10 Exercise Substitutions for the Over 40 Crowd
I turned 40 a couple of months ago. And, probably just like you, it takes me a little longer to get out of bed in the morning.
It’s nothing major, just an old high-school soccer injury (broke my ankle in Connecticut at age 13). It didn’t heal properly, because as a lazy teenager, I didn’t give it the proper attention and rehabilitation it deserved. Everyone has these little aches and pains. It’s NOT your fault that you have bad knees or a bum shoulder.
The GOOD news is that over time you can eliminate your pain by strengthening the muscles around the joints and by losing weight. You’ll also have less inflammation and a lower risk of overuse injury when you do LESS cardio and switch to my short burst workouts of 10 minutes or less.
For example, here’s a question we get all the time. If YOUR doctor has given you the green light for safe exercise, you can try these recommendations, too!
“I am in week 6 of your HWR plan after first completing the Beginner Program. It’s going very well except for my bad knees. I need alternative exercises. I have been doing hip extension in place of lunges while doing your workouts. Please recommend alternatives for squats.” – Jeanne Shelton Bartelt
Answer:
Jeanne, great to hear about the progress! Here are exercises that you can do in place of squats & lunges, but only do them if they are PAIN-FREE for you:
- Stability Ball Leg Curls
- Wall Squats (squat down only as far as is comfortable and pain free)
- 1-Leg Lying Hip Extensions (Hip Bridges)
- Low-box Step-ups (start with a 4-6 inch step)
- 2-leg Lying Hip Extensions with Feet on Stability Ball
- Total Body Extensions with a small dip (dip down only as far as is comfortable and pain free)
Now what about if you have shoulder pain? Well, the shoulder is trickier than the knee, so again, the first thing you MUST do is to get your doctor’s approval to exercise.
Next, I need you to do something that might sound a little strange, and you might not like it. But I MUST ask you to stop doing ALL pushups and dumbbell presses for the next 3-4 weeks. You need to switch to PAIN-FREE exercises for your upper back and for shoulder stability. Upper back moves include:
- Band Pulls
- Iron Cross Hold
- Seated Rows (use an overhand, wide-grip if possible)
- TRX rows
- Dumbbell rows
And shoulder stability exercises that also work your core:
- Mountain Climbers
- Cross-Body Mountain Climbers
- Kneeling Plank-to Triceps Extensions
Whew, that’s a lot of great alternatives. But before you start, here’s one more reminder. Please be cautious and conservative. If you have joint pain or an injury, see your doctor, and get their blessing to do my bodyweight exercises.
Then you can get started with my NEW 4-Minute and 10-Minute workout videos. I’ll take you – safely – through every second of every exercise in every workout. It’s just like having me as your personal trainer, workout buddy, and morning motivator in the comfort of your own home…but you don’t have to make me breakfast! 🙂
Click here for the best deal on your NEW short workout videos
Oh, and you do NOT need any equipment for these exercises. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.
You just press play, exercise with me & Missi for a few minutes, and burn the fat for days! Yep, for days…even while you sleep. Let me explain using this lil’ candle story on the next page…
Click here to discover how to burn fat for 48 hours after just 4 minutes
Looking forward to doing our exercise sessions together,
Craig Ballantyne, CTT
Certified Turbulence Trainer
PS – Perfect Start = Perfect Day
Get up early and start the day perfectly…physically and mentally. Start with 10-minutes of my workouts. Then eat and drink the right foods. Build your to-do list and make a NOT-to-do list so that you can focus on your #1 priority. Carve out a few minutes to meditate, pray, or give gratitude. And set your family up to be on track for a great day. High-achievers like you get stuff done first thing in the morning…while frustrated folks just make excuses. And as you know, you can either make excuses or you can get results, but you can’t do both…so choose wisely!