Level 4 Workout
Level 4 Workout
Level 4 is an advanced workout program that lasts 12 weeks.
This program is for both men and women, and will improve your fitness by building total body strength, enhancing cardiovascular endurance, gaining muscular definition, improving your balance, losing weight, improving health and increasing energy. Again, this program is designed to be an advanced level program for those who are healthy and physically able.
The purpose of this program is to improve development of a stable core region along with strength and mobility. This program combines development of overall strength with developing your cardiovascular (cardio) fitness, balance and stability.
These exercises are designed to be performed in a series. The objective is to do these exercises in a series, keeping the time between exercises as minimal as you’re comfortable with, but at least 30 seconds.
Ideally, keep the rest short will make these exercises metabolically demanding, meaning you’ll be breathing hard to complete the exercise routines. The most effective way to burn fat is through Metabolic Resistance Training, or MRT. Performing these exercises with very little rest in between activates your muscles, builds strength, and taxes your cardiovascular system, so you’re burning lots of calories.
As such, on the days you do these exercises, no cardio activities like walking are scheduled.
That being said, since we know that steady-state low to moderate intensity cardio (exercising in zones 1 and 2) improves your mitochondrial number, function, efficiency, and fitness, we recommend that you get out for a bike ride, a brisk walk, or other activity at least 3 days per week, and ideally 5 days per week, to improve your longevity.
You can modify this program based on your goals.
If your goal is with very slow but steady progress: you’ll do one set of each exercise group and choose a weight for these exercises that you can lift not more than 15 times. When you can exceed 15 times, increase the weight.
If your goal is to see more rapid progress, you’ll do 2-3 sets of each series.
If your goal is muscle building and rapid strength improvement, (note: women can use this approach without fear of building muscle. Women will look sleek and sexy with this program, and lose weight quickly.) Approach as follows:
For each exercise, you’ll do from 3 to 5 sets.
Set # 1 is your warmup set. Choose a weight you can do at least 15 and not more than 20 times. When your strength improves so that you can do the exercise 20 times, add 5 pounds.
Set # 2 is for rapid strength improvement. Choose a weight you can do not more than 5 times. When your strength improves so that you can do the exercise 5 times, add 5 pounds.
Set # 3 is for muscle building. Choose a weight you can do not more than 10 times. When your strength improves so that you can do the exercise 10 times, add 5 pounds.
Do one (1) warmup set, 1 (1) strength set, and 2-4 muscle building sets.
For the muscle building sets, you will add muscle faster by keeping the time less than 60 seconds between sets. If you need to reduce the weight (do a “drop set”) because your muscles are getting tired, reduce the weight to keep your reps between a minimum of 6 reps and a maximum of 10 reps.
Exercises Group 1:
- Squat
- Bench Press
- Barbell Row
- Barbell Hip Thrust
- Curls
- High Pull with Rotation
- Cable Chest Press
Exercises Group 2:
- Deadlift
- Standing Overhead Press
- Pull-Ups
- Suitcase Carry
- Dips
- Renegade Rows
- Reverse Lunge with dumbbells
Core Set:
- Plank
- Side Plank (L & R)
- Glute Bridge
- Bird Dog
Do as a circuit, no rest, repeat 3-5 times, start with 30 second holds, increase time in 5 second increments as it gets easy.
Warmup:
Rowing Machine: High Intensity Interval Training:Choose the program with 30 seconds work/30 seconds rest or the 500 meter sprint with the 60 second rest. Do 10+ intervals, record your individual sprint times, total time, and meters rowed.
Week 1
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
If you haven’t already, download MapMyWalk on to your phone, and start it at the beginning of each walk. Make sure to close MapMyWalk at the end of each walk. This is an easy and great way to keep track of all your mileage and steps.
Daily Video:
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Our bodies are capable of anything… It’s our minds we have to convince.
Daily Video
Overarching Approach to Nutrition
Day 3
Core Circuit
This provides for your needed total weekly activity, while allowing your body to recover from the previous day’s exercise.
Daily Video
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Each time you do these exercises, try to limit your time between each exercise. Start the next exercise in the group as soon as you’re capable. Notice that as your fitness improves, you’ll be able to get through the exercises more quickly.
Daily Video
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Research from Arthritis Research & Therapy suggests that high-intensity interval walk training can help improve immune function in older adults.
Daily Video
What Kinds of Exercises are Important?
Day 6
Core Circuit
The new measure of successful aging is not length of years, but how many “good” years we will live. Your habit of regular exercise will bring you many good years. Keep at it!
Week 2
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Genetics account for less than 30 percent of our potential lifespan. Highly credible studies show that a few simple habits including choosing optimal nutrition, regular exercise, low-stress living, connections with friends and family, and a life of purpose.
The hardest part is walking out the front door.
Daily Video:
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
While pretty much everyone understands the importance of nutrition and exercise, personal connections and communication are just as important. Are you staying in touch with your friends and family?
Our bodies are capable of anything… It’s our minds we have to convince.
Daily Video
Overarching Approach to Nutrition
Day 3
Walk at least 30 minutes
If you’re looking for more, try one of the short stretching routines in Fun with Flexibility.
