I made some notes on the Workshop and inserted some of my own thoughts. If you don’t remember hearing something, it’s probably from me.

Why exercise is important – the big picture.

Why is exercise important to you?

Answer that question for yourself. Write it down.

Everyone’s answer will be different. Personally, I want to stay capable. A friend said he doesn’t want to end up like his Dad. Another mentioned that people around his age motivate him as they are quite incapable.

Here are some other reasons to exercise:

The CDC exercise guidelines are

• 150–300 minutes of moderate cardio per week (or 75–150 vigorous)
• Strength training at least 2 days per week for all major muscle groups. 

Only about 24% of U.S. adults meet both the cardio AND strength exercise guidelines. (20% of adult women)

The result (Chronic/metabolic disease stats)

• Approximately 6 in 10 U.S. adults have at least one chronic disease.
• About 4 in 10 adults have two or more chronic diseases.

(Source: CDC National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention)

Many of these are metabolic-related conditions, including:

• Heart disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Obesity
• Certain cancers

A widely cited study from 2022 found Only about 12% of American adults are considered metabolically healthy.

Meaning roughly 88% of adults have at least one marker of poor metabolic health, such as:

• Elevated blood sugar
• High blood pressure
• Excess abdominal fat
• Abnormal cholesterol

And it gets worse:

Sarcopenia (muscle loss) stats: After age 30, adults lose 3–8% of muscle mass per decade, accelerating after age 60.

Osteoporosis (bone loss) stats:

• Over 10 million Americans have osteoporosis
• 40–50 million more have low bone density (osteopenia).
• 1 in 2 women over age 50 will experience an osteoporosis-related fracture.
• Falls are the leading cause of injury-related deaths in adults over 65

Fun Fact: Lower grip strength is associated with about a 50–60% higher risk of premature death.

Hormesis – Use it or lose it. Joints were built to MOVE, muscles were built to CONTRACT

You may exercise to feel better or to look good, but exercise is essential to counteract natural aging processes, such as muscle loss, reduced bone density, and slower metabolism. Regular activity—combining strength, cardio, and balance—prevents chronic diseases (heart disease, diabetes), reduces pain, enhances mobility, and boosts mental health to maintain independence

What makes up a complete program?

Cardiorespiratory (Heart and Lungs)

Good News!

People with high cardiorespiratory fitness have up to a 70% lower risk of early death compared with people with very low fitness.

How you get your cardio is up to you. Walking, hiking, biking, jogging, aerobic classes, etc.

Whatever you do, it should be something you enjoy. That’s what makes it STICK. Experiment with different things. Take a class. Go for a walk with a friend.

You can also create a “hybrid” workout that makes you “huff and puff” while you strength train. Kill two birds with one stone

Or, you can set aside blocks of 20, 30, 45+ minutes dedicated to cardio. Up to you!

Strength Training (Musculoskeletal/Neuromuscular)

CDC says you need to cover every body part, 2X per week. (That will likely take more than 30 minutes, 2X per week)

The most efficient way to do this is with full-body, compound exercises which hit several body parts.

Unilateral Training vs. Bilateral.

Unilateral training involves exercising one limb at a time (e.g., single-leg squat, dumbbell row) to improve balance, stability, and fix muscle imbalances. Bilateral training uses both limbs simultaneously (e.g., barbell squat, bench press) to lift heavier loads, build maximum strength, and increase power.

It is recommended to do both unilateral and bilateral training. Might want to mix it up in the same week or change it up on a monthly basis.

