of weights. When I was in my teens, 20s, 30s I could train 4 days a week hard and heavy. As I get older I find that I can only train 2-3 days per week. Plus I work everyday and have life stress. It's amazing that I am still training and lifting heavy for my age and weight. As I get older a whole bunch of sets and reps is not recoverable. I only squat twice a month, but my squat sessions are heavy and they are quality squat sessions. I bench press once per week but the bench press sessions are heavy and they are quality bench press sessions. I find that I have to train my back, shoulders, and supporting muscles to be able to bench press and squat so I do a supporting session once per week. I train my lower body squats, deadlifts, etc. once per week. I train my upper body bench press, rows, presses twice per week. I only heavy shoulder press twice per month. I find that as I get older less training is more. I don't know if what I am saying makes sense. If I were to just bang bang ba ng knock these crazy bodybuilding programs with all of these sets and reps I'd get ripped but I wouldn't be strong and I'd be sore all the time. I'd probably need tons of steroids to do it too. Just thinking out loud.
I'm 74, lift heavy, don't care if people know I'm doing peds, have abs, and am fit as hell. I've got an artificial knee, artificial shoulder (hemicap that lets me lift heavy) and pushing it to the max. I really don't exercise any caution. I'll keep going until I can't go any more.
My knees are my biggest problem. I have arthritis in both joints and no longer squat or leg press. Now days I usually do a set of wall sits once a week and some leg curls. I just work around my injuries
I'm 56 and started training at 14 I'm still going strong and I'm one of the strongest lifters at our local YMCA in Newark Ohio!. My workouts are one hour 4 times a week all compound movements just for fun!
Hello Mark, really hit home, just turned 60, trained for over 40 years.I haven't trained for the last six months(daughter fighting cancer) Thank you, inspired me to get back into the gym.
I so wanted that drink to be a dank stout. I'd like to hear Rip talk about alcohol and lifting. Everyone knows it isn't optimal, but I'm 61 and regularly drink beer and it doesn't seem cause weight gain or decrease performance, plus it adds happiness to my life.
Hi Mark. Thank you for your wisdom and insight into being strong while aging....I am 12 weeks into SS LP and at 40 years old i have made considerable strength and muscle gains, so I know your system works very well! Thank you for your great work on making humans strong. I was wondering if you can make a video addressing a Joe Rogan podcast where he talks to a strength coach named Pavel Tsatsouline who is chairman of StrongFirst. He talks about different ways in getting strong and particularly refers to sovient style training. He mentions kettle bell strength training being more effective when you have limited mobility to use a barbell (i.e. shoulder injuries prevents you getting under the bar etc..). I found his video interesting but when I think about the programs in the blue book of SSBBT 3rd ed. It seems to be going against this principle . Your knowledge in addressing this video would be highly useful and would make a really good discussion. I'm looking forward to your reply. Thank you for your help with this matter. Mo
😅I found you 5 months ago been bodybuilding lifting weights for 35 years 3 days a week no matter what Im 66 I completly changed my workout to your strength routine wow I luv it. Never deadlifted or done squats switched to machines 15 years ago full body proably doing about 325 reps and moving about 60,000 pounds in 30 minutes or so chasing that pump.I never competed but I look good I wasn't sleeping I was tired then I found you. Box gyms never had racks now I understand why so I bought a rack weights got my wife on the program she finally enjoys lifting for once in her life. I set a new PR every workout its exciting up to 405 deadlift ,270 squat, 200 row, press 145 thats a tough one close grip chest press 175 to 190 . Im doing 3x3 your 1000% correct less is better I recover very well. I agree with just about all your views we think alot look forward to your podcasts THANK YOU PS wife just did 225 DL not bad for 5"1 130 shrimp other lifts are coming slowly but she sees results
Started my reflections at 30. Soon realized that life severely takes a toll on lifestyle. Comparatively still a pup to Rip at 40, and realized that good habits in health (eat well, lift well, rest well) are what matters most because life still needs to go on...with or without abs.
Good show, Rip. I am 53. Been lifting 3 years and I will never go back. I am still getting stronger and I truly enjoy improving. Even when I decline, I will still stick with it.
I'm 66 and feel better and look the best that I have ever looked. I've been a gym rat for over 40 years. I'm squatting in the low 300's now at 165 lbs. My life time best was at 400 when I was in my 30's. I just got 15 reps of 325 lbs Friday. I call that my light. I will go up next Friday to 335 lbs. I do my new light 8 reps. Then I will do a heavy at 355 for a heavy for 5 reps. Then I will do my light for 10 reps and as time goes on I will work my light up to 15 reps and then increase it by 10 more lbs. until I reach my heavy for 8 reps. Then I will increase my heavy by 20 more lbs. I've been doing this for over 6 months and it has worked very well for me. I do have abs.with a 17.8 % body fat. I believe strength is the most important thing you need as you get older. You can have a great physic and strength.