Daily Video
Why You Need to Keep A Fitness Journal
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Social ties sharpen the mind and strengthen the heart – literally. A study looked at the unusually low amount of heart disease in a tight knit community with strong family and social ties. Over the years, as the population shifted and ties were broken, heart disease rates rose from well below the U.S. average to at or above average.
Daily Video
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Using MapMyWalk to know how many steps you’re walking is an important part of walking more and getting healthier. Knowing how many steps you’re taking is motivating to walk more and burn more calories.
Daily Video
Importance of Warmup & Stretching
Day 6
Walk 20-30 Minutes at moderate intensity
The granddaddy of all longevity studies, the Harvard Study of Adult Development, started in the 1930s and followed hundreds of people throughout their entire lives. Those who lived the longest and healthiest were caring, playful, curious, forgiving and able to re-frame their difficult experiences into positive lessons. No wonder optimism is considered a marker of healthy aging.
Week 3
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Walking is the best possible exercise. Habituate yourself to walk very far.
~Thomas Jefferson
Daily Video
What is Cardiovascular Fitness?
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Some days it might be hard to come up with a reason why you should walk, but it’s never hard to come up with a reason why you should get healthy.
Daily Video
What’s Wrong with Processed Foods?
Day 3
Core Circuit
Let thy food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.
~Hippocrates (400 BC)
Daily Video
Core Strength & How to Develop It
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
To get the most out of your fitness walks, you’ll need to strike the right balance between challenging yourself to walk more and preventing injury and burnout.
Daily Video
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
A 30 minute walk is 2% of your day. No excuses.
Daily Video
Day 6
Core Circuit
The reason for exercise is for the quality of life you’ll enjoy.
Week 4
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Increasing your walking speed increases your calories burned per hour. Going from 3 mph to 4 mph increases your calorie burn by about 50%!
Daily Video
Muscular Endurance & How to Develop It
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Walking is a great way to lose weight because it’s a low impact, easy to start exercise that almost anyone can do.
Daily Video
Day 3
Walk, go for a bike ride, or do some other moderate cardio activity for at least 30 minutes.
Daily Video
Muscular Power & How to Develop It
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
To increase your calories burned, try walking on gentle hills. Incline walking is less intense than walking stairs.
Daily Video
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Remember to work within your capabilities, and that your muscles respond faster than your tendons and ligaments.
Daily Video
Flexibility & How to Develop It
Day 6
Core Circuit
The key to not getting injured is to take it easy, and increase steadily over months.
Week 5
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency.
Daily Video
Importance of Functional Training
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Walking increases your cardiovascular (also called aerobic) fitness. When you’re aerobically fit, your heart is stronger and circulates oxygen-rich blood to your muscles quicker and your muscles use it more efficiently.
Daily Video
Day 3
Go for at least a 30 minute walk!
HIIT can significantly reverse cellular and muscular aging, according to this study published in Cell Metabolism. Aging causes our mitochondria to gradually lose the ability to generate energy, but HIIT jumpstarts aging cells to create more proteins, essentially stopping the aging process at the cellular level.
Daily Video
What is High Intensity Interval Training?
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
If you only have a short time to walk, walking stairs increases your calorie burn in the time you have.
Daily Video
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Walking increases your cardiovascular (also called aerobic) fitness. When you’re aerobically fit, your heart is stronger and circulates oxygen-rich blood to your muscles quicker and your muscles use it more efficiently.
Daily Video
Day 6
30 minute walk at moderate intensity, add 15 seconds of running after 10 minutes, 15 minutes & 20 minutes
While taking your scheduled walks is important, it’s ok to cut it short if you need to! Your day-to-day walks are less important than consistent walking over time. If you’re feeling tired, sore, or you’ve hurt yourself, it’s better to take a day or two off than push on and risk injury.
Week 6
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
If it works where you live, pick a course that includes some gentle hills or stairs. If you’re experiencing any pain in your calves, then wait to do hill training for a few more weeks.
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Brisk walking dramatically slows the natural decline in aerobic fitness that usually comes with age.
Daily Video
Day 3
Core Circuit
Chronic inflammation is a root cause of disease often linked to certain lifestyle factors. To mitigate your risk of inflammation, get plenty of fresh, pure water every day, get lots of exercise, remove sugar from your diet, eat fresh, whole foods and mostly vegetables and fruits, reduce your stress, get good sleep, and take 2-5 grams of high quality Omega-3 fish oil daily.
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Consistent walking on a day-to-day basis better than sedentary days mixed “makeup” days. Sudden walking spikes can put you at risk of soreness and injury, and long periods of sitting or are bad for your health – even if you also exercise.
Daily Video
What Makes Fruits & Veggies So Important?
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Living a healthy lifestyle will only deprive you of poor health, lethargy, and fat.
~Jill Johnson
Day 6
Core Circuit
If you are trying to increase your daily distance, it’s best to increase gradually over time.
Week 7
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
There are some incredible health benefits of going fast: Even five to 10 minutes per day of jogging at around 6 miles per hour can reduce the risk of death from cardiovascular disease and other causes. Joggers have been found to live longer than non-joggers even after adjusting for other factors – a difference of 3.8 years for men and 4.7 years for women.
