I have exactly 11 months since I started my after-40 fitness journey

August was vacation time, having only a couple of workouts with push-ups and crunches and one workout in the hotel gym. But in September I started strong, with a newer and better workout plan. I'm happy with the progress I have made so far. However, I could've done better if I hadn't tried to get more visible abs within the first couple of months when I started training. At the beginning of my after-40 fitness journey, I thought it would be possible to get visible abs while building muscles in a couple of months, but all I did was lose fat because of the calorie deficit and get a little bit of muscle memory kicking in. Now, since I got leaner I don't aim to get a six-pack anymore. I rather maintain a fairly low body fat while building more muscle by eating calories slightly over maintenance needs. It will be a longer process to see some defined abs, but I don't think that there's any other way if building more muscle is the top priority in a natural fitness journey after 40.

Today's workout was for the back, biceps, and a little bit of shoulders

Stretching

I always start with stretching and warm-up moves, no matter what muscles I train that day.
Set 1: 0:05

Bent Over Row (Barbell)

Set 1: 20 kg × 25 [Warm-up]
Set 2: 50 kg × 12
Set 3: 60 kg × 12
Set 4: 70 kg × 10
Set 5: 70 kg × 8

Close grip pull-downs

Set 1: 40 kg × 15 [Warm-up]
Set 2: 60 kg × 12
Set 3: 65 kg × 7 [Failure]
Set 4: 65 kg × 6

Ezy bar curls

Set 1: 8 kg × 50 [Warm-up]
Set 2: 28 kg × 12
Set 3: 38 kg × 9 [Failure]
Set 4: 38 kg × 8
Set 5: 38 kg × 6 [Failure]

Dumbbell High Pull

Set 1: 10 kg × 15 [Warm-up]
Set 2: 16 kg × 12
Set 3: 16 kg × 10
Set 4: 16 kg × 10

Post-workout snack

Within 15-20 minutes after training, I had 60 grams of carbs, protein 24 grams of protein, and 6 grams of fat with this snack:
Honey, 30 g, and 6 grams of creatine monohydrate (dietary supplement) mixed in 250 ml of water
One large banana and 185 grams of light cottage cheese (3% fat).

Post-workout meal (dinner)

About two hours after training I had this meal:
Chicken leg roasted meat only skinless, 180 g
Green beans boiled without salt, 100 g 
Tomatoes raw, 160g
Cantaloupe melon raw, 200 g
Carbs 30g, Protein 55g, Fat 12g

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