S2E5: Our Strength Training Hot Takes (No Experts Required)

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Welcome to practically fit, real fitness over forty.
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I'm Alex.
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And I'm Abbie.
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And today we're going to talk about strength training.
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That's right.
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Today we're sharing from both of our perspectives no experts, no studies, just our experiences with strength training over the years.
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We'll touch on how our approach has maybe changed or adapted over time.
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Share some of our favorite and some of our least favorite exercises.
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That's right.
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We'll even share our hottest takes on some questions that are bound to be controversial for those of you who enjoy lifting weights and building muscle.
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First, it's time for the warm-up.
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All right, time for the warm-up.
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Hey, this the title of this really reminds me of a song from Chriss Cross when I was growing up.
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Did they have Kriss Kross in England?
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Yeah.
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I mean, we weren't some like far-off nation that had network.
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They were huge here.
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I didn't know if they made it over there with the backwards jeans, but they had this song that was like, Warm it up, Kris.
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I'm about to warm it up, Kris.
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That's what I was born to do.
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Oh my god, I cannot believe you're rapping.
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I I listened to it the other day on YouTube.
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It brought back some memories.
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I used to listen to that cassette tape.
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So I don't know.
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When I was writing this that this week, that's what popped into my mind.
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So did you talk to one of the kids about it?
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Because I got questioned about whether I had a Walkman or not.
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I talked to one of the kids about running with a CD player that had anti-skip technology.
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Ah, yeah.
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Yeah.
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So I think that's why I got questioned about whether I had one of those or not.
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The good old days.
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All right.
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Let's kick it off with an article from CBS News.
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And the headline is more Gen Z adults ditch smartphones and social media in growing dumb phone trend.
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Kind of sounds rude calling it dumb phones.
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I get what they're doing, like the opposite of smartphones.
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Yeah.
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But it's a bit startup.
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Super clever.
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Like, how did they come up with this concept?
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So uh the article says, quote, some Gen Z users are swapping smartphones for simpler devices, citing less stress, better sleep, and improved focus, which we're all smartphone users these days for the most part.
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I could see those being some benefits of changing.
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The article talks about Kendall Schrode, who remembers the moment, the moment she swapped her smartphone for a flip phone.
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And she says, quote, for me, like the second that my iPhone was gone, it was just heaven on earth.
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She could have just got rid of her right so she doesn't have to have it.
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It's not obligatory.
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Well, she got she got a dumb phone from a company called dumb.co.
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And so they sell devices.
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They're they're not smartphones, yet they still have Uber, Google Maps, and Spotify.
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They just don't have social media.
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I feel like if it has Spotify or Uber on it, it's still kind of a smartphone, right?
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Like how many apps can you load onto this thing?
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I guess the idea is no social media.
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And this company has more than 5,000 active users, and their company is their typical customer is a 24-year-old woman.
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So let's talk about what Dr.
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Jason Nagata, a pediatrician and professor at the University of California, San Francisco, who studies social media's effects on young people, had to say about this dumb phone trend.
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He said, quote, in teenagers and even in adults, the sort of features of the design can lead to symptoms similar to substance-related addictions, which can include impaired control, withdrawal, tolerance, and relapse.
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I mean, I I get it.
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There's a lot of emerging studies or even studies that have been around for a while about the impact of social media and like constant phone usage and addiction.
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But I also don't think you need to go to a store called dumb.co and like like a place to do this for yourself, right?
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Yeah.
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Well, if you commit to a dumb phone and stick with it, according to this article from CBS News, you'll sleep better, have less anxiety, and less stress, or you could just like not do social media.
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Yeah, or you could just put your smartphone to one side at 8 p.m.
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at night.
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Like you don't like you have control over this.
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The device is not controlling you.
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Yeah, I I think the social media thing is interesting.
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To me, it's like, why get rid of your super expensive iPhone that you already paid for when you could just like delete the apps?
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Uh, but I guess people are so addicted.
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I guess maybe this is the solution for that.
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Do you think do you think they keep the iPhone and it's like in the attic and it's like a siren call?
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One night they wake up at 3 a.m.
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and go to the attic and grab the iPhone and they're just like relapse onto the iPhone.
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I this is fascinating to me.
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It it reminds me of that story we talked about a few weeks ago where younger generations were going quote unquote analog.
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With the analog backpack.
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Yeah, they had so they had analog backpacks, and it would be like, oh, I'm doing, you know, whatever non-digital hobbies, I put it in my backpack and take it with me, like knitting or things of that nature.
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And some people were creating analog rooms in their house as well.
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Which we've got an analog room.
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We've got a room with a record player and a couch.
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All rooms analog.
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And lights.
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It's only if you put things in them.
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So it's so basically like a room without a TV is an analog.
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So I mean I don't need I don't need a TV.
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I'm good with that one.
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All right, let's go to our next article.
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It comes from Runner's World.
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And it's called Here's What Happens to Your Body and Mind When You Make Running a Daily Habit, according to experts.
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I'm guessing this is positive given it's an article about running frequently in Runner's World.
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Yeah, and I gravitated towards this article because we both just got off our run streak.
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We talked about it last week.
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So they talk about numerous benefits of running daily in this article: better heart health, stronger muscles, more resilient tendons and ligaments, more efficient nervous system, a sharper mind, and better body awareness.
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Those are, I think, some of the things we saw on our run streak, but there were a couple things I pulled out here that were interesting to me.
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So they quote this heart expert, Todd Buckingham, he's a professor of exercise science.
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He basically explains why, if you run every day, your heart rate on easier runs will get better, uh, why your heart rate will get better on runs in general.
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And it all comes down to your heart's left ventricle.
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So this is the chamber that forces oxygenated blood into your aorta, which carries blood all across your body.
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As you run every day, that actually increases in size.
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There's more space for the blood in there, uh, and it becomes stronger.
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So it can pump out more blood with each beat, and your heart doesn't have to work as hard.
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So this is really why you see better heart health and lower heart rates on these runs if you run every day.
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I just thought that was fascinating.
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It's the physiological explanation for the data I saw on my run streak.
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Yeah, but I mean it's only really looking at one aspect.
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Nobody's ever argued that running isn't great for your cardiovascular health, but it's there is the opposite side of the impact of the repetitive running on your muscles and your, you know, your overall system, right?
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Yeah, they talked about that in the article, and they really talked about how it can bring you better body awareness because you're becoming more in tune with your body and and even your fatigue levels.
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If you're doing this daily running, it cited some signs that you might need a break to the point you're making, which is low energy, a higher resting heart rate uh during the day and night, and slower run paces.
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Uh, those are indications that you might be doing too many miles.
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And they say don't push through pain to maintain a daily habit.
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Yeah, that's good advice.
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I think sometimes people get locked into these things and keep running even if they are feeling pain, and that's never a good idea.
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Yeah, the reason I stopped was low energy.
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You know, sitting on that plane on the way to New York, I was like, you know what?
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I don't, I don't think I need to run this week, and I'm exhausted.
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So good advice there from Runner's World.
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If you are doing a lot of running, be sure to listen to your body.
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But I just thought it was cool that uh they had an article about daily running here.
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Uh, next article comes from another running publication, but it's not Runner's World, it's the Running Week.