Intensity/Sets/Reps

• High intensity! You have to FEEL it! <4 reps “in the tank”
• Ideally, 1-2 reps in reserve. 
• 6 working sets per muscle group per week

Full Body Compound Exercises:

• Squats
  • Targets: quadriceps front thighs), glutes (buttocks), hamstrings (back of thighs), adductors (inner thighs), and calves. Quads,
  • Squat: Body-weight squats, barbell squats, goblet squats, front squats,
  • Unilateral: Lunge Examples: Reverse lunge, walking lunge, split squats
• Hip Hinge (Deadlifts, hyperextension bench):
  • Targets: exercise that primarily targets the posterior chain—glutes, hamstrings, and erector spinae (lower back).Deadlifts also heavily engage the quadriceps for the initial push, along with the core, traps, lats, and forearms for stabilization and grip.Examples: Barbell Deadlifts, DB Deadlifts, Roman Chair (hyperextension)
    • Unilateral: Bobbing bird, 1-arm deadlift
• Horizontal Push (Chest Press)
  • Targets: pectoralis major (chest), anterior deltoids (front shoulders), and triceps brachii (back of upper arms).
  • Examples: Bench press, push-ups.
  • Unilateral: One-arm DB Chest Press.
• Vertical Push (Shoulder Press)
  • Targets: anterior (front) and lateral (side) deltoids, while also heavily engaging the triceps brachii for elbow extension. Supporting muscles include the upper trapezius, serratus anterior, upper chest (clavicular pectorals), and core stabilizers
  • Examples: Shoulder press – bands, machines, seated, standing, dumbbell, barbell.
  • Unilateral: One-arm Shoulder Press.
• Horizontal Pull (Rows)
  • Targets: the entire back, primarily strengthening the latissimus dorsi (lats), rhomboids, trapezius (middle/lower traps), and rear deltoids. It also significantly engages the biceps, rotator cuff, erector spinae (lower back), and core for stability.
    • Examples: Rows – Barbell, dumbbell, machine, inverted, ,bands
    • Unilateral: One-arm Rows.
• Vertical Pull (Pull-Up)
  • Targets: latissimus dorsi (large back muscles), along with the biceps, shoulders, and core. Also heavily engages the rear deltoids, traps, rhomboids, forearms, and chest.
  • Examples: Pull-ups, Chin-ups, High Pulley pulldown.
  • Unilateral: One-arm Versions.
• Carry
  • Strengthens the grip (forearms), upper traps/shoulders, core (abs and obliques), and legs (quads, hamstrings, glutes, calves). It builds functional, isometric strength, improving posture and grip endurance by requiring constant, full-body muscle contraction while moving.
  • Examples: Farmer Carries
  • Unilateral: One-arm Versions.

Core Notes:

• A topic on its own.
• Full Body workout integrating unilateral training addresses core to an extent.
• Adding core exercises is a good idea.
• Core exercises integrated with respiration,such as diaphragmatic breathing, and bracing while exhaling, maximize stability and force transfer by engaging the deep core muscles (transverse abdominis and pelvic floor). Proper breathing techniques, including inhaling to relax and exhaling during exertion (e.g., in planks or bridges), prevent breath-holding and enhance intra-abdominal- Force transfer, Respiration

Flexibility/Mobility Training

Though not part of the CDC guidelines, working through full range of your joints is important.

If you are moving through full Range of Motion at all/most of your joints on a daily basis, you might not need much of this (but that is a very small percentage of us) 

If you have a “perception” of muscles feeling tight, but full ROM, you need stability, not flexibility

If you are spending half your time in the gym static stretching, you are not using your time effectively

Have 2-3 stretches or mobility exercises that are specific to the movements you’ll be doing in the gym that day. You expand the ROM availability with stretching, then you capture it with strengthening.

(Barb’s side note: our Best Third program incorporates mobility ROM exercises with the warmup, prep for the strength training that follows)

(Ron’s Side Note: Developing Speed, Power and Agility are also important to an aging body and not included in the CDC Guidelines. More on that later!)

Remember: The best workout is the one that you stick with!

Take the building blocks of a complete workout and put together something you want to do. If you dread working out, you won’t stick with it.

Mix it up. Have fun with it.

If it hurts, lighten up. Going through the motions without strain is much better than doing nothing at all.