We lose muscle mass and mobility as we age, which makes our movements feel stiffer—but practicing the right set of exercises can offset this.
Ed Gemdjian is a trainer at The Gym Venice, which specializes in strength training for people over 40.
He says there are two exercises everyone should be doing to maintain their functional fitness: deadlifts and Turkish get-ups.
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These moves replicate actions we do every day, so the strength and mobility they build carry over into real life. A deadlift trains you to pick up heavy loads, while a Turkish get-up teaches you how to get up from the floor efficiently.
Here’s how to do them both.
Sets: 3 Reps: 6-12
How to do it:
- Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
- Engage your core and glute muscles.
- Keep your spine straight and chest up as you hinge forward, sitting your hips back and bending your knees.
- Reach toward the floor and pause when your hands are a few inches above it.
- Slowly stand, bringing your hips forward.
The first move Gemdjian recommends is a deadlift, which strengthens the posterior muscles in your lower body.
He recommends practicing the move without weights first, before adding a barbell or dumbbells, as demonstrated in the video above.
Doing this will help you memorize the movement pattern, so you can move safely when you add weight.
According to Gemdjian, a lot of people are fearful of the deadlift because they associate it with back pain—but when done correctly, it actually strengthens back and core muscles that support your spinal column.
How to do a Turkish get-up – YouTube
Sets: 2-3 Reps: 3-5 each side
How to do it:
- Lie on your back, with your left leg bent, your left foot planted on the floor, and your right leg extended straight.
- Raise your left arm overhead.
- Place your right forearm on the floor by your side, elbow bent.
- Press into your right forearm to lift your torso.
- Straighten your right arm and drive through your left foot to lift your hips, keeping your left arm up and right leg straight.
- Sweep your right leg under your body into a half-kneeling position.
- Push through your left foot to stand up, keeping your left arm extended overhead and eyes fixed on your left hand.
- Reverse the steps to return to the starting position.
“As we get older, one of the things everybody’s afraid of is having that fall—falling to the ground and not being able to get back up,” Gemdjian says.
The Turkish get-up is a move that will help you practice getting up off the floor into a standing position.
“It builds a little bit more confidence, so that, as we age, we can be self-dependent,” he explains.