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Yeah, and I found this article I thought it was really interesting because if you're a woman over 40, you would have seen numerous videos or pieces of advice shared with you about the fact that you should move away from cardio and move towards lifting.
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Um, I've seen that a lot in different places.
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That standard advice of run less, run less and lift more.
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And this article actually talked about the fact that you don't need to reduce your running as much as is being touted.
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So lift more, but keep running the way you are.
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So basically, it has it's looking at that decline in in females in terms of their estrogen and their hormone balance as they move through perimenopause and menopause.
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And estrogen is so important for you because it protects bone density, it supports muscle repair, and it oxidizes fat.
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So obviously, those are all really important elements if you're going to be running.
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What the article said is you can still run, but make some minor modifications.
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So keep your long run, keep a quality run, like a temporal interval run, and then swap out one of your hard runs, uh, one of your easy runs, rather, for a hard strength training session and do another hard strength training session a week.
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So you're looking for two hard strength training sessions alongside a long run, a quality run, and an easy run.
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And I thought that was really fascinating because you see a lot of much more binary advice of like stop doing cardio and start lifting.
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And if you're anything like me, I don't want to stop doing cardio.
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I'm not doing cardio just to lose weight or just for like taking in the exercise box.
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I do it because I like it.
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I do it because it's good for me in terms of both my physical and mental health.
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And so I thought this was really interesting.
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Um, and it also talked about fueling um alongside that.
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And I thought that lent into something that you were talking about last week, Alex, because the article talked about fueling and creatine.
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Oh, right.
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Yeah.
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So it did, it touched on the importance of protein.
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It said you need to have at least 1.6 to 2 grams per kilo of body weight spread throughout the day.
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So this was obviously a European or UK-based article.
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I I converted it to pounds if you're curious.
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So uh if you weigh 130 pounds, that's 95 to 118 grams per day, uh, 150, 109 to 136 grams per day, or 180 pounds, 131 to 163 grams per day.
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So roughly the majority, eating the majority of your body weight in protein per day.
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Yeah, and you mentioned creatine as well being helpful for women who are moving into menopause.
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So very interesting article.
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By the way, if you want to read it, the article was titled The Training Change: Every Woman Runner Over 45 is getting wrong.
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So interesting concept with that article.
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Last one, uh, I read this morning when I was reading my morning newspaper uh here on Saturday.
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It's by a columnist in the Wall Street Journal named Jamie Waters.
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So, yes, I read this on a physical newspaper this morning.
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Uh, and it it said analog.
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Analog, right, in our analog room.
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I traded coffee for energy drinks and nearly lost my mind.
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So I'm I'm fascinated by people who drink a lot of energy drinks.
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I did drink them some when I was younger.
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I don't, Abby, did you ever dabble with energy drinks?
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Not very often.
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I might have uh once or twice had like Red Bull.
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Um, but like I said um on the last episode, I don't I don't have a lot of caffeine.
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I drink tea, so I don't like the impact of them.
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Yeah, I I had done some inner drink energy drinks when I was younger.
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I I actually started drinking them because of a close call I had driving in the morning.
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I had a long commute every morning in Dallas traffic, and I got really close to like rear-ending somewhat, and I felt like I was falling asleep on the road.
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And I started trying Red Bull, and I I would also get these drinks from Costco that were they were like organic energy drinks.
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I think they were called sambazon, and they came in this giant case because it was Costco.
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And because it's an organic, I guess in my mind that was better than drinking Red Bull.
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But after drinking those a lot, I felt like they were having a negative impact on me and you know, giving me like irregular heartbeat and stuff like that.
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So that's when I switched to coffee.
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Like I didn't start drinking coffee until my late 20s, but I did that because I thought, I don't think energy drinks are very good for me.
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So this columnist, Jamie Waters, he wanted to see what it was like if you drank these on a daily basis.
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He's seen a lot of people, he lives in New York, you know, fitness folks drinking, especially Celsius, which is super popular right now.
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Uh so I like this quote he had at the beginning of the article.
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He says, I have such a high caffeine tolerance, I announced to my partner as I cracked open a can of Celsius.
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These probably won't really affect me.
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Uh and he mentioned that he's Australian and apparent-I don't do did you know this that Australians drink a lot of coffee?
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Uh he talked about drinking a lot of lattes throughout the day.
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Um, but I I also like this quote from Natalie Bochi.
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She's a publicist in New York.
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She says, a Celsius is a quote, productivity symbol in my eyes.
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I'm like, I'll have a can and I'll get the job done.
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So it kind of reminds me like that reminds me of college of people drinking to do a to pull in all nighter, like drinking Red Bull to be able to pull in all nighter.
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Or even hearkening back to like the 80s and early 90s with Diet Coke in the financial world, like you had to drink Diet Coke.
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Apparently, though, inner sales of energy drinks have risen 42% on the latest data in 2025, and that's compared to 2021.
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So people are drinking these a lot.
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This author found by midweek after drinking these, he had nearly, quote, lost his mind.
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And it's no wonder you know how much caffeine is in a can of Celsius, or even, I guess they also maybe own this drink, Alani New.
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Oh, that's really trendy right now.
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Yeah.
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Guess how much caffeine's in there?
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No idea.
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200 milligrams in one of those cans.
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So it's a little less than two Red Bulls or five diet cokes and about 50 to 80 milligrams more than a latte.
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And there's even a label on these cans, apparently, that states don't drink more than two of these per day, which is in line with the guidance, right?
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Like 400 milligrams of caffeine is considered safe.
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But this doctor, Rika Kumar, who's quoted in here, says, we have 50 years of safety data on coffee.
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We have excellent marketing data on Celsius.
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Yeah.
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It's not just the caffeine, right?
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Because if you drink coffee, or you're especially if you drink it black, like you drink it black, my parents drank black coffee always.
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That's all you're drinking.
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There's nothing else in there.
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Right.
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Or I put like a splash of almond milk in my cold brew.
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But it's also got these energy drinks, they don't have sugar.
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They have sucralose, the artificial sweetener.
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It's 600 times sweeter than table sugar.
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And there's I love it.
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There's new federal guidelines out that recommend limiting the intake of these sweeteners.
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But then we also approve all these foods that just have like, you know, it's the government is interesting to me because it's like, on one hand, we're saying, oh, this stuff's really bad for you.
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But on the other hand, you know, they don't really regulate it, which I'm not necessarily saying they should or they shouldn't, but like, how many people are actually paying attention to the government guidance that's coming down on sucralose, right?
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They're like, they don't, they're not gonna go out and read the FDA's website or whatever.
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Yeah.
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They will go to the store, and I think if they see a product in the store, they assume it's it's generally safe.
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But sucralose is linked to cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
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Uh a Celsius spokesperson said that sucralose has been to determined safe for intended uses by the FDA.
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Well, it has came.
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They're not wrong.
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Even though federal guidelines are suggesting limiting it.
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So you see my point on that.
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It's it's confusing for the consumer, I feel.
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It this was a really great article if you get a chance to read it.
00:17:52.240 --> 00:18:03.519
The author did note that while he lost his mind, it the drinks did give him a kick of energy, but he also felt the energy was accompanied by a headache and even like slightly sore teeth.
