Sandy Scott

From Broken Neck to Broken Records

The Ugly Duckling Syndrome

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THE UGLY DUCKLING SYNDROME

I recently returned to my running roots and while out on my morning run today I was struck by the thought of the time and effort I have expended in my life in a quest to be something I was not genetically programmed to be. We all know the story of the “Ugly Duckling” who struggled with being what he thought to be an ugly duck when in fact he was a beautiful swan trying to be something he could never be – a duck.

I have always had an obsession with strength and muscular size and from the time of ordering a Charles Atlas bodybuilding course as a pre-teen through to the present, I have spent endless hours in the gym in a quest to build a large, muscular body. As a boy, I carried the surname of my stepfather – Sadowsky. I remember how disappointed I was when the football coach said to me, “Sadowsky, you have the name for football – you just don’t have the body.” I guess a 6-foot tall kid weighing 115 pounds probably does not meet the physical requirements of any of the playing positions on a football team.

I knew that I could build myself up and worked out diligently with the weight set in my bedroom. I read all the muscle magazines and longed for the day that I would look like those depicted in the magazine. It just didn’t happen. Years later, as an adult, I used to workout for hours a day, but somehow I never achieved a fraction of what I saw in those with whom I worked out such as Jim Morris who went on to become the first black AAU Mr. America and ultimately Mr. Universe.

But let me back up to my younger days. I saw the advertisement for a track meet being held locally to discover new talent for the school track team. I happened to posses a beautiful track medal that my father had won as a boy and I thought I would give it a go. I ran very short mileage – probably a mile or so a day – for two weeks and entered the mile run basically with no training. I ran a 5:36 mile that day, and I discovered what I was genetically programmed to be – a runner! I went on to win three national running championships in three different events later in life.

I believe in dreaming big. I have achieved dreams that others scoffed at when I revealed them, but they were always dreams for which I was genetically equipped for success, mentally, physically and emotionally.

The lesson here is don’t try to be what you cannot be. Well, try if you must, but realize that you will never be a standout in that endeavor unless you are genetically programmed for success in that particular activity. You will never be a chess grandmaster if you do not have an innate ability for spacial reasoning, you will never be a 4 minute miler if you do not have the genetics to develop a high VO2max (the ability to consume oxygen), and as I found out, you will never be massively muscled and a strength athlete with an ectomorphic body equipped with 6 ½ inch wrists!

Find what you were meant to be and pursue it with all of your vigor! I, by the way, I have my sites set on breaking the 10 year old Florida state record in my age group (75-79) for the 1500 meter run at the state championship meet this year. I have the equipment to do it!

Sandy Scott
pedalmasher@gmail.com

Health and Fitness Versus Performance Revisited

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Health and Fitness Versus Performance Revisted

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This is a follow-up to my last blog regarding the potential downside to excessive training.

With the news that one of my cycling acquaintances recently underwent 7 ½ hours of back surgery, and not so recently, the placement of an arterial stent to combat arterial blockage, I want to point out that this athlete with more than 50 years of racing experience, is not atypical of my observations. This is an incredibly common phenomenon with those who train in the extreme with the goal of excelling in sports competitions. Join the after-ride coffee chat of the local bike club someday and if it is anything like the local club, you could publish an issue of JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) just from the maladies of those gathered.

I have been through two major, multiple year, athletic training cycles as an adult – one led to three national running titles and the other led to a national cycling title and a national time trial record which still stands. I would say that in both instances, I was considerably healthier, and looked and felt better after I retired, and had been on a regimen of non-competitive type, fitness training. I am now about 11 months out from my retirement from bicycle racing. Physiologically, my cardiac system has undergone an interesting change. My erstwhile resting heart rate, which was in the low 40s, is now in the high 50s. Unfortunately, when it was in the low 40s, I could not get through one minute of feeling my pulse without experiencing numerous skipped/missed beats and I underwent occasional bouts of AFIB (atrial fibrillation) and atrial flutter. This culminated in spending 4 days in the cardiac ward a couple of days after winning cycling titles and kicking young butt at the Georgia Senior Olympics. I underwent two procedures under general anesthesia including an ablation procedure for atrial flutter. My heart no longer suffers these arrhythmias of extra/missed beats and I have not suffered an incident of AFIB since my retirement from “excessive” training and racing.

