Meet Walter a.k.a the Waltersaurus.
He’s not like your average 75 year old. I’ve been coaching Walter for over 10 years and his desire to work hard and learn more about training and how the human body functions never ceases to amaze me. Walter grew to like pushing himself in the three lifts collectively performed by powerlifters: The squat, the deadlift and the bench press. We’ve altered the movements slightly to accommodate some physical limitations, for example, we rack pull instead of deadlift as kyphosis means he can’t get into an acceptable starting position when lifting from the floor. However, over time Walter has developed a 40kg bench press for 3 reps, a rack pull of 110kg, and a box squat of 70kg. These numbers may shock people not accustomed to witnessing the Waltersaurus train, but those who know him know there is more in the tank.
I can imagine many trainers/coaches may wince when reading these words. The benefits of weight training or any physical activity in elderly populations is becoming better known. However, there are many who would think this type of training is inappropriate for a 75-year old. I should be coaching for health and not pushing Walter too much as he may get injured at his age. So, I have come up with rebuttals for many criticisms which may fly my way.
‘The elderly should not lift heavy weights and stick to light resistance training’
Rebuttal: Walter and I have been training for over 10 years. During this time, we have spent many hours working on these lifting skills, the volume of which has conditioned his musculoskeletal system to deal with heavier loads. In short, Walter has earned the right to now lift heavy after years of weight training practice. However, even now, we still predominantly lift loads around the 70%1RM, not necessarily because training lighter is safer, but because I believe better musculoskeletal adaptations occur practising reps at a sub-maximal load rather than grinding out a poorly performed singles. It is just that Walter has been practising for such a long time his 70% is way above others at his age, making it seem very heavy to outsiders.
‘Walter should be focusing on functional movement to aid everyday activities rather than training like a powerlifter’
Rebuttal: He does. The heavy lifting Walter does only makes up a small proportion of his training time. The role of the heavy lifting is twofold: 1) to strengthen the musculoskeletal system and 2) because he really enjoys it. The rest of the time we are focusing on movement tasks to improve body awareness, coordination, and support strength. And, being stronger is only going to help Walter when performing everyday tasks, so the heavy lifting is functional???? Being stronger will afford Walter more movement options when performing everyday tasks, so I think so.
‘Bone tissue weakens as you get older. This type of heavy training puts Walter at risk of osteoporosis’
Rebuttal: It is true, the strength of bone tissue decreases with age. Bone mineral density decreases with age and the bone tissue’s ability to regenerate itself in response to load slows down. Because of this, elderly people are at a greater risk of osteoporosis (increased bone weakness) and fractures. However, this is much more prevalent in older people who are sedentary. Older people who have been appropriately weight training for years or older people who only recently took up weight training (Marques et al., 2012) have shown to have greater bone strength and bone mineral density in comparison to sedentary peers of the same age. This has shown to decrease the risk of bone fractures (Senderovich & Kosmopoulos, 2018) and greatly improve health. The benefits of weight training for older people are now promoted by the NHS (https://www.nhs.uk/news/older-people/older-people-would-benefit-weight-training-and-more-protein/). Over 10 years of appropriate weight training, Walter’s skeletal system has gotten stronger allowing it to tolerate the heavy weights he lifts today. I am confident that his chance of bone fracture is greatly reduced because of this. Reports from Walter’s physician each year shows he has above average bone health for his age. The heavy lifting must be working.
‘If Walter has kyphosis he shouldn’t be rack pulling or squatting heavy loads’
Rebuttal: Kyphosis is the increased curvature of the upper back and has been called the ‘hunchback’ in extreme cases. Certainly, kyphosis is something that needs to be considered when making a programme individualised. An increased curvature of the thoracic spine may alter the loads experienced at the front of the intervertebral discs and affect how the rest of the body moves, most notable the lower part of the spine and the shoulder joint. Walter works on his thoracic extension during training I.e. to reduce the hunch, but due to this condition being present for a number of years his upper spine has settled in a kyphotic position. However, his kyphosis is not extreme and you can make changes to certain exercises to ensure the kyphosis doesn’t negatively affect the motion of the rest of the body. For example, instead of a deadlift from the floor, we deadlift off raised blocks (rack pull), which allows Walter to maintain good spinal mechanics during the lift. This ensures the spine is being loaded safely despite the kyphosis. We’ve had no injury issues since using this approach.
So, if you’re a coach/trainer and are working with older people don’t be afraid to use heavy lifting as an option. If movement skills have been coached appropriately and they have experienced some weight training, know that they will respond very well if you take them through an appropriate (gradual increases in load) lifting programme with the aim of lifting some heavy barbells. Walter is the strongest he’s ever been at 75-years old. Next time I write about this topic he’ll likely be even stronger.
Note: A weight training programme for all ages should go hand-in-hand with appropriate eating habits, and sufficient sleep and recovery.
References
Marques, E. A, Mota, J., & Carvalho, J. (2012). Exercise effects on bone mineral density in older adults: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Age. 34(6): 1493–1515. doi: 10.1007/s11357-011-9311-8
Senderovich, H., & Kosmopoulos. A. (2018). An Insight into the Effect of Exercises on the Prevention of Osteoporosis and Associated Fractures in High-risk Individuals. Rambam Maimonides Medical Journal. 9(1): e0005. doi: 10.5041/RMMJ.10325
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