00:18:03.519 --> 00:18:08.559
I don't know if that was because of the sweetener or or the headache like radiating down.
00:18:08.559 --> 00:18:13.680
He said he did one before a run and it did kind of give him a energy kick on the run.
00:18:13.680 --> 00:18:18.640
Although I'd be curious to see like what was your heart rate data compared to a normal run.
00:18:18.640 --> 00:18:26.319
But my favorite passage from the article, and we'll close out with this, was quote, one afternoon, halfway through the week, I realized why people get hooked on these.
00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:34.160
After crushing two Celsiuses or celsi in four hours, I reached a state that could be called euphoric.
00:18:34.160 --> 00:18:43.359
I had no idea what flavor the cosmic vibe one was evoking beyond, quote, red, very sweet, but by the time I'd finished it, I couldn't have cared less.
00:18:43.359 --> 00:18:44.319
I was on the moon.
00:18:44.319 --> 00:18:45.920
I saw it through a pitch meeting.
00:18:45.920 --> 00:18:50.559
I wasn't exactly jittery, but I was able to open my wise my eyes extra wide.
00:18:50.559 --> 00:18:54.480
I swear my hair got bigger too, but that may have been a coincidence.
00:18:54.480 --> 00:19:02.319
So, you know, I guess if you have a big pitch meeting or a big presentation, try a Celsius.
00:19:02.319 --> 00:19:02.880
No.
00:19:02.880 --> 00:19:05.759
Do you think I should try that before the next time I give a talk?
00:19:06.079 --> 00:19:06.400
No.
00:19:06.400 --> 00:19:08.960
No, you you do not need that.
00:19:08.960 --> 00:19:13.839
You even when you came home the other day having had an afternoon espresso, I could tell.
00:19:13.839 --> 00:19:17.039
So don't think we want too much caffeine going on.
00:19:17.359 --> 00:19:17.759
All right.
00:19:17.759 --> 00:19:23.920
Well, I'll take that under advisement and we'll let you know if Alex tries a Celsius at some point.
00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:30.079
Okay, well, let's move on to strength training, the topic of the episode today.
00:19:30.079 --> 00:19:38.400
So we wanted to talk about strength training now versus when we were younger and how we feel about strength training.
00:19:38.400 --> 00:19:47.119
Um, and maybe, you know, what's changed in terms of what we did in our 20s and 30s compared to what we're doing in our 40s and 50s.
00:19:47.119 --> 00:19:51.440
So first stop there, perhaps, Alex.
00:19:51.440 --> 00:19:56.799
Like what's shifted in your strength training and the approach you take to it?
00:19:57.039 --> 00:19:58.240
Oh, that's a great question.
00:19:58.240 --> 00:20:01.200
I, you know, a lot has changed for me.
00:20:01.200 --> 00:20:16.960
I when I first started strength training, I we did a little bit in like middle school, high school for basketball, but really we were more trying to get out of the strength training, like even like faking our logs uh at the time.
00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:18.799
So that was my first intro to it.
00:20:19.119 --> 00:20:20.559
You should have to keep an analog log.
00:20:20.720 --> 00:20:23.039
Yeah, we had to keep a paper log and turn it in.
00:20:23.039 --> 00:20:30.240
So like we would just write sometimes we'd write fake numbers on there, and then we'd have to do it like an actual max test.
00:20:30.240 --> 00:20:36.960
And so it was very clear that like we couldn't lift the amount of weight that we had set on our logs.
00:20:36.960 --> 00:20:40.400
So not the spartest move as a teenager there.
00:20:40.400 --> 00:20:46.720
Um, over time, you know, I learned how to lift weights really from my my buddy in college.
00:20:46.720 --> 00:20:55.920
Uh, and my orientation was like at the time, what you would see in men's magazines or bodybuilding magazines.
00:20:55.920 --> 00:21:02.160
It was all very like standard workouts that were popular in the 1990s and 2000s.
00:21:02.160 --> 00:21:06.079
And you would just divide up your body parts throughout the week.
00:21:06.079 --> 00:21:10.400
I'm gonna do chest today, and you do a bunch of exercises focused on chest.
00:21:10.640 --> 00:21:11.920
Well, that's still the case, right?
00:21:11.920 --> 00:21:13.519
People like that standard.
00:21:13.920 --> 00:21:16.160
Yeah, it's more like bodybuilding workouts.
00:21:16.160 --> 00:21:25.279
And I'd say a lot of the, you know, fitness industry has moved away from that to like more total body or compound movements in recent years.
00:21:25.279 --> 00:21:33.599
For me, I think this is just absolutely vital, but I also am cognizant of the impact that it has on my body.
00:21:33.599 --> 00:21:40.880
And I've had some injuries with it over the years, lifting like really heavy weights where I had some injuries where I had to just stop.
00:21:40.880 --> 00:21:45.599
Like I hurt myself deadlifting one time, hurt my groin and lower back.
00:21:45.599 --> 00:21:49.519
So now I'm just, I would say I'm more careful with it.
00:21:49.519 --> 00:21:55.519
My mentality is not like, oh, I've got to go out and lift the most amount of weight possible.
00:21:55.519 --> 00:21:59.680
And really lately I've been into calisthenics and just I love the challenge of you.
00:21:59.680 --> 00:22:03.759
Using your own body weight to make yourself stronger and trying to do more advanced movements.
00:22:03.759 --> 00:22:06.640
So I've really moved towards that in recent years.
00:22:06.640 --> 00:22:07.920
But what about you?
00:22:07.920 --> 00:22:13.519
How do you feel about strength training compared to your 20s, 30s, and even your 40s?
00:22:25.519 --> 00:22:33.359
But what I did do a lot of and have always um, you know, continuously done and go back to is yoga.
00:22:33.359 --> 00:22:36.559
So that which has a lot of body weight in it, right?
00:22:36.559 --> 00:22:40.319
Especially if you're doing some of the more challenging poses.
00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:42.240
So similar to calisthenics.
00:22:42.240 --> 00:22:42.559
Yeah.
00:22:42.559 --> 00:22:47.680
So I I've I've practiced yoga since my very early twenties.
00:22:47.680 --> 00:22:55.839
Um so that's something that's been a constant and I think has supported me in terms of both flexibility and strength.
00:22:55.839 --> 00:23:00.319
Um, but yeah, I've only really picked up weight training in the last few years.
00:23:00.640 --> 00:23:07.200
Yeah, and I think for me, the thing I love about calisthenics as well is it really helps with your joints and connective tissues.
00:23:07.200 --> 00:23:15.200
Um, compound movements do that as well, like compound barbell training, better than say like weight machines or things of that nature.
00:23:15.200 --> 00:23:18.720
But that's one of the reasons I'm a big fan of calisthenics.
00:23:18.720 --> 00:23:24.400
Um, do you think there's any mistakes that you've made as you've learned more about strength training in recent years?
00:23:24.400 --> 00:23:26.400
Is there something you go back and change?
00:23:26.720 --> 00:23:29.920
I think the mistake would be not having started it earlier.
00:23:29.920 --> 00:23:31.680
That's the only thing I can think of.
00:23:32.000 --> 00:23:42.240
Yeah, I I think for me, uh maybe the biggest mistake was just focusing on certain vanity exercises.