I have gained 12 pounds of muscle and I look, feel, and simply AM physiologically better than I was as a competitive athlete. My PSA level is the lowest it has been in many years. By the way, for you competitive athletes, I do get it. I was well aware of the phenomena of which I preach, but I was willing to pay the potential price to achieve my athletic goals. You should be aware of these potential downsides and also be willing to pay the potential price.

My current exercise regimen, which has me feeling better than ever, consists of 6 days a week of aerobic training utilizing either a bicycle outdoors, a spin bike in my home gym, or my NordiTrack cross-country ski machine. I still do sessions of interval training, which even for a non-competitor gives one the best bang for the buck in achieving optimal fitness. I do two days a week of weight training and do my heavy training day on the day that I skip an aerobics workout.

I believe that inflammation and arterial blockage are two of the biggest enemies of the body and I combat that through my “sensible” aerobic exercise and supplementation including the anti-inflammatory agent, ZyFlamend, l-arginine Complete for cardiac health and the taking of .81 mg of aspirin daily. You can find more information on supplementation by searching my past blogs.

We love to extol the virtues of those who complete multiple marathons and compete in Ironman events, but some of the later stories of these competitors are rather grim. I so recall my friend, teammate, national class athlete and record holder, renowned cardiologist and medical editor of “Runner’s World” magazine, Dr. George Sheehan, telling me, “We are probably immune from cancer because of the way we train.” Unfortunately, the good doctor is no longer with us having died from metastasized prostate cancer at my current age of 74. There are too many stories similar to George’s.

If you choose the path of extreme training for performance/competition rather than training for health and fitness, just be aware that you might join the legions of athletes that I am aware of that wound up sitting in the waiting room of oncologists, cardiologists, urologists and orthopedic surgeons.

I used the photograph of an owl for this piece for very specific reasons. The owl is said to be wise, and this particular owl is obviously trying to get your attention!

Sandy Scott
October 2014

Is It Possible To Exercise Too Much?

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I published this article under the title, “Do We Pay a Medical Price to be Elite Athletes?” on the Growing Bolder site prior to having my own blog site as a so-called Growing Bolder Elite Blogger. The message is so important, that I wanted to publish it here. The catalysts for publishing this article here are three-fold:

1) I was informed today that a very active competitive cyclist friend of mine suffered a heart attack while training on his bicycle.

2) A recent study showing that just 7 minutes of running a day halves one’s risk for heart disease. More information on that study is available here.

3) Since writing the original article, a friend of mine who was both a champion runner and cyclist died from metastasized prostate cancer.

Here is the original article:

Do We Pay a Medical Price to be Elite Athletes?

If you are a person who exercises regularly, you are undoubtedly aware of Dr. Kenneth Cooper, the founder of the Aerobics Center in Dallas, TX and the person who some believe started the exercise revolution in the 70s with his book “Aerobics.” Dr. Cooper has considerably changed his recommendations regarding exercise intensity over the years. He used to preach that more intensity equated to more fitness. He now recommends a regimen of walking as opposed to running in that he indicates that excessive exercise causes excessive free radical production in the body. It is those free radicals he proposes that is the cause of many medical issues including heart related issues and cancer.

In his book “The Antioxidant Revolution”, Dr. Cooper, MD emphasizes that excessive exercise is a major cause of oxidative stress. He became very concerned when he began seeing several of his super exercisers who had been coming to his aerobic center in Dallas dying from heart disease and cancer at an early age. Dr. Cooper points out that when we exercise excessively, the production of free radicals goes off the graph, or in other words it increases exponentially.

A good friend of mine and Dr. Cooper was Dr. George Sheehan, cardiologist, prolific author, world-class runner and the erstwhile medical editor of “Runner’s World” magazine. As an aside, one of the most enjoyable days I have ever experienced in competitive sports was at the Eastern Regional AAU track championships at Princeton University, circa 1980. George was my teammate on the Shore AC, and he wanted to break the American age-group (55-59) record for 1500 meters. In that I did an incredible amount of track interval work and had a built-in stop watch in my head from all of that work, the plan was that I would use the race as my warm-up for the 5000 meters (which I went on to win) and pace him to the record with his desired splits. He broke the record. I spoke with George via telephone frequently during his office hours in that he was always more than willing to chat if the subject was running.

