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I am looking at Bill Starrs routine and wondering if at 49 I will be getting enough recovery time. I do full body 3 days a week for conditioning but i have never done it for strength. Has any one around my age or older done this routine and what were your results. I am looking for a really good strength routine.
Thanks
[QUOTE=Teach;212518871]I am looking at Bill Starrs routine and wondering if at 49 I will be getting enough recovery time. I do full body 3 days a week for conditioning but i have never done it for strength. Has any one around my age or older done this routine and what were your results. I am looking for a really good strength routine.
Thanks[/QUOTE]
Actually it has less to do with your age and more to do with your lifting experience and how well you have adapted. I used the routine about 3 years back....at 50. I had been lifting for 10-11 years. If you're really not sure, try it for two weeks. Keep a little log going. You'll have your answer and some valuable history whether or not you continue with it.
oldfart
Couple supplements that help with recovery...
1. Glutamine
2. Creatine with Monohydrates.
You can take the Glutamine straight or in shakes
The EAS PHos****en HP makes it in fruit flavored powder for mixing with water - you must drink alot of water when using Creatine
I used Starr's 5x5 each Winter, for the last 10 years, or so, up until last year, and always made good strength gains from it. Those gains then allowed me to lift heavier in the higher rep range of a more traditional split, each Spring.
I don't know what your lifting experience is; I checked your bodyspace but didn't find anything to go on. If you've been squatting and deadlifting, you shouldn't have any trouble adapting to a 5x5. The important thing, if you've never done a progression-type routine before, is to be honest with your 5-rep max estimate, and even err on the light side. If you start out too heavy, you'll stall quickly, and won't get any benefit from the routine. Also, if you go on the routine, [i]go on the routine[/i]; don't modify it, or mess with it in any way. Bill Starr[i] knew his stuff[/i] when he devised this routine, and he[i] knows his stuff[/i] today.
Since this is a progression routine, you're not expected to go to failure, so recovery shouldn't be a problem, providing you already know how to eat to support strength training. Good luck.
x2 to what ironwill2008 said.
I've used the 5x5 in the past and I'll probably use it again in the future. The main thing is to err on the side of caution, perfect your form, do NOT go to failure, and limit the amount of assistance exercises (i.e. calf raises, laterals, curls, extensions, et.al) to the bare minimum at first--if I remember correctly, Starr recommended no more than two isos per session.
The other thing to remember is that you need to work your core hard. Starr suggested hypers and situps to warm up as well as cool down, in addition to doing squats, deadlifts and stiff-leg deads; he knew damn well what he was talking about. The lower back has the potential to be very strong but it also vulnerable to sudden shocks when not prepared. Having strong abs and spinal erectors will help make you strong all over.
The final thing is this: The 5x5 is infiniitely adaptable. My recovery ability sucks compared to guys my age (46) so with Starr's programme, at first, I did only a "3x5" and eventually worked up to what I can do now. Give yourself time, use perfect form, start low, work up your endurance capacity for the weights and you'll be fine.
[QUOTE=Teach;212518871]I am looking at Bill Starrs routine and wondering if at 49 I will be getting enough[B]recovery time[/B].
I do full body 3 days a week for conditioning but i have never done it for strength. Has any one around my age or older done this routine and what were your results. I am looking for a really good strength routine.
Thanks[/QUOTE]
Recovery and condidtioning go hand in hand. For natural BB Supplementation,nutrition,and rest = elements to help recovery
If you want to recover fast you gotta be in shape for it. I normally think of recovery in terms of my workouts. Having enough gas to finish the trip so to speak. I don't think in terms of days between workouts.
Usually, muscle groups will be trainable again within 48 hours. That is with proper nutrition and rest between the workouts.
Supplementation helps for recovery during workouts. When my workouts start to become difficult I supplement creatine with monohydrates. Then I'm back to good workouts within a day or so.
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At age 49 your body probably doesn't produce much or any growth hormones. Recovery can be an issue, because if you can't get off good workouts you don't traumatize your muscles enough to stimulate growth.
A thing I do that helps me. I do 1 minute rest interval between my rep sets, regardless of the number of reps in the set or how many sets I do. When I move to another exercise I allow no more than 3 minutre rest interval to get set up and start the exercise. If the gym is busy and there are a lot of people often I cannot move to the exercise station of choice, I alter my rountine. I do another exercise to make sure I keep within the 3 minutes.
Here is what I'm looking for in terms of recovery. If my body wants to linger a little longer or I can't get my breath sufficiently to maintain the 1 minute rest/recovery time between reps sets; I need to do something. That is my trigger to start supplementing Creatine monohydrate.
It is a rare day when I do a workout greater than 1 hour, start to finish of routines. I do appx 10-14 exercises during that hour dependent upon number of rep sets.
I want enough recovery ability to have competent workout within the 1 hour.
I am natural BB.
I just checked out the Bill Starr 5x5 and that is a strength training program. It appears to be designed for young athletes.
I highly recommend the HST for anyone over 40, because it compensates for so many things that prevent injury. It is excellent for muscle mass development. It does trade off a bit on strength to start, but you will get strong. You can count on it when you are steady with the program. You'll get very strong and bigger.
It is a complex program to learn, and you have to carefully study the program. There is a reason for everything, which I like. I've always liked knowing why I do a thing, without just taking someones word for something.
TO HST: ----> [url]http://www.hypertrophy-specific.com/index.html[/url]
Also, just studying the HST training articles you will learn a great deal about physiology and exercise. It'll help with any training program you select, since it deals with root physiological issues.
I should also mention. The forums have some of the most knowledgeable BB that frequent the boards and answer questions. They'll really help you jump start into your training.