Lean Body Workouts for the above 50’s

Maintaining a healthy weight or losing excess body fat can become harder as you cross 50 years of age.

Unhealthy habits, a mostly sedentary lifestyle, poor dietary choices, and metabolic changes can all contribute to weight gain. However, with a few simple adjustments, you can lose weight at any age — regardless of your physical capabilities or medical diagnoses.

It’s very common for people who have hit middle age to complain about how their metabolism isn’t what it used to be as they get older. It’s not just because they’re aging—the reason is they have not been consistently active and maintaining the healthy habits they kept when they were younger.

Because of the natural metabolic changes that come with age, you want to start living a healthy lifestyle as early in life as you can. If you didn’t start already, it’s not too late to achieve a lean physique. If you start to train the right way, you can make it happen. The best way to do so is to make strength training a priority. This form of exercise will help build muscle, elevate your metabolism, and burn more calories than steady-state aerobic work.

You can achieve a lean body after 50 with this workout below. Simply weave it into your fitness routine, and get going!

Grab yourself a dumbbell, and hold it with both hands underneath the handle, as demonstrated in the picture above. Keep your torso as upright as you can, push your hips back, and squat down to where your hips are parallel to the floor. Drive through your heels and stand back up, flexing your glutes and quads to finish. Aim for 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 12 reps.

2 Lat Pulldowns

Grip the lat pulldown bar with your palms facing away from you just outside your shoulders. Lean back slightly, and pull the bar down towards your sternum with your elbows, squeezing your lats at the very bottom of the movement. Resist on the way up, maintaining tension in your lats. Get a good stretch at the very top by letting your shoulder blades come up before performing another rep. Complete 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Get into a plank position with your body in a completely straight line above the ground. Start the movement with your feet together and shoulders in line with your wrists. Keep your core tight and glutes squeezed, and lower yourself under control until your chest touches the floor. Then, push yourself back up, flexing your pecs and triceps to finish. Complete 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 15 reps.

Keep in mind that if you don’t have the strength yet to perform a full pushup, you can start on an incline.

Start this exercise with a dumbbell in each hand. Step forward with one leg, and firmly plant your foot. Then, lower yourself under control until your back knee gently touches the floor. Walk forward with the other leg, and repeat. Perform 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 10 reps for each leg.

Grab a pair of dumbbells with both hands facing each other in a neutral grip, as demonstrated in the picture above. Keeping your shoulders pulled back, curl the weight up, flexing your forearms and biceps the entire time. Squeeze hard at the top, then resist on the way down. Complete 3 to 4 sets of 13 to 15 reps.