One day during one of our conversations, he expressed the opinion that because of our athletic lifestyles, we were probably causing ourselves to be immune from cancer. I am about to argue to the contrary. Apparently his supposition was not terribly accurate – George died of metastatic prostate cancer and I had a prolonged battle with malignant melanoma about a dozen years ago. Fortunately, I won my battle. As a coincidental aside, it was Dr. Cooper who discovered Dr. Sheehan’s prostate cancer during a routine physical in Dallas. I have gone on however, to experience numerous other skin cancers including every form of it. I joke with my dermatologist that I am a poster boy for skin cancer. I also suffer from at least an annual bout of AFIB – atrial fibrillation – something quite common with aerobic athletes.

Having said all of the above, the catalyst for my writing of this piece is the extraordinary number of elite athletes that I personally know who are suffering from serious heart issues or dealing with metastatic cancers. Specifically, my encounter with one national champion triathlete the other day with the telltale large, rectangular hump under the skin of his chest indicative of a pacemaker. In addition to him, two Kona Ironman finishers that I know, one of whom is a world champion, both sport pace makers as they continue their participation in their chosen sport. Another world champion triathlete suffered from ventricle fibrillation (much more serious than AFIB) and underwent a medical ablation procedure to correct his problem.

Speaking of heart issues, one local, very successful, young bicycle racer died of heart failure during a recent bicycle training ride. My significant other’s husband, an athlete all of his life and a very active triathlete, died of cardiac arrest at the age of 55 during a formal swimming workout with the local triathlon club, The Mad Dogs. Another local champion cyclist was the recipient of a stent in one of his arteries to deal with his heart issues. AFIB (atrial fibrillation) is a common phenomenon among active aerobic sport oriented athletes.

Just in the past year, two of my associates, both nationally ranked cyclists and both state champions (in the 65-69 age group) have been diagnosed and treated surgically for metastatic prostate cancer. A third, a champion runner, is also fighting metastatic prostate cancer. All three are on Lupron, a medication that medically castrates the patient to rid the body of testosterone. All three continue to compete. At least three other avid local cyclists I know have been treated for prostate cancer.

Although my main concern is disease potentially caused by excessive exercise, I would be remiss if I overlooked the incredible number of ex very serious runners I know now sporting new hips and knees and the number of current serious cyclists I know with chronic back issues.

Back to my original question, do we pay a medical price to be elite athletes? Decide for yourself! If you are interested in the pursuit of health, a program of vigorous walking, good nutrition, sound supplementation and adequate sleep will serve you well. If you want to be an elite athlete, understand the potential risk/rewards.

Addendum: Understand that the above was written by a 73 year old inveterate athlete who is about to leave for a 3 1/2 hour cycling training ride in 90 degree heat with excessive humidity. Just as I knew that I had to save my life each of the 657 times I have jumped out of a an airplane, I have an insatiable need to kick competitive butt and I am more than willing to roll the dice to achieve that wonderful goal!

ADDENDUM – 9-24-13

Little did I know when I wrote this piece that I would become one of the prime examples of the phenomenon to which I alluded. One day I was kicking butt at the Georgia Golden Olympics turning in a time 20 seconds faster in the 5K time trial than was my time in the previous two years where I turned top time for all age groups. I mentioned in the above piece that I typically suffer one incidence of AFIB annually, and that AFIB had always stopped with no medical intervention typically within a few short hours.

The morning after two days of competition where I raced my heart out (pun intended), as I began to sip some OJ in the morning, my typical morning pulse of the mid to low 40s began racing at 134 beats per minute. By the end of the day, I had seen little improvement and by the next morning, I found myself still in AFIB. I suspect that as a card-carrying member of Mensa, if I tested now I would assuredly be denied membership. I decided that perhaps the catalyst of a gentle 45-mile bike ride would restore my normal heart rhythm. As I pedaled out of my driveway, I encountered a neighbor who waved me over and as he was congratulating me for winning my latest state championships, I glanced down at my heart rate monitor noticing much to my dismay that I was pumping along at 154 beats per minute even though I was standing still. Being the incredibly intelligent guy that I am, I continued on my bike ride, and continued to justify that action to myself when I noticed that when I pedaled, my heart rate would come back to a mere 144 beats per minute. Even more encouraging was that when I really mashed down on the pedals, my rate came down into the 130s.

