article about older women lifting

[KateTT]

Awesome thread! It just confirms my desire to just keep lifting until I keel over. I'm 55 and am lifting heavier than I ever have and I just keep pushing those limits. I'm just entering Cathe's STS Meso 3 (heaviest lifting) and am going heavier than I did when I did the rotation the first time many years ago!!

Like the first article, I like to lift heavy because I can. I like being able to carry a 50 lb bag of bird seed over my shoulder! I like being able to move huge logs of wood for our woodstove!

At the same time, I meditate every day and practice Yoga almost every day to keep my Inner Self just as healthy and strong than my Outer Self. The Inner Self needs a lot more work anyway. ;-)

Yay to you wonderful strong women!

[warriorprincess]

A few years ago, my Mom (now 82) asked me incredulously why I lift weights. To which I replied without hesitation "bone density." That's not the only reason, but I knew it would hit home with her since her mother was wheel-chair bound for decades due to osteoporosis, and she is suffering from spinal fractures herself now.

My Mom, a stubborn, strong-willed woman, who never concedes anything, nodded thoughtfully and said "That's a good answer."

[Terri1222]

I have recently come to go back to lifting heavy weights at the gym, and I'm finding my 58 year old body is not that happy with me. While I built back up to my regular strength fairly quickly, I found that I had odd pains and discomfort (and not just regular DOMS) and weirdly enough especially in my neck/back area.

My body is longing for my usual yoga/pilates routine but I really wanted to incorporate weights into my program again.

I may just have to suck it up and use lighter weights instead. Though it did fee good hoisting around those heavy dumbbells for a bit!

Terri

[Sara1000]

Maybe it was a case of too much too soon, Terri. You might back off to a lower weight and build up more gradually.

I know it's frustrating. I recently went back to Cathe for upper body and sometimes she'll be using 25 pounds while I am using 8, but it feels like I'm getting a good workout. I've stopped comparing

[Taiga]

Originally Posted by Sara1000

Maybe it was a case of too much too soon, Terri. You might back off to a lower weight and build up more gradually.
....

And sometimes tweaking the diet can really help----having a post workout protein/carb snack, eliminating inflammatory foods (sugar/processed foods) that interfere with healing etc

[hdw]

Originally Posted by Terri1222

I have recently come to go back to lifting heavy weights at the gym, and I'm finding my 58 year old body is not that happy with me. While I built back up to my regular strength fairly quickly, I found that I had odd pains and discomfort (and not just regular DOMS) and weirdly enough especially in my neck/back area.

My body is longing for my usual yoga/pilates routine but I really wanted to incorporate weights into my program again.

I may just have to suck it up and use lighter weights instead. Though it did fee good hoisting around those heavy dumbbells for a bit!

Terri

You still get the benefit of lifting with lighter weights. So keep at it!

I'm 53+... I'm doing mostly metabolic workouts: compound moves with lighter weight while keeping heart rate high. I found that my body responds better to this kind of workout. Occasionally I lift heavy... not over 30 lb dumbbells though. I'm not pushing myself to lift as heavy as I could... my goal is not to lose the muscles I have...

[Castella]

I'm finding joint swelling and pain set me back with lifting. I've lowered the weight I lift quite a bit.

However if summer ever happens, there will be heavy bags of mulch and whatnot to move and I'm pretty confident I'll get it done. Last summer I gained a lot of upper body strength just from "real life" lifting and carrying. Maybe I'll do better this year at maintaining my garden strength!

[txhsmom]

Originally Posted by Sara1000

Maybe it was a case of too much too soon, Terri. You might back off to a lower weight and build up more gradually.

I know it's frustrating. I recently went back to Cathe for upper body and sometimes she'll be using 25 pounds while I am using 8, but it feels like I'm getting a good workout. I've stopped comparing

This is exactly me! I could never lift as heavy as Cathe, so I avoided her workouts. Now that I'm wanting more traditional strength workouts, I've started using Cathe's workouts - and often I'm lifting a third of what she is lifting. But I'm lifting a weight that challenges me, not one that challenges Cathe, and I guess that's what's important. Comparison is the thief of joy...

Carol

[Sara1000]

Originally Posted by txhsmom

This is exactly me! I could never lift as heavy as Cathe, so I avoided her workouts. Now that I'm wanting more traditional strength workouts, I've started using Cathe's workouts - and often I'm lifting a third of what she is lifting. But I'm lifting a weight that challenges me, not one that challenges Cathe, and I guess that's what's important. Comparison is the thief of joy...

Carol

So very true! If we can just convince ourselves of that. I recently started a thread asking what Cathe workouts use lighter weights (as I believe she has lifted heavier and heavier as the years went by) but now I realize I enjoy her newer workouts more even though the distance between her weight and mine may be greater.

The real challenge now, for me, is not to push myself so hard I am set back by soreness or {{shudder}} injury.

[donnamp]

Originally Posted by txhsmom

Comparison is the thief of joy...

Carol

I just love this quote, so true! How many times have you been perfectly satisfied with your own accomplishments only to compare yourself to someone else and have the joy in your accomplishments robbed (ironically, by yourself!)!

Donna