*Find your free HKS – Hybrid Kettlebell Muscle Workout at the bottom of this email
*For my birthday, I’ve got my Hybrid Kettlebell Muscle program on sale. And when you grab it, you also get a free copy of my Bulletproof Shoulders program, which will keep your upper body healthy for the long haul.
-> GET – Hybrid Kettlebell Muscle – Forest 45th Birthday Special
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My birthday is in two days.
I’m turning 45!
And, nothing irritates me more than the guy who’s like, “I’m 45, and I have the body age of a 25-year-old. Look at me. Here’s how YOU can be just like me.”
That stuff drives me crazy.
Yes – I’m still strong, still mobile, still active, and still out there doing the work.
But I’m also not some unicorn. I have many clients in their 40s, 50s, and 60s who are doing the same thing.
Here’s the thing, though. It takes a different approach.
What Worked “Back Then”, Doesn’t Work Now
For a long time, even pretty recently, I kept gravitating back to training like I used to. Chest and tris one day, back and bis the next, legs after that.
This style of training worked WELL for me back in the day!
I still remember my first serious lift. I was 14, maybe 15. My varsity football coach pulled me aside and said, “Forest, you were a standout tight end on JV. But I want you on the offensive line. Put on 20 pounds and you’ll be our starting tackle as a junior.” So he put me on an eating plan — had me waking up in the middle of the night for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. That’s a story for another day.
But that old school weight room, the power cleans, the bench press, the machines — it was basically straight out of Arnold’s Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding. And for a 16-year-old? It worked great. Your body can take a lot of abuse when you’re young. You’ll get results just from the sheer stimulus of lifting when you’re first starting.
How to Train in your 40s, 50s, 60s and Beyond
The problem is, that approach stops serving you in your 40s, 50s, 60s.
It’ll make you big and strong. But it won’t keep you functional. It won’t keep you mobile. It won’t keep you out of pain. And that last one is huge.
So now I run what I’d call a hybrid approach. If you came to train with me at my gym — where I specialize in training the Ageless Warrior (40s, 50s, 60s) — here’s what it actually looks like:
We still do barbell work. But we prep for it. Before we deadlift, we’re doing core activation, glute activation, hip mobility drills. Then the lift itself is progressive and intentional — we’re not just coming in and maxing out every session. We’re periodizing, waving the load up and down over time.
We do kettlebells — swings, cleans, snatches — for functional conditioning and movement.
We add rotational work, core, and flexibility.
And then we do recovery counter-work. All that forward flexion from the lifting? We balance it out with baby cobras, sphinx holds, and anti-flexion work to protect your back for the long run.
Little things. Big difference.
You take the body part split — not great long-term. You take the hybrid functional approach — you get strong, you get lean, you build muscle, and you do it without constantly being beat up and in pain.
That’s the goal.
So — for my birthday, I’ve got my Hybrid Kettlebell Muscle program on sale. And when you grab it, you also get a free copy of my Bulletproof Shoulders program, which will keep your upper body healthy for the long haul.
-> GET – Hybrid Kettlebell Muscle – Forest 45th Birthday Special
Let’s go!!
— Forest
PS – Here’s a sample workout from the program so you can see exactly what I’m talking about:
Warm-Up
— Core activation / dead bug — 1 min
— Monster walks (band above knees) — 1 min
— Hip airplanes — 1 min (30 sec per side)
MOVEMENT VIDEO DEMOS IN THE FULL PROGRAM HERE
Main Work
— Deadlift @ ~85% 1RM x 3 reps + Hard-style plank x 30 sec — 3-4 rounds
— Recline rows (or pull-ups, or 1-arm KB rows) – 5-12 + Reverse KB lunge paired with 1-arm swing (alternating sides) 5 per side — 3 rounds
MOVEMENT VIDEO DEMOS IN THE FULL PROGRAM HERE
KB Skill / Conditioning
— Swing → clean → high pull → snatch progression — ~7 min
Cool-Down
— Baby cobra, sphinx,supine spinal twist
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That’s strength, movement, conditioning, and recovery all in one session. And your back feels better walking out than it did walking in. That’s the hybrid approach in action. Grab the program at the link below:
-> GET – Hybrid Kettlebell Muscle – Forest 45th Birthday Special