No one cares if you have abs, we just want you to be healthy, you say you train to not die. The biggest thing you can do to be healthy and not die is get your weight under control (having visible abs is also not healthy). Overweight people are more likely to get heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, gallbladder disease, gallstones, osteoarthritis and gout. Weight training does have lots of health benefits but it is only a part of being healthy. Don't care about the haters, care about your health. The final thing is that being overweight makes you sleep worse, which means you don't recover as well.
62 Years old here.. Retired Marine, Never really lifted but as you've mentioned when you're older, life's past experiences played a toll on parts of us that have limited the mobility aspects of movement. Been learning to lift now for over 3 months. Listening to and watching Alan Thrall's channel and you and your channel, bought the starting strength book and have access to my police department full gym to practice. This has forced me to leave my ego at the door since I don't have any spotters and get to practice the process. I'm a lucky man. I don't have any bad habits since I've never done this before. 6.4 240 lbs. when I hurt, I know when to stop. Hurting pain and soreness are different. I have goals - My goals are just to get stronger, NOT OVERNIGHT. I have stress and make myself go to bed every night at a decent time don't worry about my diet to any degree, feel strong BUT I only go as far as my body allows me. I have a lot of work to do to get stronger and I've realized I won't get very much more. I had someone tell me just yesterday that I'm in better shape than most that come to the gym. I want to thank you for giving us the insight to do the right way of lifting. I have put on muscle already and I have benefited.. Lastly, your insight on beating spotters with a hammer that don't spot correctly was priceless. Semper-Fi Jerry
Hi Jerry, Thanks for this comment. I'm seventy and went back to the gym 3 months ago as well. I've been fit all my life. I'm an Army vet and retired FDNY Lieutenant. For the last 15 years I've practiced and taught a vigorous style of hot yoga. It's a nice retirement gig, I have a small studio in Bangkok, Thailand. It's kept me fit. But other than push-ups and sit-ups, I've only done yoga for about a decade. I always tell my students to cross train. But I didn't. What I've discovered is our bodies want to get old. It's natural. We can't stop it. But we can slow it down. I decided to go for whatever peak fitness is for a guy my age. I finally took my own advice and began cross-training 3.5 months ago. I swim 20 minutes as a warm up, push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups (pull ups are freakin hard) and then about 70 minutes lifting. I do that routine twice a week and practice my 90 minute hot yoga routine (Bikram method) four times a week. So I'm working hard. I've eliminated rice and other starches; I eat carefully. Results are slow; I'm old. And I'm careful; no injuries so far. I am getting results. I'm psyched. I do leave my ego at home and do the best I can in the gym. My weight levels are less than half of what Mark is doing. But I'm feeling pretty good. I too am a lucky man. And thank you Mark. I'm getting my tips on lifting from your videos. Sensational at Seventy:) Charlie
@@TWCH this is amazing and inspirational to say the least. I'm sure that there is more to this than we have time to type and keep up the awesome job of staying fit. What EVER YOU DO, don't stop and let me catch up to you and have to carry that life baton.. LOL.. The hardest part for me is getting through the initial cold flexibility movement on knee joints. Warm ups are a MUST. Other than that, like Alan and Rip says, it's nothing but excuses. Semper-fi. Jerry
Rip. And all those who have trouble sleeping: Lemon Balm tea (Melisa). Just like knock out drops! Or speak to your quack and get some melatonin supplements (also available over counter in many countries). Then, with no change to your eating habits, try fasting from time to time. No you won't lose muscle. Will do a power of good for your metabolic health in the long run. Stay strong! Thanks for all the advice and the Blue Book.
STEM CELLS!! Im 74. Been in the gym almost daily since I was 19. I got stem cells in Panama in 2019. No pain anywhere anymore. Im stronger now than ever before.
"You need to see how little work you can do to get stronger" ...meanwhile everybody is training non-stop to get stronger I first started watching Rippetoe's videos about 13 years ago. I'm still amazed how good a coach this man is and how much his advice goes against the conventional wisdom. Thanks Rip!
do you have suggestions on volume for us Fat Bastards that were sedentary during our careers and now (I'm 65) want to get stronger/lighter for retirement
58. The sleep factor . . . bingo . . . actually relieved to hear that I am not the only one. Lifting weights is just as much fun as when I started in the eighth grade at the Hancock County High School on the old classic Universal multistation. It is probably what I will be doing right before they finally cart me off. I hope so.