As I rode along, I apparently began thinking a bit more clearly when I decided to stop my ride after a paltry 35 miles. Although I fought against the concept, my significant other forced the issue insisting that we go to the Largo Medical Center, a place renowned for their cardiac unit.

In the ER, a team of about 6 personnel swarmed me when a monitor revealed not only my very rapid heart rate, but also showing substantial arrhythmia. Rather than the outcome I assumed—get some drugs and go home– the ER physician insisted that I be admitted to the hospital’s cardiac unit. There I discovered that my heart rate was not the 150 beats per minute that I was assuming – a heart rate monitor displays the beats per minute of the ventricles, but my atria were racing along at an incredible 300 beats per minute and in a very arrhythmic manner. My body was infused with various medications through an IV including blood thinners and calcium channel blockers, and the cardiologist scheduled me for two procedures the next day, both of which would require general anesthesia.

When the atrium is beating with great rapidity as was mine, the blood tends to pool in the atrium leading to potential strokes and or heart attack caused by blood clots. My first procedure would be a so-called TEE procedure – a trans esophageal echocardiogram. A tube is placed down the patient’s throat bringing a transmitting device close to the heart with the mission of determining if there were any clots waiting to do their potentially catastrophic damage. If the answer was “yes”, it called for one tack and if the answer was “no”, then an ablation procedure would be scheduled the same day administered by a cardio electrophysiologist whose specialty was dealing with arrhythmias of the heart through various interventional procedures.

Rosie, my significant other, calls me Dr. Scott, because, as someone who intended to go to medical school from the age of 3, I am always studying medical literature – I find it quite fascinating. I had self-diagnosed myself with AFIB, but the “real” doctors disagreed with my diagnosis – I was suffering from atrial flutter. With atrial flutter, the right atrium sets up a circular pattern of electric impulses causing confusion of the signal to the left atrium. The result is a rapid, arrhythmic, potentially fatal heartbeat.

The procedure used to restore the normal electrical impulses is called an ablation in which incisions are made on either side of the groin and catheters are run up through either arteries and/or veins to the heart. The patient undergoes a diagnostic procedure using a fluoroscopic X-ray device, which can map out the impulses in the heart such that the electrophysiologist can determine what part of the atria the offending signal is emanating from. The cardiologist then uses RF energy to zap the offending heart tissue, in effect destroying it such that it can no longer send erroneous signals. But I digress.

Fortunately, it was discovered that I had not managed to generate any blood clots, although I certainly went through some very efficient means to do so while riding with atrial flutter! The next afternoon, I underwent general anesthesia for the second time within a very few hours and the wizard, Dr. Norris, was able to successfully zap the offending heart tissue leading me to be rolled out of the operating room with a beautiful EKG pattern with my heart beating at a normal rate. Of course I was kicking and screaming through everything insisting that in under three weeks, the most important cycling competition event of the year was looming – the USCF, Florida state time trial championships where I hope to win the title for the 7th year in a row. I didn’t have time for this stuff – I had to get out on the road and train!

I finally escaped from the hospital after 4 long days of incarceration; I am on blood thinners and have surgical wounds that must be taken into account. I still hope there is a way I can make it to the line at the state championships on October 13th.

Any lessons here? I think the reader can glean a few, but those of you who are used to thinking of yourselves as super human, I have some bad news for you – we are all human, and I again maintain my thesis that elite aerobic athletes have very high odds of experiencing medical issues – especially heart related. I must have taken it a bit too seriously when my friend and teammate, Dr. George Sheehan, pronounced me as having one of two of the strongest, most athletic hearts he had ever seen in his rather long practice of cardiology. This has always made me feel particularly immune to heart disease and failure. It seemed to override the practical advise from my practical mate, Rosie, and my intellectual side in that the symptoms were taking me to a stroke or heart attack and not to a cycling podium (top step of course) finish.