00:23:42.240 --> 00:23:46.079
I think you have a tendency to do this when you're younger.
00:23:46.079 --> 00:23:46.720
Guess what?
00:23:46.720 --> 00:23:51.599
Maybe the most favorite vanity exercise is for men, in my opinion.
00:23:51.599 --> 00:23:52.640
What do you think it is?
00:23:52.640 --> 00:23:53.599
I don't know.
00:23:53.599 --> 00:23:55.039
Bicep comes.
00:23:55.039 --> 00:23:56.240
Oh, that's a good one.
00:23:56.240 --> 00:23:58.000
Uh, I was thinking bench press, though.
00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:06.799
I mean, it's a compound movement, but dudes love to talk about their bench press and how like when I was a kid, that was like, how much, how much can you bench?
00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:11.759
It wasn't how much can you squat or deadlift or Aldus says that all the time.
00:24:11.759 --> 00:24:17.119
Yeah, and I felt like I was not very good at benching and I was pretty weak when I was younger.
00:24:17.119 --> 00:24:19.839
So I I always tried to avoid that conversation.
00:24:19.839 --> 00:24:26.960
So I think when I started lifting weights, I really focused a lot on bench pressing.
00:24:26.960 --> 00:24:40.400
And now, I mean, I I'm doing a lot more like different types of push-ups and things of that nature, which hits the same muscles, but uh that's one that I I don't do as much anymore, especially since I've switched to calisthenics.
00:24:40.400 --> 00:24:48.400
Is there anything as you've kind of gotten into it where maybe there was exercises that you were doing a couple of years ago that you're not doing now?
00:24:48.400 --> 00:24:51.039
How has it changed for you over the past couple of years?
00:24:51.440 --> 00:24:55.759
I don't think there's anything that I've like moved away from.
00:24:55.759 --> 00:25:00.000
There's things I I just can't do or I don't enjoy.
00:25:00.000 --> 00:25:04.240
Like the other day I was in the garage with our eldest and he said, do a pull-up.
00:25:04.240 --> 00:25:06.079
And I was like, I I just can't.
00:25:06.079 --> 00:25:08.559
I haven't got the upper body strength to do that.
00:25:08.559 --> 00:25:10.640
So and he loves doing pull-ups.
00:25:10.640 --> 00:25:24.480
So it's not that I've abandoned it, but um I'm like, I there's other things that I would prefer to do than to do something that I don't have the strength or the like physical makeup to do.
00:25:24.720 --> 00:25:31.200
That's one actually that when I was younger, while I was over there doing all those bench presses, I never did pull-ups.
00:25:31.200 --> 00:25:36.079
And at some point in my life, I looked at it and was like, I should be able to do that.
00:25:36.079 --> 00:25:39.519
Because we for back, we would do a lot of like weight machines and stuff.
00:25:39.519 --> 00:25:42.960
Again, these were like 1990s and early 2000s types of workouts.
00:25:42.960 --> 00:25:45.119
We do like lat pull downs.
00:25:45.119 --> 00:25:50.960
I remember at some point being like, I am going to train myself into a pull-up.
00:25:50.960 --> 00:25:53.359
And I had a pull-up bar in my garage.
00:25:53.359 --> 00:25:56.960
There was nobody in there to see that I couldn't do this.
00:25:56.960 --> 00:26:04.319
And you start by just like jumping up to the bar and doing negative reps and lowering yourself down.
00:26:04.319 --> 00:26:11.920
Uh, you do like Australian pull-ups where you're like parallel with the floor, pulling yourself up on a bar, and eventually, like, I remember doing my first pull-up.
00:26:11.920 --> 00:26:15.359
And once I did that, it was like, oh, I could just do more and more.
00:26:15.359 --> 00:26:18.400
So um, one of my favorite exercises there.
00:26:18.720 --> 00:26:24.480
What about something that you uh that you do now that you didn't do?
00:26:24.960 --> 00:26:30.240
Again, I would go back to just restraining myself and being smart.
00:26:30.559 --> 00:26:33.200
I used to be but that's not an exercise.
00:26:33.200 --> 00:26:34.720
That's just a state of mind.
00:26:34.960 --> 00:26:36.480
No, but it's part of it, right?
00:26:36.480 --> 00:26:41.839
Because you have to be really careful when you're doing this, especially as you age.
00:26:41.839 --> 00:26:55.680
And if you keep the mentality that you had in your 20s and 30s for strength training when you move into your 40s and your 50s, I think it can be risky because my thing was like I have to be upping my PR every week on these lifts that I'm doing.
00:26:55.680 --> 00:26:58.160
So, like, that's how I hurt myself deadlifting.
00:26:58.160 --> 00:27:00.079
I just kept pushing myself and pushing myself.
00:27:00.079 --> 00:27:06.799
And one day I I did a rep at like, you know, heavier weight for me, and I just felt my my back go.
00:27:06.799 --> 00:27:08.079
It's like, yeah.
00:27:08.079 --> 00:27:17.359
So I know it's not like a specific exercise, but just the approach of being safer with it, I think, has been really important for me.
00:27:17.359 --> 00:27:20.240
Um, which kind of leads us to another discussion.
00:27:20.240 --> 00:27:24.400
Let's talk about how much weight you're lifting or how hard you're going.
00:27:24.400 --> 00:27:32.079
Do you think, Abby, people over 40, and we can we can talk about this in terms of women, do you think they're lifting heavy enough?
00:27:32.400 --> 00:27:37.119
I think it's super confusing because they just tell you to lift heavy, and you're like, what does that mean?
00:27:37.119 --> 00:27:43.279
Like, so without knowing the guidance, you don't know.
00:27:43.279 --> 00:27:48.079
And I think this is where you can enjoy yourself that you like pushing yourself to lift heavier.
00:27:48.079 --> 00:27:51.680
So I think it's all very personal and relative.
00:27:51.680 --> 00:28:03.279
And the way that like I've looked at it is um if I'm getting to like if I'm doing 10 reps, if the last three are feeling hard, then I'm probably lifting about right.
00:28:03.279 --> 00:28:11.119
If I'm getting to the end of like 10 or 12 reps and it feels easy and like I could just go again straight away, then I'm probably not lifting heavy enough.
00:28:11.359 --> 00:28:16.160
Yeah, and as a as a male, I always associate lifting heavy with barbells specifically.
00:28:16.160 --> 00:28:19.200
So I think that comes into the equation as well.
00:28:19.200 --> 00:28:28.640
And I think I think it is good for women to try barbells, but you also want to be careful because you could accidentally start with too heavy a load on that.
00:28:28.640 --> 00:28:37.440
So for folks who are just getting into barbells at our age, it's like make sure you have somebody around to help you uh if you're gonna try that.
00:28:37.440 --> 00:28:46.640
The good thing about dumbbells is you can start lighter and you can you have better control over the weight and it it flows more freely with your body's natural movements as well.
00:28:46.720 --> 00:28:56.559
So yeah, but the other the other one I think is um is just having and this is where it is good to go to a gym if you're starting out, like having access to different weights.
00:28:56.559 --> 00:29:00.880
You know, when I was very first starting, I just had like one set of dumbbells.
