3 Programming Strategies for Training Senior Citizens
Wow, what a night. I was driving home from my last client of the day last night with great visions;
A glorious dinner
A good night’s sleep
Possibly an episode of Entourage whilst eating said dinner (Jess and I are working through the series…again)
FYI: The movie is supposed to be out next June- what what!!
With the exception of the last 5 minutes of every Scandal episode, no show engages me more than Entourage.
Anyway, those visions quickly left my mind when my car started flashing lights on the dashboard, as if to tell me imminent danger was coming. I was on the 405 at the time, so if anyone is reading this that lives in LA, you know that is NOT where you want to have your car die out on you!
So against my better judgment, I continued driving until I was able to transition off to the I-10 and get off on the shoulder.
Car = dead
Now, this isn’t the first time I’ve had car problems, but I have never been on a freeway when they have happened.
After calling AAA, I called Jess to let her know what was up.
“Are your flashers on?”
(they initially did not come on, but after pushing the button a few times, they did)
Cars were whirring past, making my car shake back-and-forth…not the most settling feeling.
And then the flashers stopped working.
Really. Geesh.
There was no way for me to exit the driver-side door without getting smoked, so I lunged over to pop open the passenger door. I felt like I was stuck on railroad tracks and that it was only a matter of time before someone wasn’t paying attention and didn’t see my car.
In my best gymnastics impression, I got up on both hands and swung my legs over to the other side and probably over-dramatically jumped out. I envisioned it like an action movie, where I would just make it out in time before the car exploded or something.
Fortunately, this story isn’t that epic.
It all ended well with a nice tow-truck man saving the day. But now the better part of today will be spent figuring out what in the world is wrong with that thing and praying it’s not anything too involved (in-home training strongly requires the use of my car).
I say all of that to say that blog posts tend to strike me at the weirdest times. As I surprisingly got over to the passenger side with relatively little trouble last night, I thought to myself,
“What if I didn’t have much mobility or general athleticism? What if I was 80 years old? Would the tow-truck man have had to drag me out?”
Most likely. But who knows.
But it got me thinking about a post I’ve been wanting to write for some time.
I work with primarily general population clients, most of whom are entering (or are currently participating in) their later years.
I’m very passionate about working with this older demographic (I’m talking at least 60 years old and up) because I think there are certain stereotypes that mistakenly guide how most trainers approach their programming with this group.
I want to go into each of those stereotypes and offer up a more modern-day approach.
Whether you train senior citizens, or you are one, I think you will get a lot out of this!
Stereotype:
Seniors should stick to machines to avoid injury
Alternative:
Seniors should use machines when necessary, but the majority of their training should be with their own bodyweight and free weights
I don’t think there is anything more infuriating to me than watching a trainer take a senior citizen through the standard machine circuit of leg extensions, leg curls, chest press, etc.
It just pains me because that’s not really doing them any good.
If any population needs to develop more kinesthetic awareness and coordination, it’s our seniors! After all, one of the biggest risks for most seniors is FALLING.
Is locking them down in a machine so that they only have to work through a limited range in a single plane going to aid in giving them the stability needed to prevent a life-altering tumble?
Uhh…no.
The programming will more than likely need to be scaled, but that’s the key…SCALED.
For example, if they can’t execute a proper hinge, that’s fine, just regress the pattern. Maybe instead of a hinge to the wall you drop them down to an Airex Pad and have them work on a tall-kneeling hinge. If they can’t do a tall-kneeling hinge, get them on their back and work on their leg raise.
That type of approach is no different than for anyone else. Meet them at their level, but then aim for the same things everyone else does.
With my programming model, I want everyone to be able to deadlift, squat, chin-up, pushup, and overhead press.
I don’t care how old you are, that’s what I would like to see you do, because there are immense benefits to mastering those basic patterns. Once those patterns are mastered, you better believe I’m loading them and increasing their strength. I talked more about strength development for seniors in THIS post.
Sure, for someone who’s advanced in age, they have no doubt accrued more injuries and developed quite a few more soft-tissue adhesions, but all that means is that the timeline for achieving the above movements, and the increments with which the load is increased, is drawn out more.
It’s easy to just cop out and throw them onto a machine. But if anything that is setting them up to be WEAKER than they already are. I would rather teach an older person to master their own bodyweight, like in a Turkish Get-Up, than load up a bunch of weight plates on a restricted machine that won’t allow them to explore their unique biomechanical capacity.
Stereotype:
Seniors should lift slowly to avoid injury
Alternative:
Seniors should train to be explosive, even more so than younger populations
The quality that decreases the fastest as you get older is not necessarily strength or muscle mass.
It’s power.
The ability to produce force quickly.
It’s incredibly important to have power in your later years, because it can mean the difference between looking your age and well…not.
Basically, if you train slow, expect to look and be slow!
Seniors are already slowing down by just being alive, but proper strength-training can help bring back their youth.
I bring this up because I see a lot of fitness pros having their older clients lift excessively slow on the concentric (lifting) portion. This is the part of the repetition where you gotta be a beast!
I’ll typically instruct my senior clients to “explode” out of the bottom, whether it’s a bench press or a squat.
This helps develop neuromuscular efficiency and brings more fast-twitch muscle fibers into play. Fast-twitch fibers are a requisite component of power development.
Of course, good technique and a solid spot should always be employed, but there is nothing inherently dangerous about lifting fast AND controlled.
I wrote an article for EliteFTS a few years ago on the importance of power development HERE if you want more information on that.
Stereotype:
As long as you run a senior through a PAR-Q and get a doctor’s clearance, there isn’t much else you can do for their assessment. You know they don’t move well.
Alternative:
Regardless of age or perceived ability, movement NEEDS to be screened
If you’ve read this blog, you know I use the FMS as a primary movement screening tool.
One of the things I’ve heard over the years is that there is no point in doing an FMS on a senior client, because you know they are going to fail a lot of the screens and you don’t want them to feel bad about themselves.
Valid point.
But unfortunately, screening is not meant to make you feel like you’re number 1. Its purpose is to extract objective information that can then guide a well-informed program.
“Well-informed” meaning you know their WEAK LINK.
If you don’t screen, and you just assume they suck, that’s great, but where are you going to start with your program?
If you attempt to attack something that isn’t the root cause of their issues, you’re going to make things messy.
Save yourself the trouble, take 10 minutes, and do a proper screen. They will probably fail at some things, but at least you actually saw them fail. More than likely, they will surprise you with some things they CAN do.
I remember I trained this older guy a while back, who, if you bet me $100, I would have guessed he couldn’t hit a deep squat to save his life.
But I took him through the screen, and sure enough, he sits into a solid 3, and looks to me,
“Did I get it?”
Annnddddd lesson learned.
Never assume. Just screen.
Movement should be the number-one priority with this demographic, anyway. They will no doubt have various mobility/stability issues, but coaxing some of that mobility/stability out of them will make them feel tons better.
And giving someone the ability to feel good after years of being “uncomfortable” never gets old (pun…intended).
Conclusion
Seniors should be TRAINED, not babysat.
Screen them, get them familiar with using their own bodyweight, and then get them strong and powerful.
As personal trainers, this demographic is going to continue to fill up your client roster as people get older and become more aware that they need to be healthy.
Make this world a better (and stronger) place and train them properly! You never know whose grandma or grandpa you are giving a longer and more enjoyable life.
And then if their car dies on the side of a busy freeway, they will be able to get to the passenger side like a boss.
Dominate All Life,
Kasey, CSCS
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