Relaxed Focus: Training - "Strength is a choice..."

9/1 - press, seated Arnold press, plate front raise, side/rear lateral combo, Gironda swings, btn press/push press - leg raise, twisting decline situps

T Nation | Maybe All You Need Is Lifting: "For me, doing general warm-ups and stretching drills are total drudgery – to the point where if I have to do them I'll start hating my workouts. And if I hate my workouts, I'm less likely to do them. Not good. Now, we all sometimes need to do things we don't particularly like – I get it. But often, perfect is the enemy of good. Meaning, an overly-zealous determination to make everything "perfect" might lead to you becoming overwhelmed, which in turn negatively affects your ability to be consistent...

At 6'1" and 200 pounds, I'm pulling over 500, squatting about 400, benching in the 270 range, doing sets of 18 strict chins, and my body fat is low. I have no orthopedic issues, I don't hurt anywhere, and I almost never pull a muscle or incur other injuries. So when I look at other 55 year old guys, I think I'm probably in the top 1-2% based on these criteria... I'm currently in my best shape ever, despite the fact that I'm in my mid-fifties. Interestingly, when I look back about six years ago to a period where my training was much more varied – I was doing Olympic lifts, conditioning work, some foam rolling, etc. – it's clear that I was weaker, fatter, and more injury-prone then as compared to now. In the interests of complete transparency, my nutrition is a lot better now than it was then. But all in all, I'm convinced that my current approach is paying off more than previous approaches.

...think about this: many of the resistance-training drills most of us do, including squats, hip thrusts, and deadlifts, are an effective way to improve muscle length in and of themselves. So, just because you "don't stretch" doesn't necessarily mean that your mobility is going to hell. So, do all those movement screens really matter? Should you be concerned if you don't pass them? The last time I checked a few years back, I scored a 7 out of a possible 21 points on the Functional Movement Screen (FMS). Yet I haven't had any injury issues in many years, despite lifting consistently, training hard, and competing in powerlifting...

Warming Up: Actually, I do warm-up, but I prefer specific warm-ups over general. Rather than riding a bike for 10 minutes before taking my first warm-up sets on squats, I'd rather spend those 10 minutes on the warm-up sets themselves. In this way, not only do I achieve the same benefits as a general warm-up, I also get more practice time for the lift itself. In the past I've occasionally experimented with general warm-ups, but I always keep coming back to my present practice. Which would better improve your squat? Ten extra minutes on bike, or 10 extra minutes under the bar?"

2014 NPC Muscle Beach Championships - Promoting Women In Bodybuilding Fitness and MMA: "Paul Davis Bodybuilding- Masters 50+ 1st place"