Weight Training for Men in Their 60s

Benefits of Weight Training

• Lean muscle mass gain
• Fat loss
• More energy and stamina
• Better sleep
• Greater self-confidence and self-esteem
• Improved mood
• More ease in performing everyday tasks

• Increase bone density and prevent osteoporosis
• Improve mobility and balance
• Prevent cognitive decline
• Decrease the risk of injury in daily life and exercise activities
• Protect the joints
• Prevent or improve chronic health conditions like arthritis, diabetes, heart disease, and depression

How to Minimize Risks

Just because you're older doesn't mean you can't build a lot of muscle and strength. It just means that there are certain things you need to take into consideration to prevent weight training from making you feel worse rather than better.

Your weight training routine needs to be planned accordingly and needs to progress gradually.

You also need to allow adequate recovery time. Your muscles grow in between weight training sessions, not while you're training. Therefore, you have to allow enough time before training the same muscle group again.

This is true at any age; but older adults likely need more recovery time than younger people, especially after high-intensity exercise.

Components of Your Program

A well-designed weight-training workout for a 60-year-old man includes more than just going into the gym and lifting weights. It includes exercises that improve balance, stability, agility, and mobility. In addition to strength, these components will not only make you fitter, but will improve your daily functioning and decrease your risk of falls and other common age-related mishaps.

Resistance Training Exercises

There aren't any specific exercises that men in their sixties should or shouldn't do. Which exercises you include in your program depends on your preferences, your exercise knowledge, and your access to equipment. When you're starting out, you don't need to get fancy. Your goal in the beginning should be to learn the basics of proper exercise technique and to build muscle memory.

• Lunges
• Squats
• Dead lifts
• Step-ups
• Pullups

‌Sets and Reps‌

Choose a few exercises for your lower body and a few for your upper body. Just doing squats and lunges is enough to target all the major muscle groups of the lower body — quads, hamstrings, calves, and glutes. You can target your shoulders, arms, back, and chest with chest presses, pullups, rows, and military presses.

For the first few weeks of your program, use light weights or just your body weight. Do one or two sets of 8 to 12 repetitions using perfect form. Then, you can start to add weight and sets. Choose a weight that allows you to perform at least 8 but not more than 12 reps with proper form. Increase your total sets to two to five.

‌Lifting Schedule‌

How often you lift each week depends on your intensity. In the beginning, you can train each body part two or three times a week, on nonconsecutive days. When you start lifting heavier weights, you'll need more rest days.

But everyone is different. Many factors determine how much recovery time you need, including health status, nutrition, sleep quality, and stress. If you're eating well, sleeping well, otherwise healthy, and have low stress, you might recover more quickly than a 35-year-old who can't check all those boxes.

Listen to your body. As you increase the intensity of your program, see how you feel when you take more or fewer rest days. If you feel a loss of strength in subsequent workouts, you know you're not taking enough recovery time. On the other hand, don't take too much time; you should lift weights once a week, at the least.

Balance, Agility, and Mobility Exercises

In each workout, include one or two exercises in each category.

‌Improve Your Balance‌

Balance exercises can be as simple as standing on one foot, which may be quite challenging for you in the beginning. After that, increase the challenge by standing on one foot with your eyes closed, raising your arms over your head or moving them around you and standing on an uneven surface such as a Bosu ball.

You can also include some single-leg exercises in your weight-training program that will have the same effect. Examples include single-leg dead lifts and Bulgarian split squats.

‌Become More Agile‌

Agility is what enables you to react quickly — a skill that declines with age. Practice agility with exercises such as:

• Box jumps
• Agility ladder drills
• Single-leg lateral hops
• Medicine ball throws

‌Increase Mobility and Flexibility‌

Mobility is the ability of a joint to move through its full range of motion, while flexibility is the ability of a muscle to lengthen. Both rely on one another for proper function. Make sure to spend time stretching all the major muscle groups after your workouts. Hold each stretch for 30 to 60 seconds and repeat it one or two more times.

Improve the health and function of your joints with exercises like arm circles, hip circles, ankle and neck rolls, squats, and shoulder pass-throughs with a dowel. You can perform these before each workout or whenever you have time throughout your day.

Take It Slowly

Slow and steady wins the race, but actually, this isn't a race. You may want to make up for lost time, but taking your time to build a solid foundation of strength at a gradual pace will pay off in the long run. Doing too much too soon is a surefire way to burn out or end up with an injury, which will sideline you for longer than it did in your younger years. So use the wisdom your years have given you and play it safe.

On the other hand, as with anything in life, in order to make gains and achieve your goals, you need to keep pushing and challenging yourself.

The Takeaway

• Starting or resuming a weight training program is beneficial for men in their sixties. Benefits include increased muscle mass, stronger bones, and increased ease performing daily activities.
• Compound exercises, which work more than one muscle group at a time, are especially effective and efficient. Adding exercises that improve agility, mobility, and balance are also important for older people.
• Always consult with a healthcare professional if you have questions or concerns about starting a new exercise program.