00:29:00.880 --> 00:29:09.119
But what I've come to realize, like like everyone, I can lift my bottom half of my body is a lot stronger than the top half of my body.
00:29:09.119 --> 00:29:15.599
So I need much heavier dumbbells for lower body workout than I do for upper body workouts.
00:29:15.599 --> 00:29:28.480
I think it's really helpful to go to a gym and also to have a a friend or a personal trainer, somebody who has more experience than you, just give you some guidance and tips.
00:29:28.480 --> 00:29:29.839
I think that's invaluable.
00:29:30.160 --> 00:29:33.119
Yeah, start light and focus on your form and then build up.
00:29:33.119 --> 00:29:35.759
And that's what's heavy for you is relative, right?
00:29:35.839 --> 00:29:44.640
Like oh yeah, but what I meant is like you shouldn't be using the same dumbbells to do your, you know, bicep overhead, whatever.
00:29:44.640 --> 00:29:52.079
Like, I don't even know all the names of anything, but you shouldn't be using the same dumbbells for that as you are for doing a deadlift, for example.
00:29:52.400 --> 00:29:54.720
Right, right, like a shoulder press or something.
00:29:54.720 --> 00:30:04.720
Uh the the other thing is there used to be this trend of like toning exercises, especially like honestly, I think it was very gendered back in the day.
00:30:04.720 --> 00:30:21.119
And like a lot of the women's workouts when I were growing up were focused on like toning, and you would see these workouts where it was like lighter dumbbells and more simplified movements and things like bicep curls and tricep push downs and things like that.
00:30:21.119 --> 00:30:29.839
And now I think there's been a lot more advice for women in terms of doing similar workouts that men have typically done.
00:30:30.160 --> 00:30:31.680
Yeah, I I think so too.
00:30:31.680 --> 00:30:35.519
But also, like I I I think everything's valid, right?
00:30:35.519 --> 00:30:40.960
Like Pilates, toning workouts, yoga, they're still really, really good.
00:30:40.960 --> 00:30:50.640
So it also sometimes feels like there's a there's so much out there that it can feel overwhelming and a little confusing.
00:30:50.640 --> 00:30:52.400
And then the risk is you don't do anything.
00:30:52.400 --> 00:31:02.000
So I also think that whatever you're doing, yes, they said you they say you should lift heavier if you can, like you should build strength training.
00:31:02.000 --> 00:31:07.359
But also I just think just do like just do anything, like that's good for you.
00:31:07.359 --> 00:31:20.880
Like, and and that's part of what I've approached as I've approached it, because like the idea of going to the gym for two hours was like overwhelming to me, but doing 15 minutes at home feels very doable.
00:31:20.880 --> 00:31:26.079
So like fitting it into your lifestyle, too, whatever you do, it's a positive.
00:31:26.079 --> 00:31:27.440
You're still moving your body.
00:31:27.680 --> 00:31:30.480
Yeah, and by the way, I've heard p Pilates is really hard.
00:31:30.480 --> 00:31:31.920
So it's really hard.
00:31:31.920 --> 00:31:32.480
Yeah.
00:31:32.480 --> 00:31:39.359
What do you think is the big biggest obstacle to maintaining consistency with strength training?
00:31:39.680 --> 00:31:43.759
Uh well, like I said, I I think it's just like don't make it into this big thing.
00:31:43.759 --> 00:31:49.119
Like, even if you're just doing 10, 15 minutes, it's a bit like the run streak, right?
00:31:49.119 --> 00:31:57.359
Where we were like, oh, in my mind before in my mind when I was younger, if I didn't run four miles, it wasn't worth going for a run.
00:31:57.359 --> 00:31:59.519
Like yeah, like that's how I was.
00:31:59.519 --> 00:32:02.480
I was like, four miles is the least that I would do.
00:32:02.480 --> 00:32:05.759
And that and that I'm not being obnoxious, that's just how I was.
00:32:05.759 --> 00:32:07.119
That was in my head.
00:32:07.119 --> 00:32:15.279
Um, and even like recently, I'm like, well, normally if I went out for a run, it would be like three miles, would be kind of norm, right?
00:32:15.279 --> 00:32:18.559
On the run streak, there was times where I was just running a mile.
00:32:18.559 --> 00:32:20.799
And I think of the same in terms of strength training.
00:32:20.799 --> 00:32:25.279
It doesn't have to be a 45-minute hour, hour and a half session.
00:32:25.279 --> 00:32:29.839
Great if you can do that, but also great if you can just fit in 15 minutes.
00:32:29.839 --> 00:32:47.680
Like that's still, you're still, you know, working your muscles, especially if you can, if that makes it an easier bar for you to fit it into your week, doing three 15, 30-minute sessions, that feels really doable and you can fit it in around your day.
00:32:47.680 --> 00:32:54.880
So I think that the biggest obstacle is when you make it this big thing and you are trying to carve out all of this time.
00:32:54.880 --> 00:33:04.640
Um, and and like that article earlier, like if you are moving and adding it into running, just drop one run a week and replace it with a strength training session.
00:33:04.640 --> 00:33:07.680
Then it feels like you're not like over compromising.
00:33:07.920 --> 00:33:08.480
Yeah, I agree.
00:33:08.480 --> 00:33:14.559
And with calisthenics, I've I've only been really doing like three times a week, 30-minute sessions.
00:33:14.559 --> 00:33:16.400
The movements are so challenging.
00:33:16.400 --> 00:33:19.039
Like, it that's one of the amazing things about it to me.
00:33:19.039 --> 00:33:25.200
Like, I feel like I've stayed in great shape and it's not some hour, these like grueling hour-long sessions.
00:33:25.200 --> 00:33:30.559
I also laugh at these people, influencers who are like, you know, oh, you don't feel good today.
00:33:30.559 --> 00:33:31.359
Get in the gym.
00:33:31.359 --> 00:33:32.160
It doesn't matter.
00:33:32.160 --> 00:33:33.440
Get your session done.
00:33:33.440 --> 00:33:36.000
Like, I don't I don't think that's the best mindset.
00:33:36.000 --> 00:33:39.359
I would prioritize quality over quantity.
00:33:39.359 --> 00:33:46.720
So if you're not feeling well or if you're you're feeling down, just do what you feel that day and you know, keep it, keep it simple.
00:33:47.039 --> 00:33:47.440
I agree.
00:33:47.440 --> 00:33:58.000
And I think the other thing is, um, it doesn't have to be like you if you found a routine that you like, like I had one last year that I I just did that on repeat.
00:33:58.000 --> 00:34:06.240
And it may seem like that that's boring, but it's it's actually good because you could see how you were progressing and see how you were building.
00:34:06.240 --> 00:34:12.320
So I think just finds find a set of exercises that you like um and stick to them.
00:34:12.320 --> 00:34:13.599
And and that was the other thing, right?
00:34:13.599 --> 00:34:18.719
There's certain exercises I just don't like, so I don't do them because nobody's telling me what to do.
00:34:18.719 --> 00:34:26.239
Like I pick the ones that I enjoy, make sure that there are a good balance of different things across a full-body workout, for example.
00:34:26.239 --> 00:34:32.079
But if you enjoy the exercise, if it's something that you like, I love Arnold Press, that's one of my favorites.
