They made me do it

Training Logs
21

I’ve just seen this log for the first time.
You’re 83 and still olympic lifting !?!?! That’s inspiring!

I’m about 36, already feeling the effects of age, and want to still be capable when I’m your age.

I lift mon-wed-fri and have been for years, consistently.
A couple years ago I spent a few months trying to learn the Olympic lifts. Then spent a year without doing them and have just recently gotten back to practicing them.

When did you first start Olympic lifting? What suggestions do you have for someone who has come to it “late” in life, and isn’t as flexible or mobile as a young buck?
Any favorite accessory exercises to make one better at the snatch and clean-and-jerk?

22

Greetings jdm. I started in this forum age 76, posting as “76 y.o. Olympic Lifter”. Some months ago, here Jun 27, they froze my thread, because “no one has replied” ???

Well, it was my training thread, and there was a lot of ‘likes’ and views. I didn’t care that no one ‘replied’.

That’s when I started my new thread here. Here is a bit from my first couple of posts back then, introducing myself ……

“Greetings Brothers. I have been olympic lifting for about 12 years now, moving from the masters 65-69 years class, 70-74, and now 75-79. I have set about 80 state records in various weight and age categories, and am finally in a class where there are only my own records to break “

“Did a couple of years of weight training in my late teens, till i was shoofed off to the country for my apprenticeship training. Certainly not a natural, and trained at home with a barbell. Best i did was a press with 175 lbs (bodyweight 160), and a bottom up parallel front sq with 300 lbs. At 28, and now married, went again to the country for a promotion - for 38 years. Pretty much away from weights, travelling for my work in a 10,000 square mile district. But i was a confirmed physical culturist ---- exercise running, 20 years of competitive swimming, Tai Chi 40 years practice and teaching, Yoga practice and teaching, Reiki to master-teacher level, Subtle body dynamics. Got the axe in my job at 64, and could go to a gym again. Thought masters OL might be fun, so spent 2 years learning the trade in a small country gym, no platform, iron weights. Then travelled 130 miles for contests for a few years, then moved to the city. I take care to avoid injury. Did my back in at one stage, and spent 9 months lifting seated in a chair. Another time my left knee began to hurt in a deep sq, so i spent many months doing quarter sq’s and split lifts with my good leg forward. Currently i hurt my shoulder when i started doing BP after a 10 year break, so in my current program i am doing the OLs in lieu of BP. I have reduced my training to twice a week, because it takes me longer to recover. “

“i was fortunate in that i followed the iron game with magazines and books since i was young. When i moved to the city and a real lifting gym, i already knew just about everything. They looked on me as some friggin guru and let me do my own thing. Their technique pointers and encouragement were very helpfull. Doing a program a national coach made out for me, i hurt my back, badly, right off. Since then, i have done my own thing. No matter what outlandish experiment i might try, they seem to assume it is something intelligent and thought out. If you are just starting out, good coaching is ideal, even advice from fellow lifters. Failing that, you can learn an awful lot from the net, watching big contests and u-tube lifts.
I would recommend not going too heavy too often. Build great technique with lightish weights, and gradually build up, keeping an eye on style. “

There’s a few of my lifting vids on my facebook, if you want to see ----- I am John Humphrys, with a side view of my squat snatch as my avatar.

About 12 months back I had a ‘medical episode’. Whole body froze up, and I couldn’t lift my hands over shoulder height.

They determined I had tears in both supraspinatus. And I could barely stand up from a chair… Far cry from my flexibility that put young ones to shame. When I could do weights again, I could barely press a 20 k from the rack, and front squat it for 3.(Couldn’t get my arms up to hold the bar for a back squat).

Well, slowly slowly getting some power and flexibility back, and it looks like I’ll be another year before getting back to where I was pre-episode.

……

As far as my lifting training went, I have long arms, and can easily power clean more than I could jerk overhead. They kept ruling my jerks overhead for ‘pressout’. Long arms are great for pulling, but the pits for pressing and jerking.