Addendum – 7-29-14

I had occasion to re-read this article this morning and I realized that I never told the rest of the story. I did in fact go on to contest the Florida State Time Trial Championships two weeks after the above described procedure. I won for the 7th year in a row with a winning margin over the second place finisher of 2 minutes!

My original question regarding elite athletes has now been broadened to question excessive exercising in general. Having won national championships in two aerobic sports (running and cycling) and as one who prior to getting back to aerobic pursuits was a very active weight lifter, what is my recommendation regarding exercise?

If you are a competitive athlete, and want to remain competitive, you cannot ease back on your training. Know however, that you put yourself at considerable, statistical medical risk through those pursuits in my opinion. For the rest of us, realize that results rapidly diminish after about a half hour of vigorous aerobic training. My specific recommendations are these:

1) Do a vigorous form of aerobic exercise for 20-30 minutes a minimum of 4 times a week.

2) Incorporate interval training into your training sessions at least once per week. If you search my blog archives you will see information on interval training.

3) Incorporate weight training into your regimen – you need not work each muscle group any more than once a week for optimal results. If you search the archives of this blog, you will find two articles that I have written on the subject of weight training.

4) And very importantly, get at least annual medical checkups.

Be well and enjoy your training rather than be married to it!
Sandy Scott

pedalmasher@gmail.com

I Want Only Natural Highs

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I Want Only Natural Highs

I feel very sad for people that need to take or smoke something to get a high. As I viewed a TV program this morning showing a family in Colorado enjoying their evening group pot smoking, I thought how incredibly empty their lives must be.

I got a tremendous high last Saturday night as I sat and listened live to the Florida Orchestra playing Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody On a Theme of Paganini with the brilliant piano soloist Andrew von Oeyen. It was so special that it actually brought tears to my eyes. I got a high yesterday when I observed a beautiful sunrise and then watched and photographed an anhinga catch an incredibly large fish and then amazingly swallow it whole down its skinny throat. Moments later, I got a high when I watched an osprey bring some nest building twigs back to its ever-expanding nest. I’ll get a high this morning when I go to Ft. Desoto, a large, local county park to observe and photograph a great horned owl and her two chicks, and then I’ll get another high when I finish my running workout at the same wonderful facility. I’ll get another high this afternoon when I bench press more than I have in many years. I’ll experience many highs today and I will need only the external stimuli of this amazing planet and its inhabitants to be the catalyst for those wonderful, naturally induced highs. Did I mention how badly I feel for people that cannot get enough highs through natural means?

Sandy Scott

Pedalmasher@gmail.com

Weight Training for the Growing Bolder Generation(s) – Part 2

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WEIGHT TRAINING FOR THE GROWING BOLDER GENERATION (S)

PART 2

I have always been a proponent of weight training.  In my younger years, I approached weight training from more of a body building perspective.  When I returned to competitive athletics in my mid thirties, I transitioned to weight training programs more oriented towards enhancing my sports performance.  I don’t think you will find a world-class athlete who does not incorporate weight training into his or her training regimen.

Weight training for the masters athlete (or anyone over 50) takes on even more importance.  As we age, we tend to gain fat and lose muscle mass and bone density.  A regular routine of proper weight training can and does reverse that process.  At the age of 73, I have approximately 4% body fat, so I can attest to the results of proper weight training.  Weight training will not only help you maintain muscle and bone mass, but will quite simply make you look and feel better.  Needless to say, it will make you stronger and a stronger athlete (or non athlete) is a better performer.

In my younger days, I had the mistaken impression that more is better.  I would often work out with weights 6 days a week, and have sessions as long as a few hours in duration.  When I transitioned from “cosmetic” weight training to a program to enhance my running, I still worked out three times a week exercising each body part at each session.  I was fortunate enough to discover arguably the best book ever written on the subject of weight training, Stuart McRobert’s Beyond Brawn.  The book changed my weight training life by not only enhancing my results, but allowing me to do so in substantially less time.  I would highly recommend that you make this 496-page treatise a part of your library.  The author has also published a “how to” book on proper form to perform each of the recommended exercises.

