Strength Training Plan For Women Over 50

I am sixty two years old. I have been lifting weights for twelve years. I started when I was fifty. I could not do one push up. I could not squat down without holding onto something. I felt weak all the time. My doctor told me I needed to exercise. She said my bones were getting thin. She said I was losing muscle. She said if I did not do something, I would end up in a nursing home.

That scared me. I did not want that. I started lifting weights. It was hard at first. I used two pound dumbbells. I could only do a few reps. But I kept going. Now I can do twenty push ups. I can squat down and pick things up off the floor. I can carry my grandchildren. I feel strong. I wrote this plan for women like me. Women who want to get strong. Women who do not know where to start. Women who are scared they will hurt themselves. You will not hurt yourself if you follow this plan. Go slow. Use light weight. Listen to your strength training plan for women over 50.

What Changes After Fifty?

Your body changes after fifty. This is normal. This happens to every woman.

You lose muscle. You lose about one pound every year. That adds up. By the time you are sixty, you have lost ten pounds of muscle. Your bones get weaker. Your periods stop. Your estrogen goes down. Estrogen keeps your bones strong. Without it, your bones get thin. Thin bones break easily.

Your metabolism slows down. You burn fewer calories. You gain weight more easily. These changes make you feel weak. They make you feel old. But you can stop them. You can even reverse them. Lifting weights builds muscle. It strengthens bones. It speeds up your metabolism. This is not hard to do. You just need a plan.

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What You Need?

You do not need much.

• Get some dumbbells. Start with three pounds. If you do not have dumbbells, use cans of soup. Use water bottles. Use bags of rice.
• Get a resistance band. These are stretchy rubber bands. They cost about five dollars. Get a light one.
• Find a sturdy chair. You will use it for balance. You will sit on it for some exercises. Make sure it does not slide.
• Get a mat or a thick towel. You will use it for floor exercises.
• Keep water nearby. Drink before you start. Drink during your breaks.

That is all you need.

Before You Start

Three things.

Talk to your doctor. This is important. Your doctor knows your health. They can tell you if this plan is safe for you. Warm up. Walk in place for two minutes. Swing your arms. Roll your shoulders. Bend your knees. This gets your blood flowing. Listen to your body. If something hurts, stop. Do not push through pain. Pain is your body telling you to stop.

The Exercises

Do these exercises twice a week. Pick two days. Monday and Thursday. Tuesday and Friday. Give yourself a day of rest between workouts. Do one set of each exercise. One set is eight to twelve repetitions. Pick a number between eight and twelve. Do that many. If you can do twelve easily, you need heavier weight. If you cannot do eight, you need lighter weight. Rest for thirty seconds between exercises.

Squats

• Stand with your feet apart. Keep your back straight. Look ahead.
• Bend your knees. Lower your body. Act like you are sitting back in a chair.
• Go down as far as you can without pain. If you are new, go down halfway.
• Push through your heels to stand up. Squeeze your butt.
• Do eight to twelve times.

If you have bad knees, do chair squats. Stand in front of a chair. Lower yourself until you touch the chair. Then stand up.

Wall Push Ups

• Stand facing a wall. Put your hands on the wall at shoulder height. Step back a few feet.
• Bend your elbows. Lower your chest toward the wall. Stop when your nose almost touches.
• Push through your hands to straighten your arms.
• Do eight to twelve times.
• If this is too easy, step further back. If it is too hard, step closer.

Seated Rows

• Sit on your chair. Keep your back straight.
• Put the resistance band around your feet. Hold one end in each hand.
• Pull the band toward your body. Squeeze your shoulder blades together.
• Slowly let your arms go back.

Do eight to twelve times.

If you do not have a band, use dumbbells. Bend forward. Let your arms hang down. Pull the weights up toward your chest. Squeeze your shoulder blades. Lower the weights.

Overhead Press

• Stand or sit. Keep your back straight.
• Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Bring the weights up to your shoulders.
• Press the weights up over your head. Do not lock your strength training plan for women over 50.
• Lower the weights back to your shoulders.
• Do eight to twelve times.
• If your shoulders hurt, use lighter weight. Or use no weight at all.

Bicep Curls

• Stand with your feet apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand.
• Let your arms hang down. Your palms face forward.
• Bend your elbows. Curl the weights up toward your shoulders.
• Slowly lower the weights down.
• Do eight to twelve times.
• Keep your upper arms still. Only your forearms move.

Tricep Kickbacks

• Stand with your feet apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand.
• Bend forward from your hips. Keep your back straight.
• Your upper arms stay close to your body. Your elbows are bent at a right angle.
• Straighten your arms behind you. Squeeze your triceps.
• Slowly return to the bent position.
• Do eight to twelve times.
• Keep your upper arms still. Only your forearms move.

Glute Bridges

• Lie on your back on your mat. Bend your knees. Put your feet flat on the floor.
• Press through your heels. Lift your hips off the floor.
• Squeeze your butt at the top. Your body should be in a straight line.
• Slowly lower your hips back down.
• Do eight to twelve times.
• If this is easy, lift one foot off the floor. Do it with one leg.