So I never had to bother much to train pulls, but I have weak bodypower.

My favourite pulling exercise is Olympic Deadlift – a clean grip – not alternate- and a straight pull until you are upright. Sometimes I would add a raise on toes at the finish.

My favourite exercise now is the ‘clean and press’, which works more muscles in the body than any other exercise.

Don’t know if I will be able to competition lift again. Depends how my shoulders will take the shock of jerks and snatches slamming down in the deep position.

I will see how things go when I can clean and press 50 k.

5 Likes
23

Mon 9-9-2024.

83 now.

Bend, stretch, squat. 5 each.

Cleans and Presses. (20k) 2. (33.75) 1. (28.75) 3. 3. 3. 3. 3.
Seated Heels raise. (38.5 k) 15. 15. 15.

One arm dumbell rows. (17.5 k) 10. (22.5) 12.

Breathing Squat. (70 k) 5. (60 k) 20.
Rader pulls. 5. 20.

Training time 55 minutes.

Thurs 12-9-2024.

Bend, Stretch, Squat. 5 reps each.

Front Squat 10 sets of 3, each set followed by 5 rader pulls.
(20 k) 3. (25) 3. (30) 3. (35) 3. (40) 3. (45) 3. (50) 3. (55) 3. (65) 3. (60) 3.
rader pulls. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5.

Dumbell Cleans and presses. 5 sets of 3.
(6 k’s) 3. (8 k’s) 3. (10 k’s) 3. (12.5 k’s) 3. (15 k’s) 3 Cleans and partial presses.

Single leg Heels raise on block. (10 k.) 10. (15 k.) 11. (12.5 k) 15.

Assisted Chins. (41 k assist) 15. 15.

Workout time 1 hour and 11 minutes.

2 Likes
24

Mon 16-9-2024.

83 now.

Bend, stretch, squat. 5 reps each.

Cleans and Presses. (20k) 2. (22.5) 5. (27.5) 3. (32.5) 1. (37.5) F. 1. (41.25) F.

Heels raise. (90 k) 10. (100) 10. (110) 10.

One arm chest supported rows. (27.5 k) 11. (25 k) 15.

Trap bar deadlift. Low handles. (67.5 k) 3. (87.5) 3. (105) 3. (102.5) 3. 3.

Training time 1 hour, and 4 minutes.

Thurs 19-9-2024.

Bend, stretch, squat. 5 each.

Squat 10 sets of 3, each set followed by 5 rader pulls.
Back squat. (20 k) 3. (30) 3. (40) 3. (50) 3. (60) 3. (70) 3. (80) 3. (85) 3. (50) 3. 3.
rader pulls. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5.

Cleans and presses. 2 sets warmup and 3 sets 5.
(20 k) 2. (32.5) 1. (30) 5. (28.75) 5. 5.
Heels raise. 3 x 20.
(55 k) 20. (65) 20. (80) 20.

Assisted Chins. (36 k. assist) 10. (41 k. assist) 15.

Training time 1 hour and 15 minutes.

4 Likes
25

Thurs 26-9-2024.

83 now

Bend, Stretch, Squat. 5 reps each.

Front Squat 10 sets of 3, each set followed by 5 rader pulls.
(20 k) 3. (25) 3. (30) 3. (35) 3. (40) 3. (45) 3. (50) 3. (55) 3. (67.5) 3. (60) 3.
rader pulls. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5.

Dumbell Cleans and presses. 5 sets of 3.
(6 k’s) 3. (8 k’s) 3. (10 k’s) 3. (12.5 k’s) 3. (15 k’s) 3 Cleans and partial presses.

Single leg Heels raise on block. (10 k.) 10. (15 k.) 12. (12.5 k) 15.

Assisted Chins. (36 k assist) 11. (41 k assist) 15.

Workout time 1 hour and 8 minutes.