I don’t intend to go into great depth on the subject of weight training, but I will outline the basic principles and guidelines that will allow you to preserve muscle mass and enhance your performance in the sport of your choice, or simply allow you to have a fitter, stronger, more pleasing looking body if you are not a competitive athlete.  One of the ways that you will spend less time without compromising your results will be through utilizing compound rather than isolation exercises.  The former is comprised of multiple joint movements and the latter involves single joint movements.  An example of a compound exercise, and one of the most effective exercises that one can perform, is the squat.  When a squat is performed, multiple joints are involved, as are multiple muscles groups, i.e., the quadriceps, gluteus and erectus muscles.  An example of an isolation exercise is the leg extension, which involves only one joint and targets only the quadriceps muscles.

The most overused isolation exercises are the various triceps extension and press down exercises.  Your triceps will be exercised adequately when you perform various compound pressing movements such as the bench press and overhead press.

Probably the most startling revelation of all is the fact that great progress can be made (in many cases better progress) by exercising each body part once as opposed to multiple times per week.  The keys are regularity, intensity and progression.  By progression, I mean that one should add some weight to each exercise every week.   Intensity should be self-explanatory.  If you do not exercise with reasonable intensity, the body has no reason to adapt and progress either ceases or you regress.

The most important group of exercises that you must incorporate into your routine(s), are the so-called core movements.  These core movements are the compound exercises that must be the foundation of any successful program.  These core movements are comprised of various compound leg/back movements such as squats, leg press, various types of dead-lifts, and upper body exercises such as the bench press, pull-up and pull-down movements, various types of rowing and shrug movements, and the overhead press.  The typical routine will have between 2 to 5 core movements.

It is also important to incorporate secondary exercises into your routine.  Examples of secondary exercises are exercises that work the abdominals, calves, neck, and lower back.

Exercises can be spread over multiple workouts in a week, or every body part can be exercised on the same day.  I enjoy the multiple workout variety which I find to be quite convenient in that I have a fully equipped home gym.  I typically do my weight workouts on my recovery cycling days.

My favorite approach is what I call the Push/Pull method.  On one day, I will do pushing compound exercises such as the bench press and the overhead press, and on the next workout I will incorporate the pulling movements – rows, pull-downs, etc.

Progress is made through the adaptation process.  Muscle tissue is torn down and the body repairs the tissue and adds extra tissue in preparation for the next workout. The bottom line is that the muscle gets stronger.

Let’s say that you do bench presses on one workout day and on the next you do overhead presses.  The problem is that both workouts utilize the triceps; therefore they don’t get the necessary recovery of that muscle group.  Hence, the rationale for my push/pull approach to training.  Note, that I am not saying that you cannot do those exercises on the same day, but if you do, there is no need to do them again for approximately another week.

Weight training should be accomplished in cycles.  Cycles are typically 10-12 weeks in duration.  The beginning of the cycle will feel easy in that a weight will be chosen for most exercises in which 12 repetitions can be readily performed.  Each week, weight will be added to each exercise – more on heavier exercises such as the squat and less on others.  Finally, towards the end of the cycle at the point at which it is impossible to add further weight without doing less than 8 repetitions, it is time to start a new cycle.  The new cycle is commenced by cutting back the weight on all exercises about 15-20%.  It is also a good time to substitute exercises.  For example, you might substitute a lat pull-down exercise with a rowing type exercise or do an incline bench press versus a standard version.

Once you get into the meat of the program and are doing less than 12 repetitions, I believe in exercising to failure.  That is the point where you either cannot finish the rep or are incapable of doing another.  Be sure to do this safely incorporating a spotter (training partner) or a device like a Smith Machine, which has safety features to capture a barbell when only a partial rep can be completed.  Here is a photograph of the Smith Machine that I utilize in my home gym:

CIMG0919

As you progress through multiple cycles over time, you will notice that the point at which you must start a new cycle will be when you are lifting heavier than you were at the end of your last cycle.

Keep a log book of your workouts as a reference tool.  Record the weight that you use for each exercise so that you have a good reference source for your next workout.  I also suggest taking before measurements and then repeating at regular intervals as one way to track your progress.

I think one of the most valuable exercises that one can perform, is the 20 repetition, so-called breathing squat.  When I was lifting weights for the purpose of body building in my twenties, I found it very difficult to make progress.  I was the typical ectomorphic body type with a rather slender frame – not the kind of build where muscle is easily added.