00:34:32.079 --> 00:34:39.440
Um so I will often do those, or or or I like tricep dips, or I like chest press or chest fly.
00:34:39.440 --> 00:34:43.599
So like build in things that you like because then you're gonna look forward to it.
00:34:43.599 --> 00:34:54.239
I know a few years ago, not strength training, but a few years ago, I did um some of those, like what do you call them, like beach body, like three-week things.
00:34:54.239 --> 00:34:56.079
And I flippin' hated it.
00:34:56.079 --> 00:34:59.119
Like, and you puff and puff your way through it.
00:34:59.119 --> 00:35:01.760
And sometimes that's good from a like, oh, I've done it.
00:35:01.760 --> 00:35:02.880
I did the three weeks.
00:35:02.880 --> 00:35:07.920
But I think for something like strength training, you have to find the things that you enjoy and build those in.
00:35:07.920 --> 00:35:09.679
That's gonna make you consistent.
00:35:10.000 --> 00:35:11.039
Yeah, absolutely.
00:35:11.039 --> 00:35:17.199
I think the other challenge for me is like balancing it with my cardio plan.
00:35:17.199 --> 00:35:25.599
And sometimes I think lately it's surprising because I used to bias more towards strength training when I was younger, and now I think I bias more towards cardio.
00:35:25.599 --> 00:35:33.360
So I've just accepted like I probably slightly prioritize my running right now over my strength training.
00:35:33.360 --> 00:35:39.599
And there might be weeks where I only do two sessions instead of three or four, and that's okay.
00:35:39.599 --> 00:35:41.360
You just have to find that balance.
00:35:41.360 --> 00:35:43.360
How how have you been approaching that recently?
00:35:43.599 --> 00:35:45.440
Yeah, no, I think that's exactly right.
00:35:45.440 --> 00:35:52.239
Like, um, I you know, I'm trying I'm trying to do like a minimum of two strength training sessions a week.
00:35:52.239 --> 00:36:06.320
But, you know, uh like you, you know, there's been times in the past where I would do lots more yoga or lots more um uh other things, but it depends on where your your focus is and your focus can't be everywhere.
00:36:06.320 --> 00:36:12.719
So you can't do you can't be doing five lots of strength training plus seven days running, right?
00:36:12.719 --> 00:36:14.159
Like that's just too much.
00:36:14.159 --> 00:36:28.239
So I think if if there's a period where I'm like going to train for a race or I want to improve my 5K time, I'm probably gonna switch out my strength training and then think about like what kind of strength training I need and want to do.
00:36:28.239 --> 00:36:33.519
So that's one of the things I've been focusing on is like what are good strength training moves for runners.
00:36:33.519 --> 00:36:39.760
So lots of bilateral movements and things where you're strengthening the muscle groups that you use during running.
00:36:39.760 --> 00:36:41.360
Um, I've been focusing on those.
00:36:41.360 --> 00:36:52.480
So like split squats and um deadlifts and you know, other bridges and those kind of things, which really strengthen your the muscles that you're using.
00:36:52.719 --> 00:36:54.159
Well, let's come back to that in a second.
00:36:54.159 --> 00:37:04.880
The other thing I would say on like how you balance these is you can actually like if you are doing more running during the week, like if you got a day where you've got an easy run, you can do strength training that day.
00:37:04.960 --> 00:37:06.960
Uh especially up a body, for example.
00:37:07.199 --> 00:37:11.280
Or like you'll we'll do a run in the morning and then strength training in the evening.
00:37:11.280 --> 00:37:17.039
So uh the balance can definitely be there, and you can even do some of this uh in the same day.
00:37:17.039 --> 00:37:27.599
Now, I wouldn't go do like your super hard tempo run or some hard track workout and then do strength training and we'll do legs on the day that you did something like that.
00:37:27.840 --> 00:37:32.480
And one thing I actually that's a good point you asked earlier about like a mistake I made.
00:37:32.480 --> 00:37:38.559
When I was um training for half marathon, I had a practice half marathon in that cycle.
00:37:38.559 --> 00:37:48.320
And I had done a full body workout on, I think it would be the maybe the Wednesday or the Thursday before the race was on the Saturday.
00:37:48.320 --> 00:37:51.039
And when I went into that race, I felt sluggish.
00:37:51.039 --> 00:37:57.679
And I realized that was probably just not a good idea on on a race week to do strength so close to it.
00:37:57.679 --> 00:38:06.480
So I think if you've got like long runs, you want to protect and not have a hard strength workout before your long run.
00:38:06.480 --> 00:38:09.840
So, like you said, Alex, just positioning it right in the week.
00:38:10.239 --> 00:38:17.360
Yeah, I even during that run streak, I had been working on trying to build up to pistol squats, which is very challenging for me.
00:38:17.360 --> 00:38:21.360
For those who don't know what that is, that's like a one-legged squat, basically.
00:38:21.360 --> 00:38:24.880
It's also really good for your balance, but it is very challenging on your joints.
00:38:24.880 --> 00:38:35.519
And uh, I was doing that and then trying to run every day, and I got some like tendonitis in the front of my legs, so had to cut out those pistol squats.
00:38:35.519 --> 00:38:43.760
So, so like if if you're doing a lot of activities that use the same muscle group, you have to think about that as well when it comes to your strength training.
00:38:43.760 --> 00:38:46.559
Now, I want to I wanted to go back to something you said there, though.
00:38:46.559 --> 00:38:51.360
You talked about doing a lot of strength exercises that make you better at running.
00:38:51.360 --> 00:38:57.679
Do you think strength training has made you better at running or your daily life or other activities that you're doing?
00:38:58.000 --> 00:38:59.039
Uh a hundred percent.
00:38:59.039 --> 00:39:01.920
And and the same in terms of um yoga.
00:39:01.920 --> 00:39:06.000
Like I think that that they these are like complementary things.
00:39:06.000 --> 00:39:11.360
So yoga is really good at you know, stretching out, giving you flexibility.
00:39:11.360 --> 00:39:15.039
I used to be a horse rider and yoga really helped me with horse riding.
00:39:15.039 --> 00:39:16.719
Yeah, um so makes sense.
00:39:16.719 --> 00:39:23.360
Um so I think that that that these things can and do really complement one another.
00:39:23.360 --> 00:39:38.000
And when I was marathon training uh end of last year, beginning of this year, I uh I started to have a real niggle in my knee, and I realized that I and I wasn't doing any strength training at the time.
00:39:38.000 --> 00:39:46.800
Like I had come back from um neck surgery, um, and so I had been slow to reintroduce strength training back in.
00:39:46.800 --> 00:39:59.360
And I realized that that that I probably needed to, and adding it back in and then building back up, I really saw the difference of introducing those, those movements that supported me for when I was running.
00:39:59.679 --> 00:40:01.119
Yeah, and I I agree.
00:40:01.119 --> 00:40:04.800
And I think too, you just feel it in your daily life.
00:40:04.800 --> 00:40:10.239
I remember the difference I felt when I started working out, especially when I was younger.
00:40:10.239 --> 00:40:18.400
And it's like even something simple as like, oh, now people are handing me jars to open them, or you know, I can carry all these grocery bags.
00:40:18.400 --> 00:40:20.639
It's super easy, like climbing the stairs.
