Strength Or Bodybuilding for Old Guys

Advice from the Muscle Goat One of my (many) character flaws is that I can get kinda cantankerous, especially if I haven’t eaten in a while (sorry, fasters) or have too much running around to do. Whenever I get particularly cranky, my wife will usually refer to me (affectionately) as a grumpy old goat. She even bought me a shirt with the word GOAT on it, just in case the subtlety of the insult...

Hustle & Flow for More Muscle

Ebb and flow to decrease and then increase, as with tides; a decrease followed by an increase, as with tides. It’s shortly before noon on a sunny Wednesday afternoon. Late morning is prime training time for me as the gym is relatively quiet. The half-asleep Manhattan pre-work crowd has long since shuffled off and the lunch time heroes have yet to arrive, leaving just a handful of bored trainers...

Change (and Lean Tips for Older Guys)

Change is a big part of life. You aren’t the same person you were 10 years or 10 months ago, or even 10 minutes ago. Your body is constantly changing in response to stressors, both environmental and self-imposed. It seeks to make you the strongest, healthiest, highest functioning organism you can be. If it didn’t operate this way our species would’ve lasted just a few ticks on the evolutionary...

No Clutter for Old Meatheads

I’m a stuff guy. As much as I endorse philosophies like “do more with less” and “focus on experiences, not things,” this old guy still likes his toys. It’s who I am, and I won’t apologize for it. #AlwaysDoYou What I don’t like though, is clutter -- not in my workspace and especially not in my already tight living area. I just can’t focus or relax in an environment besieged by an army of “things”...

Price of the Platform

What would you pay for greatness? Reaching the top 1% of any activity always comes at a price. Typically the biggest cost is time and quality of life, at least temporarily. At school straight A’s and maintaining a 4.0 GPA will cost you free time and attending a few keg parties. In business, entrepreneurs talk about getting up at 3 am (or staying up til 3 am) to work on their passion projects and...

Wanna Be a Stronger Writer?

Start writing more. That’s the standard advice you’ll get when you email a writer asking for help. It’s not great advice, nor is it original. What do you expect for free? Moral of the story -- when asking a writer for anything, it never hurts to inquire if they accept PayPal. I kid of course. But I get this question fairly often and never know how to answer it. On Writing Well         Fitness...

You’re Not That Strong — Triple H Strength

Every birthday, my friend, Darren, deadlifts 315 pounds for his age in reps. I think he’s 37 or 38 now, so not exactly a walk in the park. He’s a gifted lifter though, and can usually bang it out in one extended set, with maybe a break or two to reset the bar. I just had another birthday, but there was no deadlift-fest for me -- 315 for 41 reps would lead this bodybuilder to a very unhappy place...