In October this year, Juma Hamisi turns 48. His physique still carries the kind of muscle that tells stories of years spent in the gym—but these days, he has slowed down his strength training exercises. Reason? To spare himself the painful joint pains as he ages.
“Getting older doesn’t have to derail your gains if you make smart choices, especially with your diet and workouts. During my younger days, I used to eat a lot of meat, a good source of protein that I rarely recommend for people who are past 40. Instead, I have replaced it with fish and chicken. These sources of protein pack enough omega-3 that are good for your joints as you grow old,” he says as he trains a 62-year-old client at Workout Warehouse Gym in Nairobi.
Although many wellness experts recommend more strength training workouts once you are past the age of 40, Hamisi, who works as a fitness trainer is a strong advocate for listening to your body—and adjusting accordingly.
“I have been working out for over 26 years now. I do not need any more muscles than I already have. I am trying to take care of my joints that have suffered all these years from the workout. As much as exercise is essential and good for the human body, it can’t defy ageing. You get to a point where your body starts sending you signals. The workouts you used to do you can’t do anymore. What I do these days is functional exercise. I love the kettlebell swings more as they are full-body exercises,” he says.
Fitness tips after 40
When Hamisi turned to fitness coaching after a failed football career, he was at the best of his shape. At the Nyayo gym, he had been mentored by powerlifters who represented Kenya in international competition.
Juma Hamisi performs a leg press workout at the Workout Warehouse gym in Nairobi on February 9, 2025
Photo credit: Sinda Matiko | Nation Media Group
“We used to lift heavy loads. My heaviest squat then was six good reps (repetitions) of a 240 kg barbell load. Chest press, I would push 10 reps of 180 kilos. Nowadays, I barely squat more than eight reps of a 40kg load; my knees wouldn't allow me to, even if I wanted to.”
One of the first things he noticed as he ages was a slowing metabolism, even though he remained active.
“Despite being active, my metabolism kind of slowed down; there are certain age factors that exercise can’t fix, and so that means your diet becomes very crucial. You can no longer afford to eat anything anymore. Would you believe me when I tell you I haven’t eaten wheat for more than 10 years now, let alone a biscuit? I see people obsessed with chapatis; I haven’t tasted those in over 15 years. Neither do I take sugar. Past 40 years, your body starts to react a lot to what you eat as your gut health slows down, so it's paramount to understand that and tweak your meals accordingly,” he tells BDLife.
Another body change after 40 that Hamisi noticed that defied exercise was the recovery periods.
“I realised my body’s recovery slowed down drastically; no matter what kind of food I ate, the process of recovery never improved. Nowadays, I need two to three days of rest to fully recover after an exercise session. That means I only get to train twice or thrice a week, depending on how I feel,” he says.
He maintains that past 40, it is important not to rush your body back to a workout session if you are not fully recovered from the previous session, no matter how determined you are to get going.
“By ignoring the need to rest enough, that’s how you risk picking up injuries, and if you get injured, the process of healing also takes longer as you are not younger anymore,” Hamisi cautions.
Changing workout programmes at this age also becomes very crucial, he says.
“You can no longer train with intensity and lift heavy at this age; otherwise, you will be susceptible to injuries. So it’s ideal to switch to light workouts, and like I said, I find kettlebell exercise very effective for 40-plus-year-olds,” he adds.
Although many expert journals discourage cardio past 40, Juma says it’s essential for this age group.
“Past 40, you tend to lose muscle at an alarming rate, and you start gaining weight. This is why, as a 40-year-old, you cannot avoid doing cardio as much as you are doing strength-training exercises. Resistance training is equally very important for this age bracket going forward because it helps protect your muscles from degeneration.
But the most important aspect is diet.
“White meats become essential for people past 40. As for red meat, for 40-year-olds-plus who consistently exercise, I would recommend it more to women than men. This is because naturally men possess more muscles compared to women, and because red meat is rich in amino acids, it's a good source of diet for women in their 40s trying to build lean muscles. Besides a lot of men, their gut struggles to process red meat.
Eating heavy carbohydrates for dinner is another aspect that Hamisi cautions people of this age about.
“Past 6.30 pm, I don’t take any carbohydrates, and if I have to, it will be a lot of vegetables and fish or chicken. Many of my peers will at least agree to this: when you take carbs at dinner, there are many times you wake up fatigued, and that is because your body was busy breaking down the carbs and converting them into energy for immediate use, and because you are resting (sleeping), the excess glucose is converted to fats and stored around your belly and other parts of the body that are not ideal," he says.
Working as a bouncer
Hamisi’s fitness journey began in 1998 when he was an aspiring footballer, playing as a winger. He played for a Division One club in Nairobi with the hopes that football would open doors for him.
Juma Hamisi performs a chest press workout at the Workout Warehouse gym in Nairobi on February 9, 2025
Photo credit: Sinda Matiko | Nation Media Group
“Gyms were expensive back then, but there was a small gym at Nyayo Stadium where footballers and a few bodybuilders of the time would train. When I realised I had no future in football, I began looking for alternatives, and that’s how I found myself introduced to bodybuilding through the Nyayo gym interaction,” he says.
In those days, muscular physiques were rare—and in demand.
“There were very few of us who had this amazing body physique, and so we ended up getting jobs as bouncers in Nairobi’s hottest clubs of those days. We did the job thrice a week, and for every day we worked, we earned Sh350,” he recalls.
After two years of working as a bouncer, one of his colleagues who had undergone fitness training courses introduced the rest of the crew, and that is how Hamisi earned his certification as a fitness trainer.
“Ever since, that is what I have been doing to date,” he says.
