Lost And Found

I watched a couple of Rip's video shorts about old guys and tonnage. I want to make sure my understanding is correct.

I'm 71 yo. I usually do sets of triples for heavy work sets for squats except on a light day. Assuming the warm-up sets and reps are the same would Workout B provide equal or adequate stress with less tonnage than Workout A? Is that a sufficient reduction in tonnage or too much? Thanks

Workout A 300x3x3 (tonnage 2700)

Workout B 290x3, 300x2, 310x2 (tonnage 2090)

Mark Rippetoe

I think you need to explore the concept of Minimum Effective Dosage. At your age, and long-term, it will be a more useful approach to your training.

OldNoob

I'm in my early 50s, working through the Novice phases per Barbell Prescription and Starting Strength, will be adding conditioning in the upcoming months. I have a Concept2 rower/erg, and am considering getting a sled so I can do some of my training outdoors. Indoor use is not an option, and our road is gravel and barely maintained in the winter, so unless I want to use the sled on an uneven icey surface I'm limited to a mowed area for a good portion of the year.

Any type (ones with feet vs rails) better for use on grass? "Better" meaning both doesn't completely destroy the lawn, and it's possible to use the thing when the ground is soft. Can they be used in the snow, or is this not even an option?. I'm in Wisconsin, so this is an issue.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Mark Rippetoe

They can't be used on a lawn without destroying the turf, they can't be used on snow or any other surface that yields to the pressure unless you don't use any weight. They are designed for dry level pavement or AstroTurf over concrete.