I discovered an incredible system called, The Perry Rader Squat System.  Perry Rader was the founder of one of the first body building magazines – Iron Man.  There is no resemblance to that magazine and the current one that bears its name.  Rader published a pamphlet describing his system.  His philosophy was, “If you want to build your arms, do squats.”  He indicated that squats so stimulated the whole body, that when properly executed, the total body would make progress in strength and size.  He promulgated the 20 repetition breathing squat, which was basically a barbell squat in which 3-4 breaths were taken between each repetition.  The system included 5 other basic exercises:  1) Bench Press, 2) Overhead Press, 3) Rows, 4) Barbell Curls and 5) Calf Raises.  It was basically a two or three time a week routine.  I was delighted when I gained 7 pounds of muscle in a couple of months on that regimen.  To this day, I do 20 repetition squats when I am not peaking for a cycling competition.

While on the subject, the best approach to 20 rep squats is to perform them once a week, go no lower than upper legs parallel to the ground, and warm up properly prior to doing the 20 rep work set.  I warm up by doing some “free squats” without weights, and then one set of 12 reps with 155 pounds.  20 rep squats are not easy.  Often times when you have completed the 10th rep, it will seem impossible to do another 10 – you can (and must) do it!  With this particular exercise, I add 5 pounds per week in weight, until I can absolutely no longer complete 20 reps.  I then decrease the weight by about 20% and start another cycle.

It is vital that you keep good form.  Do not bend forward as you squat – keep your back straight.  Again, do not go lower than upper legs parallel to the ground.  If you do so, it stresses the knees unnecessarily.

Here is my current rather effective, but rather simple routine that I can easily complete each day in less than 30 minutes:

Day 1:  Some form of abdominal work – I prefer hanging leg lifts

1 warm-up set of 12 repetitions of squats

1 work set of 20 repetition breathing squats

2 sets of seated calf raises

Day 2:  1 warm up set of 10-12 reps bench press

2 work sets bench press

3 sets of seated overhead presses

Day 3 3 sets of pull downs

3 sets of barbell curls

A very simplistic routine that does not take a lot of time, but is very effective.  As I mentioned earlier, I have a home gym so it is quite easy for me to conveniently take a short workout, and stretch my routine over 3 days.  If you are a member of a gym and need to travel, or have only weekends available for weight training, here is an example of an effective one day routine:

After a warm up, the following exercises are performed – 2 to 3 sets each:

Squat

Parallel bar dip

Stiff-legged dead-lift

Dumbbell press

Pull-down or Pull-up

Barbell Curl

Calf work

Abdominal work

This is a full-body workout routine with which you can make great progress utilizing it once a week.  Needless to say, each exercise can be substituted for many other exercises that accomplish the same mission.

The foregoing was meant to be anything but a complete tutorial on weight training.  My mission was to convince you of the importance of weight training, and to offer some basic guidance to get you started.  Read the McRobert book, which is 496 pages of detailed information.  Remember, it’s never too late to start and no matter what your age, you will make rapid, measurable progress.  Now just do it!

Sandy Scott

pedalmasher@gmail.com

 

Weight Training For The Growing Bolder Generation(s)

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WEIGHT TRAINING FOR THE GROWING BOLDER GENERATION(S)

Part 1

On the morning of my 72nd birthday, I posted a blog on the Growing Bolder website entitled, “A Message on My 72nd Birthday.”  The next to the last paragraph was as follows:

Get regular, vigorous aerobic exercise, keep your core muscles strong, train with weights (absolutely vital as you age), consume a healthful diet with lots of fruits, veggies, whole grains, engage in activities for which you have a passion, learn something new on a regular basis, challenge yourself, etc.  More controversial, but something that has worked for me since my 20s, and has allowed me to sometimes go as long as 10 years without so much as a common cold, I take a slew of vitamins and minerals daily and something that has worked unbelievably well for me, a regimen of 5 grams of L-Arginine Complete daily.

As I mentioned, I believe weight training to be a vital part of everyone’s health/fitness regimen, and I believe it to be particularly important as we age due to the phenomenon of muscle loss and a tendency to gain fat.  Personally, I have weight trained for over 50 years and have done so with everyone from a future Mr. America winner to a slender girlie girl!

