Strength Training for Women 50+

By Yasaman Nourkhalaj, BS and Sharon Brock, MS, MEd

If you’re in your 50s, you might have noticed that simple tasks like getting up from the floor or cleaning the bathroom aren’t as easy as they used to be. For decades, women have been bombarded with messages about getting thinner. But around the age of 50, the focus should shift from losing weight to gaining strength. Building muscle isn’t just about looking strong – it’s about living strong and extending your longevity.

The Link Between Age and Muscle Mass

Starting around age 30, muscle mass begins to decline at a rate of about .5 percent per year. When we reach age 50, that rate increases to 1 to 2 percent per year, then increases again to roughly 3 percent per year starting at age 60. This attrition of muscle mass is especially critical for women because estrogen plays a key role in muscle and bone health. The reduction of estrogen levels during perimenopause and menopause accelerates the onset of sarcopenia (age-related loss of muscle mass) and osteoporosis making strength training even more essential as women age for long-term health.

The head of Stanford Lifestyle Medicine Healthful Nutrition pillar, exercise and nutrition scientist, and health researcher Marily Oppezzo, PhD, explains why strength training is essential for women over 50.

“An important thing we can do for our longevity is strength train. And that is true for every age—even if you start training at age 102,” says Dr. Oppezzo. “During menopause, declining estrogen levels directly impact muscle maintenance and development. This natural process can accelerate muscle loss–but here’s the good news: strength training can certainly help combat these changes.”

5 Strength Training Movements for Women 50+

According to Dr. Oppezzo, an effective strength training program should include exercises that have these fundamental movements:

1. Push movements to strengthen the chest (example exercises: wall push-ups, push-ups with knees on the floor, chest presses with weights)
2. Pull movements to strengthen the back (example exercises: resistance band rows, rowing machine)
3. Squat movements to improve ability to sit and stand (example exercises: chair squats — option to wear a backpack with a bottle of water for increased weight)
4. Hinge movements to protect your back during daily activities (example exercises: hip bridges, dead lifts with weights)
5. Single-leg movements to equalize strength in both legs (example exercises: step-ups onto a raised platform, single-leg sit-and-stand from a chair)

Sample Strength Training Routine for Women 50+

Here is a sample strength training routine recommended by Dr. Oppezzo for women over 50 to be performed two to three times per week:

1. Chest Press: While lying on a bench hold your dumbbells in both hands with bent elbows, and push weights straight up toward the ceiling. 3 sets, 8 repetitions.
2. Resistance Band Row: Wrap a light-medium resistance band around a pole or your feet. Sit on the ground and pull back the bands in a rowing motion, keeping elbows close to the body and hands at the waist, squeezing the back muscles together. 3 sets, 8 repetitions.
3. Chair Squats: Bring hands together at your chest and slowly sit into a chair with a neutral spine (don’t arch or round) and strong core. Touch your butt to the seat bottom, but do not sit all the way into the chair. Stand back up again. 3 sets, 8 repetitions.
4. Deadlift: Stand with feet hip width apart. Hinging at the hips with a slight bend in the knee, and keep your back straight, shoulders neutral (not rounded or excessively arched). Engage your core. Slide the weights down the line of your thighs and legs only as far as you can go without rounding your back.  Slowly exhale as you stand up. The power to stand up comes from driving your hips forward. Keep your weights close to your body the whole time. You can practice this by rolling a foam roller down your legs with your hands to practice good form. 3 sets, 8 repetitions.
5. Step-ups: Set up a 1-foot-high platform (using a box or stairs) and step onto the platform with one leg and lower the body slowly. 3 sets, 8 repetitions.

*Dr. Oppezzo recommends that you perform the exercises without weights first to master proper form.

How to Get the Most Out of Your Strength Training Routine

How many reps you should do:

“Reps in reserve” is a way to estimate how close you are to your max effort. Once you learn the moves, you will want to train so your sets leave you with “2 reps in reserve”, meaning you stopped feeling like you could do 2 more repetitions in good form, but that’s it.

How to choose your weights:

1. Start Light. Begin with a weight that feels easy. Use the first set to warm up and estimate what you will use for the exercise.
2. Gradually increase the weight until you can do 8 and 10 repetitions with good form but high effort.
3. Check in with yourself:  If after you’re done, you could have done more than 2 repetitions in good form, increase the weight. But,  if after you’re done, you could NOT have done 2 more repetitions, it may be too heavy. The sweet spot is: if after you’re done, you could have done just 2 more repetitions with good form, you’ve got the right weight for you right now.

“To get stronger, you need to slightly increase the difficulty of the exercises each time you do your workout,” says Dr. Oppezzo. “You’re not going to get stronger if you do the same thing every time.”

How to gradually increase the difficulty of the exercises over time:

• Increase the weight (e.g., When the 5-pound weights become too easy, increase the weight to 8 pounds, then 10 pounds, and so on).
• Add an extra set of the exercise (e.g., Rather than only 3 sets, add a fourth).
• Increase the number of repetitions (e.g., When 8 reps become too easy, increase to 10 reps, and then progress to 12. When you’re able to do 12 reps without too much effort, it’s time to increase the weight).
• Slow down the tempo for each rep, especially on the “eccentric” or lengthening part of the movement.

“Be sure to wait 24 hours between strength training sessions to prevent injury and allow for muscle repair and recovery,” says Dr. Oppezzo. “Don’t do heavy strength training of the same muscle group on back-to-back days.”

The Importance of Protein to Build Strength

Proper nutrition is crucial for muscle development, particularly adequate protein intake. When we are strength training, our bodies need the raw material that protein provides to build muscle mass. Research shows that adults should aim to consume 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, which translates to roughly 80 to 100 grams per day. Protein can come from both animal and plant-based sources, and Dr. Oppezzo recommends consuming protein throughout the day rather than having just one high-protein meal.

“Building muscle effectively requires both consistent strength training and adequate protein consumption,” says Dr. Oppezzo. “In order hit that 80 to 100 grams per day mark, we should try to consume 20 to 30 grams of protein at every meal.”

Strength Training for Longevity

Strength training isn’t just about lifting weights, it’s about lifting your quality of life. Whether you want to keep up with grandchildren, maintain independence, or simply feel stronger in your daily activities, it’s never too late to start. “If starting a weight training regime feels overwhelming, start with ‘strength snacks,’ which are short bursts of exercise throughout the day. Start small and focus on consistency over intensity, and track improvements in daily activities rather than just numbers on weights,” says Dr. Oppezzo.

“Start where you are, use what you have, and celebrate every small victory along the way. Your future self will thank you for the strength you build today,” says Dr. Oppezzo.