Unlike fine wine, we don’t all get better with age. As time goes on it takes greater consistency and quality of training to stay strong, mobile, powerful, and pain free. Through the years your athleticism has waxed and waned across a spectrum of phases along with the seasons of life.

Determining which phase you currently find yourself in is the first step toward reclaiming your athleticism for life. I’ve classified three phases in this process to help you figure our where to start: Restore, Rebuild, and Refine.

Where do you currently find yourself?

|Restore —— Rebuild —— Refine|

Restore:

If you check 3-4 of these boxes you are likely going to start with training on the RESTORE side of the spectrum.

You have not consistently (weekly) participated in an athletic activity for the past year.
You have not consistently (weekly) participated in a structured strength, conditioning, or fitness program for the last year.
You have regular pain, reoccurring injuries, or commitment issues stopping you from consistently participating in the above programs.
Your body composition (body fat percentage) is 25%+ for men or 35%+ for women and this number is significantly different from your peak athletic playing days.

In this phase the goal is to RESTORE range of motion, stength-bodyweight ratio, movement efficiency, tendon strength, general endurance, and mindset in order to meet the demands of returning to athletic activities safely.

Rebuild:

If you check 3-4 boxes below and only 0-1 above then you will likely start with training in middle of the spectrum with “REBUILD.”

You’ve had some consistent participation in an athletic activity in the past year, but not the entire year, maybe 1-2 months at a time.
You’ve spent some time in a structured strength, conditioning, or fitness program in the past year, but it hasn’t been consistent enough to make considerable progress.
Body composition is closer to your playing days.
You have occasional pain or nagging injuries that slow you down for 1-3 weeks at a time, but don’t keep you fully sidelined from activity.

In this phase the goal is to REBUILD your mobility, power, strength, conditioning and mindset in order to meet the demands of your athletic endeavors.

ReFine:

I find most aging athletes sit in the RESTORE and REBUILD phases, however if you didn’t check most of the previous boxes then you may be on the REFINE end of the spectrum.

You have consistently participated in an athletic activity for the past year.
You have followed a consistent strength, conditioning, or fitness program for the past 1+ years and have data to support your progress.
Your body composition is better or close to your peaking athletic playing days.
You haven’t missed more than 2-3 weeks from your sport due to injury in the past year.

In this phase the goal is to REFINE your mobility, power, strength, conditioning and mindset in order to effortlessly meet the demands of the specific athletic endeavors you have already been consistently training for.

With a clear picture of where you sit on the spectrum you can now start to tailor your training to where you are and where you want to go. I can tell you it doesn’t start with training like you did when you were 20 years old. So if you’re you looking for ideas, education, or programs to follow you can start with The Evergreen Athlete Newsletter and The Evergreen Library below: