Be sure to use good form and a calm, steady cadence. Don't flare your elbows away from your body during the exercise, and certainly not beyond 45 degrees. Don't hold at the top or go so low that your shoulders feel too stretched at the bottom of the movement. And I would think that doing a couple sets no more than twice a week should be all you need if you do it seriously enough.
I did way more than that and everything was in the opposite of what you just wrote. My younger stupid ego was like ,,Just do it !". When one realizes that joints are of limited edition, then he changes that stupid behaviour.
Sage advice. Decades of Front Squats, Deadlifts and Cleans and my joints are worn and move. Dumbbells great for ensuring the dominant arm/leg/side doesn't get more dominant. Dips, I found Elbow pain subsided after a bit of adaption takes place, but that pain is telling you something. As we age, try to keep up the major Compound movements as they are the ones eliciting the Testosterone, Growth Hormone etc for a natty.
Presses great for building Bone density and keeping it as we age. Deadlifts can be a body wrecker - hips, knees, back, if not done correctly and with care, but great outside those issues.
Any thoughts on TRT, due the 1% loss that we experience with each year ? I dislike the press, but one has to learn to love it due the benefits you mentioned.
My question on TRT (Roids etc) is the longer term side effects. But there's probably enough Science out there now, so I'd be consulting an Endo. The benefits to quality of Life that TRT brings probably are worth any risk, considering how bad low Testosterone is. But I'm not qualified to give that advice. My knowledge of Roids comes from knowing Steroid users and of a bit of experimentation years ago. Science has progressed so my knowledge now is prehistoric.
I am 56 years old. Work out routine similar to when I was in my 20s but more targeted weight training and cross training. By the way, I recovered from an illness (coma) in the fall of 2016. About two months later, I came out of the coma and in-patient rehab (using a walker)...I could not curl 10-pound dumbells. One year later and in out-patient clinic rehab...I was curling 25 pound dumbells. Two years later, I was back to curling 50lb dumbells, running the trails, rowing, skiing, hiking, and winter camping. A lot of pain, sweat, and tears to get back to that. Lots of fear after seeing others in the hospital and rehab. I was determined not to be like them. Yet, the main difference between today versus my 20s...I am not able to do the high reps and my recovery between each exercise and between each day is twice as long. For high endurance workouts...I use my rowing machine and/or row in the canals of the St. Lawrence river. Also, my nutritional level is off the charts in comparison to my 20s. I have a better understanding of lactic acid build-up & micro tears in the muscle after each workout. Further, I learn how to use ice treatment baths after hard workouts. In fact, I'm a big fan of ice bath treatments and I sometimes use a private massage therapist after a ice bath treatment. Yet, my nutrition level has been that way since my 30s whereas everything else is something I learned in my 40s. I know my nutrition level & exercise are two of the main reasons why I survived that illness (coma//two cardiac arrests from pneumonia). Today, I have a lot more respect and appreciation for the air that we breathe...especially clean air. wrbtrader