If you are not currently training with weights, I will furnish you with enough information to get you started and if you currently utilize weight training, I will furnish you with information which I believe will allow you to have equal or more progress in less time spent at the gym.  Note that I said nothing about less effort.

Not only are we each an experiment of one which dictates that we take the information furnished and hone it to our personal needs, but to further complicate the matrix it is important to understand the phenomenon of body or soma types as the scientists label it.  There are three different soma types:  Mesomorph, Endomorph and Ectomorph.  In the 1970s, noting that there was no information for effective weight training in the various “muscle magazines” for anyone but the Mesomorphic body, I wrote an article dealing with techniques that could be used by those not particularly physically gifted, and discussed techniques that could be utilized by different body type individuals looking for the most efficient training methods.

Here is an illustration of the three soma types:

 

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The Ectomorph is typically skinny in appearance with a small bone structure and narrow shoulders and tends not to be muscular.

The Mesomorph has an athletic body, muscular with narrow hips and broad shoulders.

The Endomorph is the body type with large bones/frame typically carrying excessive amounts of adipose (fat) tissue.  Most of us are a combination of body types.

The three body types are not only different in appearance, but typically have personality traits in common with others of their body type.  Mesomorphs tend to be the leader-of-the-pack type, the multi-sport athlete, confident, and the guy who dates the head of the cheerleader squad.  The Ectomorph often is the shy person with little self-confidence who will probably be a member of the chess team rather than the football squad. Athletically, they make great distance runners and tend to be great climbers as cyclists.  The Endomorphs tend to be gregarious types not very prone to exercise who are the type that become the president of the social club. Athletically, they excel at sports such as Olympic weight lifting, throwing the shot put and playing on the line of a football squad.

I have often said that I believe in setting very challenging BUT ACHIEVABLE goals.  If you are an Ectomorph, you will never play fullback for the Dallas Cowboys, whereas the Mesomorph can probably be found playing any position.  As an aside, the Endomorph is the guy sitting on your back pushing your face into the turf when you attempted a failed run off tackle!  You will not see that Endomorph playing wide receiver or cornerback however.

The reason I bring up the subject is that body type dictates to a large extent not only how we weight train, the intensity of said training, but also the results that we can expect from our training.  The typical Mesomorph can simply walk by a weight and watch his bicep grow a quarter inch where the Ectomorph struggles to make gains.  The challenge with the endomorph is to convince that body type to even go to the gym!  Once inside the gym, however,  Endomorphs frequently discover that they have great physiques hiding under the fat!  In other words, if you are an Ectomorph, for example, don’t set your goal to be Mr. Universe!

As an aside, I am an Ectomorphic body type and for me it was quite a struggle to get to the point where I could finally bench press 200 pounds.  I used to frustratingly watch the bigger lifters warm up on the Olympic Bar with two 45-pound plates (an Olympic bar weighs 45 pounds), which is 135 pounds – a weight I could not lift for one repetition.  I think my happiest day as a weight trainer was the day I could finally warm up with two 45 plates easily banging out 10 warm-up reps with the weight.

Here is a shot of me in my late 60s getting fitted on my bicycle.  As you can see even though I have tiny bones (one physician opined the thinnest he has seen on a male), I have reasonable muscularity even though when this picture was taken I was training 27 hours a week on the bicycle which makes it rather difficult to enhance one’s muscularity.  Unfortunately, even though I have always been able to do very heavy squatting with a few hundred pounds, my genetic make-up dictates that my legs will continue to appear to be a mounting platform for feathers!

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The point of all above is this:  No matter what your age or what your previous history, age or body type, you will make great gains and be the best you can be.  If you are not currently weight training, you will attain measurable and visible progress in your strength and appearance within 6 short weeks.  When you replace fat with muscle, your basal metabolism will increase hence you will burn more calories even when you are inactive – muscle gain enhances weight loss.  I have often heard women express the fear that they will build large muscles.  The building of muscle mass requires testosterone in amounts not possessed by women naturally, and women will find that they simply enhance the way they look by building a shapelier – not a larger body.

In the next installment, I will get down to the “How To” specifics of weight training.  Be sure to tune in!

Sandy Scott

pedalmasher@gmail.com