Training like you're 25 is why you're still out of shape
How I cut my training in half, quit the gym, and got into the best shape of my life in my 40s
After 20 years of being relentless with my training … Coaching fitness … Obsessing over every calorie, macro, and rep, I hit my 40s and realized that I was just kinda … over it.
Fitness had finally been the hero long enough to see itself become the villain.
It was no longer enhancing my life, it was taking it over.
When I midlife-crashed out and almost burned everything to the ground, one of the first things I addressed in my reinvention was to simplify. Everything.
Especially how I approached my fitness.
I was 44 years old trying to train like I was 25, and realized it was time to grow up and let my training evolve.
No more trying to bust my ass in the gym to get shredded and look like a 20 year old.
No more worrying about aesthetics.
My newfound goal was to just be healthy and capable.
Capable of living a life where I can pick up my kids without needing a chiropractor appointment the next day. Capable of taking the stairs without needing a halftime break. Capable of one day keeping up with my grandkids without losing my breath after 20 feet.
It was time to adopt a more midlife-friendly and minimalist approach to training. One that I’m going to share with you today.
I cut almost 50 percent of my overall training volume.
Quit the gym.
Quit heavy living.
Quit obsessively chasing weekly PRs.
And when I stopped caring so much and cut out the fluff … I got into the best shape of my life.
It’s time you did the same.
The fitness industry needs you to believe you’re not doing enough
The online coaches and influencers are all about more. More days, more sets, more protein, more tracking.
More, more, more.
The underlying message: If you’re not suffering, you’re not working hard enough.
No pain, no gain after all.
But real folks like you and me over the age of 40 can’t sustain that kind of rigorous dedication. My body was feeling beat up training this way (I’ve got the elbow tendonitis to prove it).
We’re real people with real lives and kids and work and stress and limited time and bodies that aren’t 25 anymore and can’t absorb the punishment they used to.
Instead, we just wanna lose a few pounds, feel a little better and be able to keep up with our kids at the playground.
(If you can end up looking a little better nekkid, that’s an added bonus.)
You do not need to toil away for hours in the gym to accomplish this goal.
In fact, I learned that you don’t even need the gym.
About four years ago, I discovered the bodyweight fitness community* and my entire worldview of working out changed overnight.
(*My favorites in this space are KBoges and StrengthSide)
My workouts got shorter
I learned from the experts like Kyle Boggeman (KBoges) that the simpler, shorter workouts of just bodyweight basics like pull-ups, push-ups and squats/lunges allowed me to be far more consistent than ever.
And I think they’re actually pretty fun (there are few things cooler than finally nailing a pull-up or increasing your pull-ups with continued practice).
I can train anytime, anywhere.
On my busiest days, I started taking a page from StrengthSide and would break up my training and perform microworkouts or exercise snacks intermittently throughout my day—push-ups while my kids eat lunch, squats after a Zoom call, pull-ups before dinner.
I had been doing these things for years, but only as a stopgap for when I couldn’t hit the gym. A side dish.
The bodyweight community gave me the permission to stick with this approach—not just the mashed potatoes, but the entire main course.
So I married many of the methods I discovered online with my own knowledge over years of training and fully realized why this is uniquely beneficial to people like you and me.
There’s less injury risk in my style of training without the excessive loads.
And bodyweight focused movements allow me to practice deeper ranges of motion, so I’m naturally improving my flexibility and mobility on the side.
Because I found this training enjoyable and sustainable, I was finally able to stay consistent.
And that’s why I was able to finally crack the code on getting in shape, without burning myself out trying to do so.
What minimalist training looks like
This is how you’re going to get in better shape without burning yourself out and beating your body up.
Pick 1-2 variations each of the push-up, pull-up, a lower body movement and an accessory exercise (like bicep curls or abs work). For me that might look like:
Push: Dip and Decline Push-up
Pull: Pull-up and Bodyweight Row
Legs: Squat and Lunges or Glute Bridges
Accessory: Plank and Bicep Curls
Don’t overthink this. This is not about optimizing anything. There is no pass or fail.
This is the base of your training.
You can get creative with weights, accessories, finishers … but at the end of the day, I always return to this foundation.
Pick a rhythm that works for you
I took my entire weekly volume and just divided it up among the five weekdays. Now I’m training a little bit each day at about the same time every day.
Some days, I only have time for one set of each (pull-up, push-up, squat). That takes about 10 minutes. Perfect, no? But it keeps the momentum going.
How many days would you like to train?
Maybe you want to train just two or three days per week. Totally fine.
Test it out. Perhaps even one day per week is enough for you if you’re super active outside of your dedicated workouts.
Train like you’re getting better, not just getting tired
My goal is to be 70 years old doing perfect pull-ups at the calisthenics parks in NYC.
No kipping or flopping about. But solid, near flawless reps.
That’s what I’m training toward with every single rep.
Starting today you’re going to stop viewing workouts at just “exercise sessions to power through” and start considering this to be actual training.
Every time I train the pull-up, I have that long-term goal in mind—rather than the traditional fitness approach of just aiming for more volume … no matter the cost.
You are going to train yourself to get better at those 1-2 variations of each movement.
Really learn the movement. Master it.
Watch YouTube demonstrations on proper form.
Slow it down with each rep.
Try to perfect each exercise.
That’s how you build real strength and control, and get the benefits of the deeper range of motion that only bodyweight training can deliver.
Stop training to failure
As we age, our joints and tendons need special consideration from all that wear and tear we’ve put on them over four decades.
Instead of trying to hit a PR every day and then needing IcyHot to recover for three days, it’s time to train smarter by staying close to your failure point, without constantly trying to crush it.
Occasionally test how many max reps with flawless form you can perform in one set.
Then spend the majority of your time staying about two to five reps shy of that max number.
After about a month or two, take a few days to test your new max reps again.
If you’ve been truly training and working to get better, you’ll notice this max number increasing.
And that means it’s working.
It’s the most flexible way to train that is efficient, effective, and perfect for a busy midlifer that needs his workouts to enhance his life, not take it over.
Try this minimalist approach for a month
See how little you can get away with in your workouts while maintaining (or even improving) your strength.
After training this way for almost five years now, I can confidently say that I am finally enjoying my workouts and have no plans of ever stepping foot back in the gym.
Instead, I’m just going to spend less time training so I can spend more time just generally being active and enjoying new side quests or hanging with my family.
That’s the whole point.
Fitness should give you your life back, not consume it.
I’ve built my exact approach into the Minimalist Body mini-course, included with a LevelUP Life Community membership.
For $50 a year, you’re in … and I’d love to have you join us.
See you on the inside.
Until next time,
Pete