Do Over 40 Trainers Need Lower Volume for More Muscle?

The over-40 fall/winter mass training program.

With the cold months approaching, it’s a great time to rethink training and shift gears a bit. I always think of my training in terms of seasons. Not necessarily the four-yearly seasons, but more about how my training goals and life stressors cycle throughout the year.

For example, I may have a period of significant stress. Maybe I’m moving, going through a very busy time at work, or something with family. Instead of trying to wrestle with my ongoing current training program, I can easily shift to a different, abbreviated plan to get me through that particular season.

With stress comes lack of sleep, lack of perfect adherence to diet, missed workouts, limited recovery, and anything else you want to add to your “life salad.”

The fall and winter months are a great opportunity to put an abbreviated, yet effective, routine into action. It’s also good timing if you’re feeling like burnout is creeping in.

But I do have some requirements:

1. It has to be different enough to cause a shift. It can’t just be a slight adjustment to what you’ve been doing.
2. It has to be effective. Just because it’s different doesn’t mean it should be easy and without applied intensity.
3. It has to be fun. The new plan has to be interesting enough to rekindle your love for training and keep you wanting more.
4. It has to be manageable. I’m not going to shift gears for a more robust, time-consuming program. The goal is to pull back a little, not adopt some advanced plan that will drive you further into the ground.

A training program from the dustbin

Many years ago, I was a huge advocate and practitioner of the low-volume, high-intensity style of training. I would sometimes go down to two sets per muscle group with very heavy weight and low reps. Over time, that style took its toll, and I suffered some pretty painful joints in return. Needless to say, I had to back off, increase my rep range, decrease my load, and expand my volume.

I also experimented with some higher rep ranges. I eventually set my working rep range in the 10 to 20 area.

It went well. My body gained the much-needed break from the heavy weight/low rep scheme, and I was able to practice some lifts I had once quit due to painful elbows and knees.

But over time, as with any program, it runs its course. Also, with the aforementioned season issue, I can’t stay on the same road forever and expect different scenery.

So, I’ve been toying with going back to a lower volume approach, at least for this coming fall/winter time, and see where it lands me.

But, it will come with a few changes different from before.

1. I’ll use a higher rep range to avoid the wear and tear on my joints.
2. My form will be much stricter.
3. I’ll pay more attention to recovery and back off when needed.
4. I’ll focus on the overall quality of each session versus increasing reps and/or weight at each workout.

With that said, I’ve adapted my current routine to my other 3-day split I like to rotate from time to time.

The over-40 fall/winter mass training program

Here’s what my split will look like.

1. Chest, shoulders (side delts and traps), triceps, abs.
2. Calves, quads, hamstrings
3. Back, rear delts, biceps, abs

A PLP, if you will! (Push, legs, pull)

I will normally train five times per week, rotating days wherever they may land.

As with all of my programs, there will be an A and B routine for every body part rotated. Most exercises are for 2 sets of 10 to 20 reps.

1. A
   Incline bench barbell press
   Flat bench dumbbell press
   Machine fly
   Dumbbell side lateral raise
   Dumbbell shrug
   Straight bar press-down
   Lying barbell extension
2. A
   Standing calf raise
   Seated calf raise
   Single leg extension
   Smith machine squat
   Barbell Romanian deadlift
   Seated leg curl
3. A
   Shoulder-width pull-up
   Machine T-bar row
   Close-grip pull-down
   Bent-over dumbbell lateral raise
   Barbell curl
   Dumbbell curl

1. B
   Incline bench dumbbell press
   Incline Hammer Strength press
   Machine fly
   Single arm dumbbell side lateral
   Dumbbell shrug
   Overhead rope extension
   Straight bar press-down
2. B
   Hack squat machine calf raise
   Standing calf raise
   Leg press
   Barbell back squat
   Seated leg curl
   Dumbbell Romanian deadlift
3. B
   Close-grip pull-up
   Bent-over barbell row
   Medium-grip pull-down
   Bent-over dumbbell lateral raise
   Dumbbell curl
   Cable curl
   
   //
   
   Next time I’ll give some updates on how things are going.
   
   Happy lifting!