It is always inspiring to me when I dig up my old muscle magazines from the 40s, 50s and 60s. Those photos of John Grimek, Steve Reeves, Reg Park, etc simply exude strength. These men had physiques that proved what could be done with a few hard training sessions each week, while eating a well balanced diet. Meat, Eggs, Fish, Veggies, Fruits and some carbs.

Simple. Not easy.

John Grimek, pictured above is in his late 40s. Look at his back. His body is a symbol of work. WORK; The very thing that people try to avoid in today's world of Strength & Conditioning Cancel Culture.

John competed in the 1936 Olympics in weightlifting as a heavyweight but was only 4 lbs above the next lightest weight class, which was the light heavyweight class.

John was not just an Olympic Weightlifter. He was also a bodybuilder and most of all, an all around strength athlete.

John felt his physique was a by product of being strong. Plain and simple. John was strong in all areas of training. He would perform hand balancing and gymnastics type strength movements. His training was often with high reps. As John got older, his normal routine of lifting weights 5 - 6 days week became 3 full body workouts every week.

Here is what Bob Hoffman, founder of York Barbell had to say about Jon Grimek:

I frequently say that a man can’t have everything, John Grimek has more than his share and has done more than his share for weightlifting. His physique is the finest, I believe, in the world at present and I doubt much of the greats of the past could match him.

He became a weightlifter to prove that there is power in a shapely physique. But there is one thing I can’t believe. That a man can have a build like Grimek and be world’s weightlifting champ. He’s not a big man, although he was heavyweight champion in 1936, made the highest American total at the Berlin Olympics, stepped out there like a man and pressed 253 for a first attempt, yet he looked almost like a little boy compared to the continental heavy-weights who outweighed him by as much as a hundred pounds.

A work horse is stronger than a lighter horse. Grimek would be stronger if he was heavier, but he would not have his present physique. I think his physique does weightlifting and the entire cause of weight training more good than would his winning of the world’s championship.

Grimek was not afraid of heavy weights. He would squat heavy AND for high reps in the 10-20 rep range. He was also a fan of the odd lifts like the bent press. I've seen videos of Grimek performing the tiger press which is a handstand triceps extension. Or, the overhead drop into a zercher hold, where Grimek would press a heavy bar overhead, then drop it and catch the barbell in the crook of his arms.

His strength was simply awe inspiring.

As Grimek got older, he trained 3 x week. His training approach was not like other bodybuilding routines which mainly focused on splits and set bodyparts each day of the week, he was an all out weightlifter who trained intensely using full body workouts, 5 - 6 days a week when he was competing.

I read that Grimek later on regretted his high volume approach as he felt it eventually slowed his strength gains.

Grimek built his body using Olympic lifting routines and compound exercises, such as the push press, deadlifts and squats. Grimek is quoted below....

“I trained everything in every workout. I didn’t do what they call split workouts and train legs and arms one day, back and other stuff the next day. The only way I ever isolated a group of muscles was when I was finished with my routine for the day and I still thought I needed more for my back or chest or legs or whatever.”

Grimek’s advice for anyone wanting to get into shape was very simple, and that was to stay consistent and get a lot of rest with good food and to drink lot’s of water.

“Train consistently 2-3 days per week and add weight to the bar whenever possible and get lots of rest, eat good food and drink plenty of water.”

In my own workouts, when I get to my Scotch Plains, NJ location of The Underground Strength Gym, I always use the banded jammer arms on my Sorinex XL Rack. This is a tension different than free weights and for me, feels great on the joints.

I am either going full body or an upper / lower split, depending on the volume I am putting in. I have a buddy who is in his 40s and he goes high volume, 4 day split just like Westside Barbell. For me, that training destroys me unless I have 9 hours sleep, plenty of food and only one job.

My current work / coaching schedule is quite robust, 7:30 am until 7:30 pm, so currently, shorter workouts are more effective for me. In the Summer time when I have more free time, I will do a full body workout, and then an upper day and a lower day.

Regardless of how you train, to learn from John Grimek is always a gift. See below....

John Grimek’s Full Body Workout

Grimek published his Full Body Workout once he retired from professional bodybuilding. The main focus is on basic barbell compound lifts and some isolation exercises. A sample John Grimek workout routine is below.

Monday

• Bench Press: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Chin Ups or Pull Downs: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Military Press: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Barbell Curls: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Squats: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Standing Calf Raises: 3 sets, 10 reps

Wednesday

• Incline Press or Dips: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Barbell Row or Dumbbell Row: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Shrugs: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Single Arm Preacher Curl: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Leg Curl: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Abs: 1 set, 50 reps

Friday

• Chin Ups or Pull Downs: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Military Press: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Incline Dumbbell Curls: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Front Squats: 3 sets, 10 reps
• Stiff-Legged Deadlift: 3 sets, 10 reps

It is interesting to see how Grimek followed the basic 3 x 10 method for his training as he got older although I have read of his squat workouts starting with 225 for 20 reps as a warm up. If you are not used to going beyond 5 reps per set, I highly recommend a training cycle like the Grimek full body workouts listed above. Try it for 4 - 6 weeks.

It is different than training purely for strength but in your 40s, if you're like me, you're not chasing the numbers alone anymore. You want to work hard, feel good and keep improving. You also don't want to destroy your joints with heavy lifting for too long. Give your body a variety of stimuli. Heavy lifting does have it's place as you get older, but you must vary this training.

Here is a sample workout I did the other day inspired by John Grimek's full body workouts with the 3 x 10 protocol.

I performed the below as a circuit:

A) Squats 3 x 10

B) Pull Ups (Varied Grips) 3 x 10

C) Push Ups 3 x 20

D) Rope Triceps Pushdowns 3 x 10

E) Rope Straight Arm Pulldowns 3 x 10

F) Rope Face Pulls 3 x 10

The next workout was this:

A) Trap Bar Deadlift 3 x 10

B) Swiss Bar Bench 3 x 10

C) Thick DB 1 Arm Row 3 x 10

D) Side & Rear Delt Raises 3 x 10 each

E) Hanging Leg Raises 3 x 10

Give these a shot and let me know how they work for you.

Live The Code 365,

Z

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