But in moderation: doing a lot of endurance exercise over the long term (like triathlon training) can lead to heart problems. Overall, there’s a U-shaped association between running and mortality. Too little isn’t helpful for health, but too much might be harmful.
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Walking for 30 minutes or more each day is so good for you that a 2009 study recommended walking be “prescribed” as a way to prevent coronary heart disease.
Day 3
Core Circuit
Benefits of Fast WalkingThe National Institutes of Healthand other experts provide a list of walking benefits.
- Raises your heart rate.
- Increases calories burned which helps with weight loss
- Increases flexibility of your muscles and joints depending on your walking pattern and your starting point. Stretching after walking helps even more.
- Strengthens leg and abdominal muscles..
- Increases impact which can build stronger bones.
- Decreases health risks if you get at least 150 minutes per week.
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Exercises Group 1
Have you noticed that you’re sleeping better? You should be…people who do light to moderate intensity physical activity snooze better at night than those who are sedentary.
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Most people fail, not because of lack of desire, but, because of lack of commitment.
Day 6
30 minute walk at moderate intensit, add 15 seconds of running after 10 minutes, 15 minutes & 20 minutes
5 Minute Workout
Results happen over time, not over night. Work hard, stay consistent, and be patient.
Week 8
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
You don’t have to be extreme, just consistent. A study done by the University of Canberra Research Institute for Sport and Exercise concluded that exercise improves cognitive function in people over 50, regardless of the cognitive status of participants. To improve cognitive function, this stydy recommends that people get both aerobic and resistance exercise of at least moderate intensity on as many days of the week as feasible.
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Day 3
Core Circuit
Stanford researchers found that walking can boost creativity by 60 percent – and it doesn’t matter where you do it!
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Health is “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease” according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Day 6
30 minute walk at moderate intensity. Jog 20 seconds every 5 minutes.
If you’re struggling, just remember that your mind gives up before your legs do.
Week 9
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
5 Minute Workout
Love yourself enough to live a healthy lifestyle. There is no shortcut. The path to healthy aging lies in regular activity and healthy eating.
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Day 3
Core Circuit
If you think you can or if you think you can’t, either way you’re right.
You can include additional exercises or stretching from Steps to Strength Training or Fun with Flexibility if you are finding this program too easy.
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
It’s definitely possible to walk too many miles, especially as you get older or if you’re dealing with pre-existing health conditions or injuries. It’s OK to miss a day here and there if you’re feeling sore or just too tired. Overall consistency is your goal.
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Day 6
30 minute walk at moderate intensity. Jog 20 seconds at 5 minute intervals.
80% of success is showing up.
Week 10
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
If you feel like stopping…think about why you started.
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Having great balance is critical to avoiding falls in later life. Have you checked out any of the balance routines in Basics of Balance?
Day 3
Core Circuit
Time, patience, and perseverance will accomplish all things.
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
If you’re stuck at home and can’t get out for a walk, maintain your fitness by building strength, keeping flexible, and develop healthy cooking skills.
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Excellence is not being the best; it is doing your best.
Day 6
30 minute walk at moderate intensity with 30 second jog at 5 minute increments.
Action is the only thing that matters… at the end of your life, don’t be the one that looks back and says “I wish I had taken more action.”
Week 11
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
If you’re not able to get out for a walk, consider trying a simple core exercise routine.
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Check out the stretching videos in Fun with Flexibility, and try one! Being flexible is an important part of healthy aging.
Day 3
Core Circuit
Fitness is not a destination it is a way of life.
Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business suggests making the benefits of working out more tangible, such as by treating yourself to a smoothie or an episode of your favorite show afterwards.
“An extrinsic reward is so powerful because your brain can latch on to it and make the link that the behavior is worthwhile,” he explains. “It increases the odds the routine becomes a habit.”
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Achievement is connected with action. You succeed because you keep moving. You may miss a day here and there, but you don’t quit.
What will ultimately inspire you to get up and start moving is the strong, supportive community you have in the Fit after 50 Healthy Aging Blueprint Private Facebook group. The laughs, high fives and words of encouragement from the bonds you make are things money simply can’t buy.
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
In order to achieve goals and become a reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort. Good for you for possessing these attributes!
Day 6
30 minute walk at moderate intensity with 30 second runs at 5 minute increments.
Starting is not most people’s problem, staying, continuing and finishing is. Congratulate yourself! One more week!
Week 12
Day 1
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
Congratulations! You made it to the final week of the 12-Weed Walking Plan!
Day 2
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Congrats again for making it to the final week of the 3 month walking plan. So what’s next? Look at the other training plans, and choose one to continue your training!
Day 3
Core Circuit
Day 4
Warmup
Exercises Group 1
No quality is so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. Way to go for getting here!
Day 5
Warmup
Exercises Group 2
Success in the end erases all the mistakes along the way.
Day 6
30 minute moderate intensity walk 30 second runs at 5 minute increments.
The achievement of one goal should be the starting point of another. Which workout will you choose next?