Balance and stabilization

  When I first started lifting weights over 40 years ago, I wanted to build up my biceps, and bench press an impressive amount of weight. Everything else was an after-thought. I don't think the biceps quite got there, and it took over 20 years of lifting to reach my eventual "max" of 235 lbs. on the bench.
    As I've gotten to late middle-age, I realize I will never exceed (or really, come close to)  a 235 lb. bench again, and my biceps are basically proportional on my 140 lb. frame.
    The key thing, for everyone, but older trainees especially, is balance. In other words, when you do a "curl," the biceps are the main mover, but you are also engaging your deltoids (shoulders), trapezius (neck and upper back), and lats (upper back).  Additionally, the triceps are involved in controlling the weight on the way down, or negative phase. Contrary to what I knew at 16, the triceps are actually  more contributory to the size of your arms than the biceps.
    So the key is to work opposite muscle groups with the same intensity. Dividing the body front and back, spend an equal amount of time on your chest and back; your quadriceps (thighs) and hamstrings; and biceps and triceps. Not only will it make you stronger, overall, but is probably the main ingredient to avoiding injury.
    The "core" (28 different muscles in the center of your body) is involved in every exercise to some degree, but much more so when you are standing when doing an exercise, and particularly engaged if you incorporate balance of some kind. That could mean standing on a Bosu ball or disks when doing your biceps curls, or lifting a leg or an arm when in a plank position.
     To balance your body with planks, also remember your side and reverse planks, which also can be done with one leg in the air!
     Bottom-line, there are many ways to incorporate balance into your workouts, and to make a "ho-hum" workout something fun and challenging.  I realize I will never look like the Charles Atlas figures in the comic books of my youth, but this hybrid style of lifting should keep in the gym for many years to come!