I have a question, as a 56 year old man who just started strength training this year and who is also 100 pounds overweight, what is the best approach to building strength and losing weight? I am working out twice a week, only doing Leg Press and Bench Press and 15 minutes of cardio as a warmup. Starting out with low weights and working up slowly. Started Leg Press at 170 and am now up to 290, still less than my body weight, started bench press at 45 and am now up to 110. Been doing this for about 6-8 weeks. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I had back surgery L4/L5 back in 2004 so am not doing any dead lift training. Back feels good now but don't want to risk it and recently had a pinched nerve which is better now as well. I have your starting strength book and watch all your videos.
Mid 50’s, I see far too many men (and women) my age, limping around, struggling to get out of their cars, obviously far too weak for their bodyweight… it’s awful. That’s why I squat, deadlift and press. The ability to do a chin up isn’t even in the realm of possibility for these guys. Neighbors I’m sure wonder why I make heavy sandbags, have kegs and sleds and Farmers Walk implements but it’s obvious when you look around why I’m doing it
not everybody can't handle stress, some of us sleep 8 hours a day, eat healthy, pre/re-hab injuries to minimize the effects and do enough cardio to not have a beer belly... not buying this "when you get old, you have to be fat and broken down
Ah, but Rip says don't run, abs are for men impressing men, chicks don't like 'em and he doesn't care about people thinking he is fat while being a prognosticator about health and fitness.... go figure. His sample of N=1 and Tony Soprano says women like fat bellies. How about lose the belly because it is a very strong indicator of morbidity and a huge health risk? Don't do it for the haters matey, do it for your own bloody health. Good to see how in touch with the current teen generation he is too...
I wonder if I can get some opinions from the experienced people here: what is the thoughts about farmers carries or sandbag carries in lieu of (maybe 1:1 ratio) deadlifts? One week dead’s 1x5, next week heavy carries. In Dinosaur Training, Brooks talks about how all he and his partners big lifts went up after they recovered from the farmers walks
I’m 67 years old and starting training when I was 16, through 21 years of serving in the Marines, 26 years in law enforcement. I have both hips replaced and shoulders repaired as a result of my service to this country and community I continue to train and will never give up
“Into my heart an air that kills from yon far country blows: What are those blue remembered hills, What spires, what farms are those? That is the land of lost content, I see it shining plain, The happy highways where I went and cannot come again.”
Check out a cpap machine. I'm 50 and started working out with my 12 YO son daily and sleep better now than ever. The sleep apnea was killing me. I got your book and am changing our lifting for better form and making the diet better. The man boobs are shifting to muscle and we both can lift a hell of a lot more weight. I'm good just looking better but my son is hyped to be better on the football team. Thanks for the videos.
Hey Mark, thanks for the wise words. I value your ideas and I respect you as a man. I am 27 and am fairly confused what I ought to be doing on a lot of fronts in my life, but your guidance helps relieve some of that stress. Take care Mark, looking forward to the next one.
Arnold Schwarzenegger has gone machines only in his 70s for good reasons: Injury prevention and the related physical stress reduction they provide over barbells. Some NFL teams use machines almost exclusively, as well. And it doesn't seem to make a difference in performance. Just as Penn State was doing, even when machines were less well designed and during its 80s golden era. Which really begs the question....why bother with powerlifting style exercises unless one competes?
After over 40 years in gym I can tell you, this is the best relationship of my life. And I promise, to stay together till end of my life. Gym is the best doctor as well. It heals all my physical, mental and emotional pain. And make me hapy and strong too.
In most countries, a guy with a tan and visible abs is considered a poor choice as a husband. Tanned skin means he works outside, probably manual labor and visible abs means he doesn't have enough money to feed himself. When I lived in the Middle East, China, Japan, and the Philippines, the more beautiful women almost always had a pot-bellied, pale-skinned, rich boyfriend or husband.
All I can say to the cry babies is BPC157 and TB500. GHRP also helps keeps your injuries from keeping you in the gym. Quit whining and research solutions to get you back in the gym. I’m 60 6’2” 260 lbs at 14%bodyfat, been training 42 years, with 4 back surgeries, 1 shoulder surgery and told I need a shoulder replacement. I found solutions to get the inflammation under control and used peptides to heal old injuries. Never say die!
Still lifting at 60, although i have to train in secret due to lockdown here in the UK (thank god my gym gives me secret access). I`m waking up at 2am and instantly thinking about pointless idiotic shit, do you know me? oh how i would love 6 hrs of sleep a night, but its just a dream...........
