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3 min read<\/p>\n3 min read<\/p>\n
At 40, work, kids, and everyone else\u2019s demands have a way of pushing training to the back burner. If this sounds familiar, you don\u2019t need a complex routine; you need a plan that fits your life. That\u2019s why Men\u2019s Health teamed with Andrew Heffernan, C.S.C.S., for this 12-week training program, Muscle After 40 at Home,<\/a> because your healthiest, strongest days are still ahead of you. The good news: you can get there without leaving the house. No pricey gym membership needed, just a few dumbbells, consistency, and some serious grit.<\/p>\n Over 12 weeks, you\u2019ll develop the skills to kickstart your longevity and see real results so you can stay strong in your 40s, 50s, and beyond. In just three months, you\u2019ll learn how to spot good pain versus bad pain, learn the moves to avoid injury, and get the energy you need while improving health markers your physician has been nagging you about. You\u2019ll also build strength, athleticism, and a toolkit to maintain your body for the long haul.<\/p>\n A plan built for the body you have now<\/p>\n Forty is not the new twenty, but that doesn’t mean that you can\u2019t reap the same gains you had in your youth. Over the next 12 weeks, you\u2019ll learn exercises to boost your muscle mass while avoiding injury\u2014heavy barbell squats and deadlifts, upright rows, behind-the-neck presses and Olympic lifts won\u2019t take center stage here. Instead, you\u2019ll focus on joint-friendly workouts like goblet squats, lunge variations, dumbbell Romanian deadlifts, pushup variations, and core work.<\/p>\n 12 weeks. 3 phases. 4 weeks each.Phase 1: Three full-body workouts a week that start at 60 percent effort.Phase 2: One full-body session, one arms-and-legs session, followed by one chest, back, and shoulders sessions each week.Phase 3: Four weekly sessions: two lower body, two upper body, with increasing sets.<\/p>\n You\u2019ll start each workout with a mobility warmup and quick explosive moves like skips and shuffle steps. Speed fades with age, so these quick warmups will help you maintain your agility for years to come.<\/p>\n In addition to rigorous training plans, you\u2019ll also get a whole-life health approach to training, complete with nutrition guidance, tips for better sleep, smart cardio, an actionable plan for keeping your gains once the 12 weeks are up, plus an illustrated glossary of nearly 60 exercises.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a look at what you\u2019ll get from week one: Traditional training models focus on reps; Muscle After 40 at Home <\/a>is effort-based. Instead of mandating 10 reps per exercise, each set is assigned an effort level on a scale of 1-10. With only light, medium, and heavy dumbbells to choose from, every workout remains challenging whatever your starting strength. You\u2019ll begin with an overhead-press test to help you pick the right weights. This book also comes with a built-in workout journal to help you track your progress with each set.<\/p>\n What you\u2019ll need<\/p>\n This training plan keeps it simple. You\u2019ll need:<\/p>\n Dumbbells in light, medium, and heavy weights1 Exercise mat1 Resistance band (preferably with a door attachment)\u200bWhy you should start now<\/p>\n Stagnation comes at a cost. According to a recent article published through Harvard Medical School<\/a>, starting around age 30, you begin losing muscle at nearly 1 percent a year if you remain inactive. That gradual loss is called age-related sarcopenia. Over time, this sets the stage for a cascade of health issues: more fat, less function and mobility, and a host of illnesses, including heart disease and even serious, life-threatening injury.<\/p>\n![\"Chevron](\"https:\/\/www.menshealth.com\/_assets\/design-tokens\/fre\/static\/icons\/arrow-left-regular.dc4f48a.svg?primary=%2523D4D4D4\"){kind=icon}
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No rep counting needed<\/p>\n