Bird Dog

• Get on your hands and knees. Your hands go under your shoulders. Your knees go under your hips.
• Keep your back flat. Tighten your stomach.
• Lift your right arm and extend it forward. At the same time, lift your left leg and extend it backward.
• Pause. Return to start.
• Repeat with your left arm and right leg.
• Do eight to twelve times on each side.
• Go slow. Do not let your back arch.

Side Leg Lifts

• Lie on your side on your mat. Rest your head on your lower arm.
• Keep your legs straight. Stack your top leg over your bottom leg.
• Lift your top leg up toward the ceiling.
• Lower it back down slowly.
• Do eight to twelve times on each side.
• Keep your body still. Only your leg moves.

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Dead Bug

• Lie on your back on your mat. Bend your knees. Lift your feet off the floor.
• Your knees should be over your hips. Your arms go straight up.
• Tighten your core. Lower your right arm behind your head. At the same time, lower your left leg toward the floor.
• Do not let your foot touch the floor. Pause. Return to start.
• Repeat with your left arm and right leg.
• Do eight to twelve times on each side.

Go slowly. If this is too hard, keep both feet on the floor. Just lower one arm at a time.

After Your Workout

Take five minutes to stretch.

Stand near a wall. Bend your right knee. Bring your heel toward your butt. Hold your ankle. You should feel a stretch in the front of your thigh. Hold for thirty seconds. Do the other leg.

Sit on your chair. Extend your right leg out. Put your heel on the floor. Bend forward from your hips. You should feel a stretch in the back of your thigh. Hold for thirty seconds. Do the other leg.

Stand with your feet apart. Clasp your hands behind your back. Straighten your arms. Lift your hands away from your body. You should feel a stretch in your chest. Hold for thirty seconds.

Sit in your chair. Clasp your hands in front of you. Round your back. Push your hands away. Drop your head forward. You should feel a stretch between your shoulder blades. Hold for thirty seconds.

Do not bounce. Bouncing can hurt you.

How to Get Stronger?

• Your body gets used to exercise. You need to make changes to keep improving.
• Add weight. When you can do twelve reps easily, add one or two pounds.
• Add reps. Go from eight to ten. From ten to twelve. When you can do fifteen, add weight.
• Add sets. Start with one set. After a month, add a second set. Rest for sixty seconds between sets.
• Add days. Start with two days a week. Add a third day after a month.
• Pick one way to improve. Do not try all at once.

Mistakes to Avoid

Lifting too heavy. This is the most common mistake. Women want results fast. They pick up weights that are too heavy. Their form gets bad. Bad form leads to injury.

• Start light. Focus on form. Add weight later.
• Holding your breath. Many women hold their breath when they lift. This raises blood pressure.
• Breathe out when you push. Breathe in when you lower. Keep breathing.
• Rushing. Speed does not build strength. Control builds strength.
• Take two seconds to lift. Take three seconds to lower.
• Skipping rest days. Your muscles grow during rest. If you exercise every day, you do not give your muscles time to recover.
• Take at least one day off between workouts.
• Ignoring food. Exercise is not enough. Your body needs protein to build muscle.
• Eat protein with every meal.

What to Eat?

I am not going to give you a diet. Diets do not work. I am going to tell you how to eat. Eat protein. Protein builds muscle. Eat about twenty grams at each meal. Three eggs. A piece of chicken the size of your palm. A cup of Greek yogurt. A can of tuna. A scoop of protein powder. Eat vegetables. Vegetables give you vitamins. Eat different colors. Green broccoli. Red peppers. Orange carrots. Purple cabbage. Eat whole grains. Brown rice. Oats. Quinoa. Whole wheat bread. Drink water. Dehydration makes you tired. Drink water throughout the day. Do not eat too little. Some women cut calories too much. This makes you tired. It makes it hard to build muscle. Eat enough to fuel your activity.

Your Week

• Monday. Strength workout. All ten exercises. One set each. Eight to twelve reps.
• Tuesday. Walk for thirty minutes. Stretch. No strength training.
• Wednesday. Strength workout again. Try to do one more rep than Monday.
• Thursday. Walk again. Or swim. Or do yoga. Keep moving.
• Friday. Strength workout one more time. Try to beat Wednesday.
• Saturday. Active rest. Hike. Bike. Dance.
• Sunday. Rest. Relax. Do nothing.

My Story

• I told you about my doctor. She scared me. She said I would end up in a nursing home if I did not exercise.
• I was fifty years old. I weighed one hundred sixty pounds. I could not do a push up. I could not squat down.
• I started with two pound weights. I could only do six reps. My arms shook. I was sore the next day.
• But I kept going. I added one rep each week. I added one pound each month.
• After six months, I could do twelve reps with five pounds. I could do five push ups. I could squat down and pick things up off the floor.
• After one year, I could do twenty push ups. I could squat with ten pounds. I lost twenty pounds.
• I am sixty two now. I still lift weights. I do this plan three times a week. I feel strong. I feel good.
• My doctor told me last year that my bones are strong. She said I do not have osteoporosis. She said I am healthier than most women my age.