I agree with Patti Ann in finding that “sweet spot” where the body is pushed hard enough for progress/gains, not to the excess of pain/injury.
I am 66 years old and in good health, but the body is getting old.
I started with whole body workout, but attracted too much soreness/recuperation time, so I have switch to upper/body - lower/body training and throw in a day of cardio/stretching, etc. in between...it works for me.....
I suffer with upper spinal damage due to a life-long desk job stretching my neck forward/outward at a computer screen.
This was unbearable about 4-5 years ago where therapy and training was performed to make a world of difference.
Out of this, I am told not to lift any weights over my head, but their is so much that can be done to achieve my goals.
Just got to slow down and acknowledge my age and know where the stopping points are.
check out https://www.painscience.com/ this guy has tons of great info on pain, injuries, rehab, etc. And a key point to understand is that pain is often far worse than the injury meaning there may not be anything wrong other than muscle knots or sometimes called trigger points but the pain is excruciating (so you're sure something bad must be going on). So I don't like the general advice of don't do this or that because then you assure yourself of getting weaker and less mobile because you stop doing things. It's a double-edged sword
I do agree with you on these points. I do remember when I could not function any longer without neck or shoulder pain and I sought help with therapy, I received pressure point rubs in the affected areas....
The girl giving me the treatments told me my should & neck muscles were knotted up and weakened (not able to stretch and support the skeletal areas they were responsible for)....I remember at the start of my therapy how hard she rubbed and how ineffective it felt, but slowly (three sessions a week),
my muscles felt “soften and more relaxed”. She’s also explained and showed how muscles groups would “bunch up” in an attempt to create support either mechanically or from a neurological response (shying away from a painful movement).
I work all three of my shoulder muscles, upper back and pecs 5 out of 7 days a week and my upper body feels great
I would think a muscle or muscle groups wherever in the body are responsible for a skeletal part of the body...something like tension cables on a suspension bridge....
everyone needs to work the posterior chain and the upper back muscles. We're all hunched over with internal rotation to shoulders. So the rear delts, the pulling muscles, basically everything down the backside of your body needs work to counteract the postural issues.
You are so right on this Mark...I feel so much better...”roughed up a little” (not in pain) when I work the back....
I was told that leaning your head forward “turtling” as it’s called, is likable to doing a holding a 20” dumbbell halfway through (horizontal forearm) a bicep curl......
I was told the average human head weighs about 22#....
So my holy grail is figuring out how much exercise is right for ME to stay injury free, healthy, fit and happy with my progress.
I tend to settle in and then feel I’m not pushing hard enough. I ramp it up and “hurt” myself. My scoliosis acts up, my psoas screams and I’m pissed off that I wasn’t considering my limitations and age related issues.
I like switching things up so I tend to get in trouble a bit more than if I stuck with the same routine BUT I like to switch it up and work out differently according to my seasonal options!
There isn't a good answer for this, I don't think. But it is something we all have to figure out for ourselves. How to stay healthy and fit without the downsides of injury and overtraining. There is HRV testing. I haven't done it but have read a lot about it. It's a predictive diagnostic tool to assess your readiness each day. So conceivably, you could use it to tell you when to lay off (and not get injured) and when you're good to go all out. You're a gadget geek, you might really like this info.
I agree with Patti Ann in finding that “sweet spot” where the body is pushed hard enough for progress/gains, not to the excess of pain/injury.
I am 66 years old and in good health, but the body is getting old.
I started with whole body workout, but attracted too much soreness/recuperation time, so I have switch to upper/body - lower/body training and throw in a day of cardio/stretching, etc. in between...it works for me.....
I suffer with upper spinal damage due to a life-long desk job stretching my neck forward/outward at a computer screen.
This was unbearable about 4-5 years ago where therapy and training was performed to make a world of difference.
Out of this, I am told not to lift any weights over my head, but their is so much that can be done to achieve my goals.
Just got to slow down and acknowledge my age and know where the stopping points are.
Thanks Mark.....
check out https://www.painscience.com/ this guy has tons of great info on pain, injuries, rehab, etc. And a key point to understand is that pain is often far worse than the injury meaning there may not be anything wrong other than muscle knots or sometimes called trigger points but the pain is excruciating (so you're sure something bad must be going on). So I don't like the general advice of don't do this or that because then you assure yourself of getting weaker and less mobile because you stop doing things. It's a double-edged sword
Hi Mark,
I do agree with you on these points. I do remember when I could not function any longer without neck or shoulder pain and I sought help with therapy, I received pressure point rubs in the affected areas....
The girl giving me the treatments told me my should & neck muscles were knotted up and weakened (not able to stretch and support the skeletal areas they were responsible for)....I remember at the start of my therapy how hard she rubbed and how ineffective it felt, but slowly (three sessions a week),
my muscles felt “soften and more relaxed”. She’s also explained and showed how muscles groups would “bunch up” in an attempt to create support either mechanically or from a neurological response (shying away from a painful movement).
I work all three of my shoulder muscles, upper back and pecs 5 out of 7 days a week and my upper body feels great
I would think a muscle or muscle groups wherever in the body are responsible for a skeletal part of the body...something like tension cables on a suspension bridge....
Therapy sessions helped me with my neck concerns by developing my lateral and posterior deltoids, combined with “posture awareness”
and spontaneous stretching exercises that can be done as needed......
everyone needs to work the posterior chain and the upper back muscles. We're all hunched over with internal rotation to shoulders. So the rear delts, the pulling muscles, basically everything down the backside of your body needs work to counteract the postural issues.
You are so right on this Mark...I feel so much better...”roughed up a little” (not in pain) when I work the back....
I was told that leaning your head forward “turtling” as it’s called, is likable to doing a holding a 20” dumbbell halfway through (horizontal forearm) a bicep curl......
I was told the average human head weighs about 22#....
So my holy grail is figuring out how much exercise is right for ME to stay injury free, healthy, fit and happy with my progress.
I tend to settle in and then feel I’m not pushing hard enough. I ramp it up and “hurt” myself. My scoliosis acts up, my psoas screams and I’m pissed off that I wasn’t considering my limitations and age related issues.
I like switching things up so I tend to get in trouble a bit more than if I stuck with the same routine BUT I like to switch it up and work out differently according to my seasonal options!
There isn't a good answer for this, I don't think. But it is something we all have to figure out for ourselves. How to stay healthy and fit without the downsides of injury and overtraining. There is HRV testing. I haven't done it but have read a lot about it. It's a predictive diagnostic tool to assess your readiness each day. So conceivably, you could use it to tell you when to lay off (and not get injured) and when you're good to go all out. You're a gadget geek, you might really like this info.
I’ll check it out! Thanks bud!
HRV is heart rate variability for your googling exercise