The 10 Exercises Everyone Aged 40+ Must Do
Just 10 moves – that’s it. If you only do one session a week, you’d be hard-pushed to find anything that works harder for you in your 40s, than this.
Turn back the sands of time with these simple exercises.
THE BRIEF
Time to read: 2 minutes
Time to action: 30 minutes
Mantra: ‘If you build them, they will come’
Main message: 40 minutes in the gym, 48 hours off
Stat: 29 minutes: The UK’s average workout time. Why don’t you go one better?
What to do:
15 reps on each set.
Rest 60-90 seconds between sets.
Stretch whilst you’re resting between sets.
Repeat the circuit 3 times.
1. FRONT SQUAT
Muscles: quads, glutes, hamstrings, abs, calves
Being upright with a front-loaded barbell means your abs are flexing, which prevents the weight from falling forward.
Take a loaded barbell and position it across your shoulders.
Stand with your feet hip-width apart.
Lower your body by bending your knees and hips until your thighs are parallel to the ground.
Return to the starting position by straightening your legs.
Take a 60-second break, then transition to the next exercise: the deadlift.
2. BARBELL DEADLIFT
Muscles: hamstrings, lower back, quads, calves, abs
This move makes your core tense up and gives you spinal strength.
Secure your position at the squat rack and carefully place the barbell you used for squats on the floor.
Grab it with an overhand grip, ensuring your hands are shoulder-width apart.
Using the strength of your thighs to lift the barbell, straighten your legs.
Take 2-4 seconds to lower the weight slowly.
3. RAISED LEG SPLIT SQUAT
Muscles: glutes, hamstrings, calves, quads, abs
Working on one leg at a time calls your core into action to improve your stability and coordination, as well as helping to correct any right-to-left side imbalances.
Assume a lunge position, with your right foot positioned forward and place your back foot on a bench.
Bend both knees until your rear knee hovers approximately an inch above the ground.
Return to the starting position.
Complete all repetitions on one leg, then switch to the other for a pretty full-on workout move.
Take a 60-second rest.
4. CHIN-UPS
Muscles: lats, biceps, forearms, abs
Direct up-and-down is the key here – the dangle does little for anyone here.
Grab the bar with a shoulder-width overhand grip, ensuring your arms are straight.
Start the movement by bending your elbows and pulling yourself up until your chin goes beyond the bar.
Pause momentarily, then slowly lower yourself back to the starting position.
Take a 60-second break, then get ready. As Jay-Z famously said, it's on to the next one.
5. STANDING OVERHEAD PRESS
Muscles: shoulders, abs
This builds trapezius muscles as well as your core, so think of it as a painful 2-for-1 deal.
Position yourself in front of a loaded barbell set at shoulder height.
Grab the barbell with an overhand grip.
Extend your arms to push the weight overhead.
Lower the barbell back to the starting position.
Enjoy a well-deserved 60-second break to do as you please – we're not here to judge.
6. OVERHEAD WALKS
Muscles: shoulders, abs, obliques
To quote Mr Cash, walk the line. Though this time it’s about your abs, not your wife.
Using the same weight as before, grab it and perform a shoulder press, raising it overhead.
Once lifted, prepare for a walking exercise.
Walk back and forth along a designated line, maintaining a straight back, for 30-40 seconds.
Rest for 60 seconds.
7. RENEGADE DUMBELL ROWS
Muscles: lats, biceps, forearms, abs, chest, shoulders
Push that Y-shaped torso by using your back muscles and your abs. We are here for you, front to back.
Assume a press-up position while gripping a dumbbell in each hand.
Pull one of the weights towards your chest, holding it for a second, and then return to the starting position.
Then it’s a 60-second rest again, before standing up for the next exercise.
8. SIDE BENDS
Muscles: traps, abs, obliques
This one is all about the dangle. Your core will thank you, and so will your lungs.
Hold a dumbbell in your right hand while allowing your left hand to hang by your side.
Maintain straight hips as you lower the dumbbell towards your knee.
Return to the starting position, then raise your right shoulder.
Switch hands and repeat (not fade away).
9. TURKISH GET-UPS
Muscles: abs, shoulders, glutes, quads
This move works all of your abs. No uppers, no lowers – just abs. As the great James Brown almost said, get on up (then get down) like an abs machine!
Begin by lying face up on the floor with your legs extended straight.
Hold a dumbbell in your left hand, extending your arm directly above your chest while resting your right arm on the ground.
Transition into standing by pushing off the ground with your right hand and left leg while maintaining the weight above your head.
Proceed to lie back down while still holding the weight above you.
The next 60 seconds are all yours.
10. PLANK-UPS
Muscles: triceps, abs, shoulders, chest
This will also hit your upper body like a supercharger in a V8.
Assume a press-up position and shift your body weight onto your forearms.
Move your right hand to where your right elbow was and extend both arms, returning to the starting press-up position.
Repeat the same movement on the other arm.
Now it’s on to phase 2… just messing! That’s it – you’ve done it. You’ve worked your total body, and if you can do this 3 times per week, you’ll make your 40s look like your 30s and feel like your 20s.
PT WOLF
A personal trainer who tries and tests every programme we put together. A celebrity trainer, Wolf has been a fitness journalist, practising what he preaches for over 20 years. Now into his 40s, Wolf has added muscle to his frame in every decade of his life and has an annoyingly healthy body fat percentage. He tries it before he says it, but even more importantly, he lives it every day.
