When I started Iron Hero CrossFit, and it is still true today, my goal was never to work with the competitive athlete. Now, don’t get me wrong, we have competitive athletes in our gym and they’re amazing and great people but that’s not the biggest impact we can make on our community.
What is the biggest impact we can make? What is the thing that lights my fire?
The most amazing thing I get the opportunity to witness is regular people focusing on their own health and fitness, accomplishing amazing feats of strength, and improving their life outside the gym.
It’s not about taking gym selfies.
It’s about carrying kids. It’s about moving heavy objects from point a to point b. It’s about being self-reliant because you’re strong enough, and fit enough, to be self-reliant.
Let’s take a look at what I consider to be amazing strength goals for women (of most any age) but certainly for the over 40.
A Couple Notes
First, we will look at several different movements. All of these movements relate back to the patterns you will encounter in day to day life: hinging, lunging, pushing, pulling, and carrying.
Second, we will categorize them into a great “minimum” standard to aim for and then the above and beyond “advanced” standard which is well beyond what you may need to use (and is maybe more bragging rights).
Third, everything is based on “relative strength.” This means it is all based on your body weight. Why does this matter? Well, this is why there are weight classes in a lot of competitive sports. These standards are based on YOUR body weight.
Lastly, the “advanced” doesn’t mean that is the end of the [strength] road. You could blow these standards out of the water with enough focused training.
Happy lifting!
The Hinge aka The Deadlift
Picking something up off the ground? You are doing a hinge, or at least you should be. The hinge is a vital movement to be strong but also to be safe.
Minimum:
Deadlift 75% of your body weight for 5 reps
Advanced:
Deadlift 1.25 to 1.5x your body weight for 5 reps.
The Split Squat aka The Bulgarian Split Squat
This one is hard. In my experience, people generally don’t like this one but there’s no getting around the fact that single leg strength has tremendous real-world application.
Minimum:
Body weight for 6 to 8 reps per leg
Advanced:
Hold 20% of your body weight, in each hand, for 6 to 8 reps each leg
Upper Body Pushing aka Bench Press or Push Up
We’ve got a couple of options on this one and both are great standards. Putting something heavy up on a shelf? Well, pushing is part of that!
Minimum:
5 push ups on your toes or 50% of your body weight bench press for 5 reps
Advanced:
Bench press 60 to 100% of your body weight for 5 reps
Pulling aka Chin Up
This is a favorite of mine. Done well and you will train your biceps, your lats, your abs, your glutes — all of it. You can also improve the health of your shoulders with this movement as well.
Minimum:
1 light band-assisted or controlled negative chin up
Advanced:
3 to 5 strict chin ups, unbroken
Carrying aka Farmer’s or Suitcase Carry
What is more functional to real life than carrying an object from point a to point b. Not to mention, this is an amazing way to build more durable shoulders and better grip.
Minimum:
Carry 30% of your body weight, in each hand, for 30 seconds
Advanced:
Carry 40 to 50% of your body weight, in each hand, for 60 seconds [or 40 yards]
What If You’re Not There Yet?
You probably haven’t been shown how to develop this kind of strength. Most people haven’t. Frankly, it doesn’t mean having to go “beast mode” every time you’re in the gym.
You simply need guidance and consistency in your training.
We help our members train in ways that are:
- Safe yet effective
- Fun (yes, workouts can be fun)
- Focused on getting you results
If you get nothing else from this — you need to begin your strength training journey if you haven’t yet. There is too much good that comes from being strong to ignore (and it doesn’t mean you have to ignore cardio if you love doing cardio).
Book a Free Intro or check out more real-life fitness tips on our blog.
The main thing? Take action. Action leads to motivation and not the other way around.
Happy lifting!