00:40:20.639 --> 00:40:23.920
Things that used to feel heavy don't in your daily life.
00:40:23.920 --> 00:40:28.880
So to me, that's one of the real psychological benefits of doing strength training.
00:40:28.880 --> 00:40:35.760
Let's let's talk hot takes, let's talk controversial strength training topics.
00:40:35.760 --> 00:40:43.519
So question one home workout or gym, which do you prefer and why?
00:40:43.519 --> 00:40:44.400
Which is better?
00:40:44.400 --> 00:40:46.000
Take a position, Abbie.
00:40:47.519 --> 00:40:49.679
I was gonna say, I like both for different reasons.
00:40:50.000 --> 00:40:51.199
No, you gotta pick one.
00:40:51.360 --> 00:40:52.559
It's a hot take.
00:40:52.559 --> 00:40:54.559
Okay, right now, gym.
00:40:54.880 --> 00:40:55.360
Really?
00:40:55.599 --> 00:40:57.199
I yeah, I'm enjoying.
00:40:57.199 --> 00:41:00.639
We joined uh the local rec center.
00:41:00.639 --> 00:41:04.960
I like the range of different equipment there that we just wouldn't have at home.
00:41:04.960 --> 00:41:14.159
Uh I and I found it actually helpful to do certain exercises with the gym mirror, because you don't have that at home.
00:41:14.159 --> 00:41:20.480
And and so it's really helped me see like, oh, is my form off or like how uh those kind of things.
00:41:20.480 --> 00:41:23.280
So yeah, I I actually like the gym.
00:41:23.280 --> 00:41:26.960
And it and I think it's because that gym is very easygoing.
00:41:26.960 --> 00:41:29.599
It's not full of loads of gym bros, so I don't feel in the world.
00:41:29.599 --> 00:41:32.400
Yeah, it's a low like a city rec center is much better than the gym.
00:41:32.400 --> 00:41:37.599
So I I feel I feel pretty comfortable around anyone in that.
00:41:37.599 --> 00:41:39.280
So gym for me right now.
00:41:39.519 --> 00:41:40.800
Uh you know what I'm gonna say.
00:41:40.800 --> 00:41:41.039
Yeah.
00:41:41.039 --> 00:41:42.000
Home workout.
00:41:42.000 --> 00:41:45.119
I don't like people, so no.
00:41:45.119 --> 00:41:51.519
Uh also there's a lot of teenagers at the gym, you know, they live leave weights out and stuff, but no, seriously.
00:41:51.519 --> 00:41:55.119
They're pretty good at the one we go to.
00:41:55.119 --> 00:42:08.480
But yeah, no, I do like home workouts just because to me the benefit is you don't like if you're like me and you plan your workouts and you're not just sort of like floating, you know, you have a schedule in mind for your workout.
00:42:08.480 --> 00:42:17.840
And often at the gym, well, it's like, I need to use this equipment or these weights, and somebody's using it, or maybe there's not very many of that particular thing you want to do.
00:42:17.840 --> 00:42:20.320
And so it kind of throws your whole workout off.
00:42:20.320 --> 00:42:24.079
So I just like the freedom of being able to work out at home.
00:42:24.079 --> 00:42:29.360
I I also enjoy buying different home workout equipment, which I bought some today.
00:42:29.360 --> 00:42:33.119
Yeah, surprise coming, Abby, in the in the mail.
00:42:33.119 --> 00:42:36.320
Uh, I've ordered it to the right house this time, so that's good.
00:42:36.320 --> 00:42:40.719
Well, let's let's let's take another controversial topic.
00:42:40.719 --> 00:42:54.800
With all of this like fitness media that's out there now, YouTube, fitness apps, we talked about Runna and Garmin previously, AI, Claude, Chat GPT, Grok, Gemini, whatever.
00:42:54.800 --> 00:42:57.599
We don't need to advertise every AI app.
00:42:57.599 --> 00:43:00.960
I'm just listing AI apps.
00:43:00.960 --> 00:43:03.760
Are personal trainers worth it?
00:43:04.079 --> 00:43:06.239
I think they are if you're if you're starting out.
00:43:06.239 --> 00:43:17.840
I think if you're starting out with anything, whether it's strength training, learning to ride a horse, learning to do anything, it's worth having somebody who's got expertise guide you.
00:43:17.840 --> 00:43:19.599
But I think all of those things are great.
00:43:19.599 --> 00:43:23.519
There's great workouts on YouTube, or but there's no feedback from them.
00:43:23.519 --> 00:43:28.800
So you have no idea if your form is off and you could be doing something that you could hurt yourself.
00:43:28.800 --> 00:43:34.880
So I I do think it's worth it if you're starting out and you have no experience.
00:43:35.360 --> 00:43:38.880
Yeah, I can't actually like responsibly disagree with that take.
00:43:38.880 --> 00:43:40.639
So I agree with you.
00:43:40.639 --> 00:43:45.679
Like, please don't if you if you're new to working out, it's always good to try and consult somebody.
00:43:45.679 --> 00:43:53.679
And even if, you know, I know personal trainers can be expensive, but there's ways that they can be more accessible, like at a place like a rec center, it'll be cheaper.
00:43:53.920 --> 00:43:59.679
Yeah, I saw I saw the personal trainer little leaflet in there, and it was like it was pretty reasonable for to do.
00:43:59.679 --> 00:44:00.960
Do a one-off session.
00:44:01.199 --> 00:44:05.760
Yeah, often if you sign up for a gym, they'll give you a free session so they can you can get started that way.
00:44:05.760 --> 00:44:14.880
Just have somebody show you the form and like because to me it's really hard to look at a YouTube video and then replicate everything exactly on the form.
00:44:14.880 --> 00:44:23.199
So I agree a hundred percent personal trainers are worth it and important, and AI and all of this other stuff can't necessarily replace that.
00:44:23.199 --> 00:44:24.320
Um okay.
00:44:24.320 --> 00:44:25.360
Next one.
00:44:25.360 --> 00:44:31.199
If you could do only one strength exercise for the rest of your life, what would it be?
00:44:31.679 --> 00:44:33.280
I think you should answer first for one.
00:44:33.280 --> 00:44:36.639
If I've answered first on the last two hot takes, pull-ups.
00:44:37.920 --> 00:44:39.119
I have to say pull-ups.
00:44:39.119 --> 00:44:42.719
It's there's just something about pulling yourself over that bar.
00:44:42.719 --> 00:44:46.159
It gives you confidence, it makes you feel strong.
00:44:46.159 --> 00:44:51.119
Uh it's really good upper body, kind of overall upper body exercise.
00:44:51.119 --> 00:45:01.199
And I I think like some things we do because they make us strong, but they're also good for the way we look, and pull-ups help you get that kind of like V-shaped upper body.
00:45:01.199 --> 00:45:02.239
So that makes sense.
00:45:02.239 --> 00:45:03.840
Yeah, it would be pull-ups for me.
00:45:03.840 --> 00:45:04.400
What about you?
00:45:04.800 --> 00:45:11.840
I think squats, because there's so many different varieties of squats you can do, and I think they're really good for longevity.
00:45:11.840 --> 00:45:20.960
Like if you just literally think about being wanting to be able to get up and sit down when you're older, like that's what a squat is helping you do.