O-K-A-Y ! Time for some serious changes.
This year, although trying to eat with moderation, my weight crept up, making me stronger but fatter.
I started a one day a week fast, 36 hours, only water and coffee. This dropped my weight 2 and a half k, and kept it there, but no further.
Spring is starting = beach = vanity kicking in.
SO. Starting 2 days a week fasting. This will steadily drop my fatness, BUT, in my weakened state I am often unrecovered from my workous, even after 3 days. With a second fasting day – fasts slow your recovery, - I will crash and burn.
Therefore, spreading my training to a Mon- Fri- Wed spread, instead of Mon -Thurs. This should fix the recovery problem, but the weight I lose will make me weaker. I don’t know how my mini, scheduled weight increases will fair. My Clean and Press is probably doomed. Might try grease-the-groove at home.

3 Likes
26

Speaking of vanity, any push movements in your routine? DB Bench, pushups or similar (Seems mainly Oly lifts, squats, DB C&P, chins, rows, radar pull)? As long as you’re getting enough volume across fewer sessions to keep the muscles working the above reads a good plan.

1 Like
27

Hi friend Raven. You are right that getting full recovery before a severe workout will help your gains. Other oldies have had success with the M_F_W format, so i am hoping to continue gains, even with less food.
I don’t include BP in my training, because of the way i am built. I have long arms so the pecs grab all the action with whatever is happening. I’ve always had a good chest, whether i work it or not. I always sucked at BP, and it ended injuring my shoulder.

2 Likes
28

I have to wonder if the hit this indicates to your general wellbeing is worth it.

3 Likes
29

Well, it’s true Emily, that my body is happiest when I’m taking in more energy than I’m using. No prize for guessing what my body does with the excess. In times past I’ve gained and maintained a six pack, but now I’m only after a flat stomach with MUCH more power than I have at the moment. It will be a balancing act of getting rid of the unsightly, watching it doesn’t get back, while pushing for any strength and muscle gains a poor old man, who has become as weak as a pussy, can get.

2 Likes
30

Fri 4-10-2024.

83 now.

Bend, stretch, squat. 5 each.

Squat 10 sets of 3, each set followed by 5 rader pulls.
Back squat. (20 k) 3. (30) 3. (40) 3. (50) 3. (60) 3. (70) 3. (80) 3. (87.5) 3. (50) 3. 3.
rader pulls. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5.

Cleans and presses. 2 sets warmup and 3 sets 5.
(20 k) 2. (32.5) 1. (30) 5. 5. (28.75) 5.
Heels raise. 3 x 20.
(55 k) 20. (70) 20. (80) 20.

Assisted Chins. (36 k. assist) 12. (41 k. assist) 15.

Training time 1 hour and 29 minutes.

5 Likes
31

Wed 9-10-2024.

83 now.

Bend, stretch, squat. 5 each.

Cleans and Presses. (20k) 2. (32.5) 1. (30) 3. 3. 3. 2. 2.
Seated Heels raise. (51 k) 10. 10. 10.

One arm dumbell rows. (17.5 k) 10. (22.5) 14.

Breathing Squat. (75 k) 5. (65 k) 20.
Rader pulls. 5. 20.

Training time 60 minutes.

3 Likes
32

“It sure has been a while since I attended 20 reps.”

Bet you miss the feeling, Jerry … Not!

Mon 14-10-2024.

83 now

Bend, Stretch, Squat. 5 reps each.

Front Squat 10 sets of 3, each set followed by 5 rader pulls.
(20 k) 3. (30) 3. (40) 3. (45) 3. (50) 3. (55) 3. (60) 3. (65) 3. (72.5) 3. (50) 3.
rader pulls. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5. 5.

Dumbell Cleans and presses. 5 sets of 3.
(6 k’s) 3. (8 k’s) 3. (10 k’s) 3. (12.5 k’s) 3. (15 k’s) 3 Cleans and partial presses.

Single leg Heels raise on block. (10 k.) 10. (15 k.) 14. (12.5 k) 15.

Assisted Chins. (36 k assist) 13. (41 k assist) 15.

Workout time 1 hour and 11 minutes.

1 Like