The Twenties

The twenties guy is the envy of all ages. Youths see him as the realization of manhood; older men see him as the embodiment of youth. Being in your twenties is like surveying the world from the lofty heights of a long, tapering hill: All the declines that take place with age slope gently away from a point still further down your path. But don''t let the thin air at the top go to your head.

Two problems arise from the physical confidence and well-being that characterize the twenties. First, it''s easy to assume (unless you''re recuperating from a crippling mishap or get your sustenance solely from glazed doughnuts) that you have no reason to exercise.

The truth of the matter is that the twenties are a critical time to establish fitness habits, abilities and passions that will stick with you later, when exercise ostensibly matters more. "The problem with sedentary men in their forties is that they have a 20-year history of inactivity," says Bryant Stamford, Ph.D., director of the Health Promotion and Wellness Center at the University of Louisville School of Medicine in Kentucky.

The second problem area for twentysomethings is possessing a lulling sense of invulnerability. This isn''t entirely bad, because for those who decide to get with a program of activity, feeling invulnerable allows you to play hard and push yourself to the edge in whatever you do. There''s no point in being young if you can''t do that. But risk by definition entails real danger. "Intensity tends to be greater with guys in their twenties, especially if they play highly competitive sports that require a lot of agility, like football, basketball or soccer," says Benjamin Gelfand, P.T., supervisor at the Nicholas Institute of Sports Medicine and Athletic Trauma in New York City. "I definitely see more of certain types of injuries at this age, particularly overuse injuries like tendinitis, and knee problems like torn ligaments."

Make the Most of the Moment

Because you''re young, your body is more resilient and stronger than it will be in later years, which means you can use (if not abuse) it more heavily and achieve greater results in a shorter period of time. And the gains you make now may have an impact in later decades. To do it all, both effectively and safely, you''ll need to follow some tips.

Start lifting weights. Although your body doesn''t gradually start to lose muscle mass until you''re in your thirties, it''s important to bulk up now, says Gary Hunter, Ph.D., director of the exercise physiology lab and associate professor of health and physical education at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Think of your body as a retirement investment: If you build up and maintain resources early, you''ll have that much more to draw from when you start to cash out later. And as with finances, an early contribution may produce bigger yields: At this age, your body is still pumping out ample amounts of growth hormone. This chemical keeps muscles strong, but its production will taper off as you age.

Beyond muscle, weight lifting also builds bone. Men don''t lose bone as early or as dramatically as women, but it will still be a problem when you reach your late forties or early fifties. Building bone now won''t prevent loss from occurring later, but "if you increase bone density up until age 25 to 30 and maintain it, you''ll lose bone more slowly," says Dr. Hunter.

Make intensity work for you. In the pre-marriage and pre-kids years, you have more time (not to mention inclination) to participate aggressively in lots of different activities, from pickup basketball to mountain biking to snowboarding. Because you''re engaged in multiple pursuits, you need to keep your body well-conditioned to meet different kinds of physical demands. This means that in addition to keeping your body strong, you need to keep it in prime aerobic condition. You may be getting a lot of the conditioning you need from your activities themselves, but adding an aerobic component to your regular workout schedule doesn''t need to take a lot of time, says Carol Espel, program director for The Sports Center at Chelsea Piers in New York City.

If you''re already in decent shape, Espel suggests cramming all your aerobic requirements into a short, highly intense bout in which you work at 80 to 85 percent (as opposed to the more customary 60 to 70 percent) of your target heart rate—something that''s not recommended for older or (even if you''re young) out-of-shape men. At that intensity, you''ll get a superior aerobic workout in about 20 to 25 minutes. "It''s tough to sustain that kind of effort much longer than that," Espel says.

Protect knees and shoulders. Being in great overall shape goes a long way toward warding off injury, but you need to pay special attention to areas of the body that are prone to damage during intense exercise, especially competitive sports, Gelfand says. Specifically, he recommends you shore up your knees and shoulders through extra exercises that will bolster the muscles and ligaments supporting these crucial joints. You don''t have to add more to your gym routine; just do a few extra moves using little or no equipment at home when you''re watching TV or listening to music. Here''s what he says to do.

Hamstring Curls

Put a weight on one ankle for this simple exercise, which works the muscles at the back of the upper leg.

Lie on your stomach with both legs extended. Slowly bend the knee of the weighted leg, moving your foot through an arc until the heel is almost touching your butt, then slowly lower it to the floor again. Do two sets of 15 raises, resting ten seconds in between, then repeat with the other leg.

Straight-Leg Raises

This exercise keeps the knee neutral but strengthens muscles and ligaments of the hips and quadriceps, which support, stabilize and protect the knee.

Lie on your back with one leg extended and one leg bent. Your foot should be flat on the floor with the heel about 12 inches from your butt.

Slowly raise the extended leg, toes toward the ceiling, until it reaches the height of your bent knee, then gradually bring it back down. Do two sets of 15 raises, resting ten seconds in between, then repeat with the other leg. For added resistance, put an ankle weight on the extended leg, but don''t make it any heavier than 10 to 15 percent of your body weight.

Wall Sits

Here''s a deceptively easy-looking exercise that''s a terrific, low-stress substitute for lunges if your knees are prone to problems.

Stand with your back flat against a wall with your heels about two feet from the baseboard and each foot about six inches from the other.

Slowly slide your back down the wall, bending your knees as you go until your thighs are almost parallel to the floor. Hold the position. You should feel your muscles begin to burn by about 20 seconds, but shoot for holding for a full minute before standing up straight again. Do a total of five sits, resting 30 seconds between each one.

Heel Walking

To strengthen the front of the lower leg, revisit a move you probably last did when you were a kid.

Lift your toes so that your weight rests on your heels. Now walk 20 to 30 steps, using the muscles at the front of your lower leg to maintain your position and balance. Rest 30 seconds, then repeat.

Heel Drops

The knee isn''t the only leg joint vulnerable to injury during vigorous activity. The ankle, too, can use all the support it can get in the form of strong muscles in the calf and front of the leg.

To strengthen the calf, stand on a platform, weight or block, with your heel sticking past its edge. With a smooth motion, let your heel drop past the level of the platform, then raise it back up again. (There are variations on this; see page 260 for another technique.)

Outside Shoulder Rotations

Outside Shoulder Rotations

A major shoulder problem for men in their twenties is rotator cuff impingement, an overuse injury of the shoulder, Gelfand says. Strengthening the rotator cuff requires exercises that hit the area from two angles. For the first exercise, you''ll lift a dumbbell toward the outside of your body.

Lie on your left side with a dumbbell on the floor in front of you, close to your stomach. Keeping the upper part of your right arm parallel to your torso, with your elbow close to your body, bend your right arm at 90 degrees so you can grasp the dumbbell with your right hand.

Lift the dumbbell from the floor, raising it from your stomach toward the ceiling and your right torso, keeping your elbow close to your body. Then lower the dumbbell back to the floor. Do two sets of 15, then repeat on the other side.

Inside Shoulder Rotations

To strengthen your shoulder from a second angle, lie on your left side again, with a dumbbell on the floor in front of you. This time, grasp the dumbbell with your left hand, with your upper left arm parallel to your body and your elbow close to your torso, bent at 90 degrees.

Lift the dumbbell from the floor up to your right side, keeping your elbow close to your body. Again, do two sets of 15, then repeat on the other side.