As we get older, staying active becomes harder.
So whatdoesit take to remain competitive well into your later years?
Heres what they look like in practice.
Although Bobigian was in excellent shape at the time, one round left him exhausted.
Bobigians original goal was just to spar.
John Chino has a similar story.
Who knew ice skating was hard?
He hired a coach, and now dedicates a substantial portion of his workout time toward learning skills.
Chinos complete lack of knowledge in the sport has been part of the attraction.
I do not have an athletic bone in my body.
Im terrible, Chino said.
But with sports, its about how much you put into it.
When people like me hit a plateau, thats the challenge.
What do I have to change to get better?
Strength training is really, really important
As we age, we lose muscle mass.
Starting at age 30, we begin to lose about3-5% of our muscle mass per decade.
That doesnt mean that maintaining or gaining muscle mass is impossible, though.
What itdoesmean is that an older athlete must work harder to maintain their muscle mass.
To stay on track and avoid overtraining, hes careful about keeping an eye on his heart rate.
Bobigian took the advice seriously.
When he needs, hell modify these exercises to make them more challenging or to incorporate additional movements.
The first is a passive motion, whereas the second requires strength, balance, and skill.
In recent years, Chino has learned just how important mobility work is for improving his athletic performance.
In the past few years, hes taken to scheduling dedicated, assisted-stretch sessions atStretchLab.
We spend our entire time hard at work on the boxing.
It looks like a strong focus on high-intensity training plays an important role after all.
But balance is important, as itll take older athletes longer to recover.
I train Rick like one of my pro fighters, Benton said.
The only difference is the amount of time.
Those days are over.
Theres no junk, Chino said.