00:45:21.280 --> 00:45:21.599
Yeah.
00:45:21.599 --> 00:45:22.639
What about this one?
00:45:22.639 --> 00:45:27.360
Is there a useless exercise that you've just done religiously?
00:45:27.360 --> 00:45:29.119
Something that's almost useless.
00:45:29.760 --> 00:45:37.599
I d I mean, like I said, I haven't done strength training for that long, so I don't know what what I would pull out in that category.
00:45:38.559 --> 00:45:46.079
I th I don't know, like I I wouldn't say useless, but I do think bicep curls could be one that I would flag.
00:45:46.079 --> 00:45:46.719
You mentioned those.
00:45:47.199 --> 00:45:47.920
You loved it.
00:45:47.920 --> 00:45:50.559
You when I first met you, you used to love doing that.
00:45:50.559 --> 00:45:54.400
In fact, we've got so many different blinking weights in the city.
00:45:54.639 --> 00:45:57.039
But I those are not just for bicep curls.
00:45:57.039 --> 00:46:02.800
I did do them a lot when I had broken my leg just because there were only so many exercises I could do.
00:46:02.800 --> 00:46:15.920
But I just believe you can get your biceps bigger by doing other things like pull-ups and chin-ups and compound movements, that maybe that's one of the ones that's more useless.
00:46:15.920 --> 00:46:23.760
And there's people who take those to the extreme, and you know, I've seen people who like inject steroids directly into their biceps.
00:46:23.760 --> 00:46:27.360
So some people love bicep curls.
00:46:27.360 --> 00:46:43.119
Calf raises, I would have thought maybe you could classify those as useless, but I also think it's really good for your well, like, but when I was younger, people viewed it as like a useless exercise because it's like, oh, you're just doing like aesthetics on your calves, but really I think it's good for your mobility.
00:46:43.119 --> 00:46:46.400
So I would that was the one when I was younger, people thought it was useless.
00:46:46.400 --> 00:46:47.599
I don't think it's useless at all.
00:46:47.599 --> 00:46:50.719
It's good for your ankles and tendons and joints.
00:46:50.960 --> 00:46:55.440
I mean, generally, like every exercise is doing something, right?
00:46:55.440 --> 00:46:58.639
Like there's nothing that's completely useless.
00:46:58.639 --> 00:46:59.039
Yeah.
00:46:59.039 --> 00:47:04.639
Even if you're just lying on the floor, relaxing at the end, that's part of what you should do.
00:47:04.639 --> 00:47:05.199
Yeah.
00:47:05.199 --> 00:47:11.280
Uh so uh lastly, Alex, would you skip leg day?
00:47:11.519 --> 00:47:18.079
Oh, you're asking the classic question based on the meme about people skipping leg day, huh?
00:47:18.079 --> 00:47:20.159
Um, do I skip leg day?
00:47:20.159 --> 00:47:21.199
Is that what you're asking?
00:47:21.199 --> 00:47:28.719
Uh lately I haven't been as good as about it because I've been running so much.
00:47:28.719 --> 00:47:34.480
And honestly, I'd rather go do like a hill workout with running than do leg day.
00:47:34.480 --> 00:47:36.079
Like, I do not like leg day.
00:47:36.079 --> 00:47:40.400
I'm what I'm I don't enjoy squats, to be honest.
00:47:40.880 --> 00:47:45.440
Coming from the man who like did like non-stop squats when I first met you.
00:47:45.760 --> 00:47:46.960
It doesn't mean I like it.
00:47:46.960 --> 00:47:49.119
Like, it's I you know why I did that?
00:47:49.119 --> 00:48:00.719
Because I hate it so much, I thought, well, there was actually one point in time when I was younger, and I talked about it recently on the Substack, like, I did this program that was basically squatting every day.
00:48:00.719 --> 00:48:04.800
There was a book about it, and it's that concept of greasing the groove.
00:48:04.800 --> 00:48:11.920
And actually, to me, it wasn't as bad as doing squats once or twice a week because my legs didn't get sore from it.
00:48:11.920 --> 00:48:17.679
So um, and you could like spread out the volume, but it's not not my favorite workout.
00:48:17.679 --> 00:48:28.639
So I will say there are times when I may skip leg day, especially since I do so much running and I feel like the running contributes to my legs.
00:48:28.639 --> 00:48:31.199
And running up hills is great for your legs, I would say.
00:48:31.199 --> 00:48:31.599
Yeah.
00:48:31.599 --> 00:48:34.239
Yes, you found me out occasionally.
00:48:34.239 --> 00:48:35.280
I skip leg day.
00:48:35.280 --> 00:48:36.639
Well, there you go.
00:48:36.639 --> 00:48:39.119
Nice discussion on strength training.
00:48:39.119 --> 00:48:41.599
We shared some of our hot takes with you.
00:48:41.599 --> 00:48:43.840
Uh, it's just, we want to talk about this today.
00:48:43.840 --> 00:48:48.559
It's really important to make sure you're working in strength training as you age.
00:48:48.559 --> 00:48:54.800
There's a lot of great studies and information out there, but we wanted to share our experiences with it.
00:48:54.800 --> 00:48:56.480
I've been doing it since I was younger.
00:48:56.480 --> 00:49:02.800
Abby has been doing it more recently, but it's really important for us on a weekly basis.
00:49:02.800 --> 00:49:07.119
And so that wraps it up for today's edition of the podcast.
00:49:07.119 --> 00:49:15.760
As always, if you enjoyed this episode, if you enjoyed the conversation about strength training, please share the episode with your family and friends and leave us a review or comment.
00:49:16.559 --> 00:49:20.960
And if you've got a story to share about your strength training journey, please send it over.
00:49:20.960 --> 00:49:23.840
You can send it to us at alex at practically.
00:49:23.840 --> 00:49:30.800
Abbie, what's our what's our next episode gonna be about?
00:49:31.280 --> 00:49:35.920
We're gonna talk about sleep and the relationship that that has to health and fitness.
00:49:36.159 --> 00:49:41.760
Ah, I'm looking forward to this because we are pretty obsessive about our sleep scores.
00:49:42.000 --> 00:49:46.000
Some of us are very obsessive about sleep environments too.
00:49:46.239 --> 00:49:50.159
Yeah, the first thing you text me every morning when I get to work is your sleep scores.
00:49:50.400 --> 00:49:51.760
I do not text every day.
00:49:51.760 --> 00:49:52.880
That's such a lie.
00:49:53.119 --> 00:49:54.079
We'll talk more about that.
00:49:54.239 --> 00:49:59.039
He's just he's just feeling sore because he doesn't generally get a higher sleep score.
00:49:59.360 --> 00:49:59.920
Yeah, yeah.
00:49:59.920 --> 00:50:01.599
We'll talk more about it next week.
00:50:01.599 --> 00:50:04.559
Yes, you can be competitive when it comes to your sleep score.
00:50:04.559 --> 00:50:05.760
So stay tuned for that.
00:50:05.760 --> 00:50:11.760
Until then, remember when it comes to fitness, you don't have to be perfect, you just have to be practical.
00:50:11.760 --> 00:50:13.519
We'll see you on the next one.