In my 64th year on earth I am not exactly where I want to be either physically or geographically. I thought I would be wrapped a little tighter than I am after four years of hitting it pretty hard. I also thought that I would be able to be out of FL a little sooner than 2023. On the other hand I've come pretty far physically since 210lbs in 2017 as well as since a little retrograde weight-add during covid season. Geographically I now have an active plan to move with realtors actively engaged on both ends. So, all good, right?
The purpose of this note here, after a guy my vintage asked about it, is to jot down some of the core work I do. My guess is that no one cares but the reason is not really "your care" it is partly: a) self reinforcement, the kind that still compounds, and b) because I've had some interest in the past on what older guys do, so if someone does care, that is the angle.
Why core? I mean I have a broader training routine that includes the usual suspects. I train mostly dumbells/bench and resistance bands in my garage. I also set up a pulley thing that approximates a cable machine. For legs I either pretend they don't exist (heh) or I will go to the gym sometimes for a couple machines. The core focus was because I've done core almost every day, certainly every workout for years. Of course the surface reason is that core work provides stability for a lot of gym and real life movement. The reality though is that in 2017 when I was over 200lb, about 30 of that was visceral and I detested the way it felt. It shook like jelly. I committed to wrap myself as tight as I could - via oblique and serratus rotational movement all the way around, like a corset - at least once before death. Once achieved, I now like the feel. Just the simple act of walking from the car to the grocery store feels good. This feeling accrues to confidence and confidence is the currency of living well.
Below I'll list a few things I do. In doing that though, I have to recognize that there are 3 trillion core exercises and every gym bro is a partisan of this or that or hates this or that. This is just the rut I have grooved out; it's just me. Also, I should also mention that 90% of any outcomes I have now mid-60s: most of it came from the past (a decade of swimming up to 15,000 meters a day) and diet (calorie restriction, fasting and low/no carb). The actual gym work only adds a little bit to that. Another caveat: Some of the rotational movements are risky to the spine and not recommended as a dive-in-wholesale. Check with a trainer or physician first. One more: this is not my peak form. I've added a few pounds and I am at an age where age actually does take a toll. Skin dries, flesh sags, sleep can be a challenge, eyes fail, tendons tear, etc. Fighting the good fight, though.
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| 63 (bad lighting, little heavier, some decay, but obliques ok) |
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| 61 (it's the lighting and filter, heh) |
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| Journey: 58-61 (body fat super low on right) |
1. Pull ups. I use a neutral grip and engage the core. If I am motivated I'll pike into an L and/or add a twist. At a min I tense the core and keep my knees up and forward. These sets are not realistic for a beginner but YouTube has good content on getting past the first one. 2-3 times a week. Sets of: 20, 15 10 10 if I feel good. 4x10 if I am meh.
2. Rotational resistance. This takes a few forms using either the pulley thing or resistance bands. My pulley is at about 7 feet so the line of force is down and away. The names are things like wood chopper or sledgehammer or tornado or some such. Movement 1 is like the dudes that use ropes and cable on their knees except here I am standing and pulling down to one or the other side. Movement 2 is the woodchopper. Standing perpendicular to the line of force I rotate the force down and past me. Movement 3 is a band on a door knob where I rotate into the resistance which is horizontal to the ground. This one works well on a bench row machine where I sit sideways and rotate. The trick in all of these is "moment of arm" and the fact that the arms, extended, are not used at all, it is the body that moves engaging the transverse and obliques and maybe but probably not the serratus. Right now I use a 50lb db on a rope and maybe 15-20 per side x 2 or 3 sets each side.
3. Bench decline weighted sit up. This is hard to describe. I have an adjustable bench that drops down maybe 20+ degrees. Not very much. I grab 2x10lb db and I lean back into the decline while rotating and extending to one or the other side touching that side's shoulder blade to the bench. When the core is solid and well trained the arms can be extended pretty far and the rotation deeper and for the advanced they can be thrown just a little bit. The deceleration necessary for the latter will create a high force in the obliques. Warning: this will tear your core muscle literally and ruin your back if you are not in shape so don't do it unless you have worked up to it. This is a mainstay but it is off the table when my shoulder is injured and when my piriformis is lit. That latter can be excruciating and disappointing. 15-20+ to each side 3x per side.
4. Ab Carver wheel. I still, after all these years, can't tell if this is a gimmick. My guess is no but it is not equal to the promotion. On the other hand: a) I abandoned the gym and lost the ability to do a straight arm pull down at the lat machine so here is my straight-arm pulldown, and b) I detest planks and this is a movement-plank so good. And if I really want a bad ass plank I will hold the full outstretch for a some count. I'll compete with an "average" 30yo on this for money. I do the wheels from the knees not the toes because from the toes is horrifyingly unpleasant. 15 reps x 3. Good form is the key: keeping the butt tucked in and a full straight extension with a curl-in on the backward movement to engage the abs.
5. Floor work. There are a million of these. Here are some of mine that I throw into every other workout in some rotation. a) Oblique crunch: on back, roll right, right arm out at waist level palm down, left elbow up w hand to head, then crunch elbow to knee 30x. Change sides. Can be lightly weighted. b) leg-up reverse crunch. on back, hands splayed out to sides, raise legs vertical, lift butt off floor towards ceiling. Can do a tilt or side movement, too. 15 max 2-3 sets. I hurt myself the first time I did this. Also gave me an ab cramp once; those little f'rs hurt. c) Russian twist, weighted. This is redundant with #3 but whatever. I'll grab a 15 or 20 lb db or the same weight in pairs. Then rotate left and right with feet balancing up in air a bit. The trick here is that one is not moving the arms, one is rotating the body with the arms playing a lesser role. Again this carries back/spine risk so some caution here is good. Maybe 20+ x 2 or 3.
6. Alt planks. The first one, on the dip bar, I can't do due to my shoulder pain. Basically at the end of the dip when arms are fully extended, one pulls up even further as if trying to get the hips to the ceiling. This is supposedly a serratus killer. Can't do it anymore. The second is a legit plank where the plank is extended up by way of pushing the forearms to the center of the earth and expanding the scapula. Again, my shoulder injury makes this an off-the-table option.
7. The list. I have a zillion other things related to core work that come from youTube and elsewhere. I will throw stuff in randomly out of boredom or to experiment.
I will do some kind of core every workout. I was doing maybe 6x workouts per week but that was too much for me at my age. Now I do 2-4x per week an hour and a half or so. I rest more between sets than a 24 yo gym-bro might like but I do not listen to 24 year old gym bros. There are better exercises out there I'm sure than I do, these are just the accretions of my own history. My mind is open to new things tho. For now it seems to work pretty well. I like the movement and the involvement of more of the whole body in some of the items above. I have never done a "crunch" and I do not do traditional situps. Some of my rotation is a little risky but I have habituated. I broke a bone in my back 20 years ago so it sometimes hurts but it has not been a real problem yet.
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