Yes – Women over 50 CAN Lift Weights!

It’s no secret that exercise of any kind has profound benefits on your overall health. If you’re a woman over 50 looking for a little bit more of a challenge, you might be wondering, “Can women over 50 lift weights?”

The answer to that is a resounding YES! Women over 50 can lift weights. And in fact, you absolutely should. Not only does weight training build muscle needed to maintain balance, but it also helps to increase bone density, increase your metabolism, promote fat burning, and reduce arthritis pain and cardiovascular risk. Who doesn’t want that?!

Now that you know women over 50 can lift weights, you may be wondering how to get started safely and what a weight training program might look like. Well, read on, my friends!

What exercises should I perform and why?

The goal for weight training over 50 should be to maintain functional mobility, not become a fitness model. That means the weight lifting exercises you do should help you carry out daily tasks with ease, such as reaching into overhead cabinets, carrying laundry and groceries, and mowing the lawn, to name a few.

For that, we’ll look at a few muscle groups and identify some exercises that help with these chores. You can use dumbbells, resistance bands, or a can of vegetables for any of these exercises. To be clear, these are all very simple weight lifting movements. Many more exercises per muscle group are available. Still, if you are just starting a weight training program, it’s best to master these basics to understand the mechanics of the movement and how it feels on your body. Once you become comfortable lifting weights, you can add additional exercises if you chose. Or not. Either way, your body will reap the benefits of a weight training program with these simple moves.

Before you start, here is a valuable tip that will help you get the most out of each exercise. Focus on the muscle you are working on and feel it contract before you begin the movement and throughout the exercise. This is important to understand how the muscle should be working and feel what doesn’t feel right.

Shoulders

The shoulder, or deltoid, consists of 3 muscles. When you lift your arm to the side or straight out in front to carry something held away from your body, you’re engaging these muscles. Two simple exercises that help with these activities are front raises and side or lateral raises. You can use dumbbells, resistance bands, or a can of vegetables. These exercises work two of the three muscle groups.

Front raise:

Grasp dumbbells in both hands. Position dumbbells in front of your thigh, elbows straight or slightly bent.
With palms facing down, raise one dumbbell forward and upward to about shoulder height. Lower and repeat with the opposite arm, alternating between arms.

Side (lateral) raise:

Grasp dumbbells in front of thighs, elbows slightly bent, and a slight bend in your knees.
Raise your arms to the side to about shoulder height, maintaining the slight bend. Lower and repeat.

Chest

As with shoulder muscles, 3 muscles support the entire structure of the chest. However, the pectoralis or “pecs” are the visible ones that get the most attention. Chest muscles help with push activities, like vacuuming, mapping, pushing a lawnmower, and using a rake. These exercises both work the pecs.

Chest Press

Sit down on bench with dumbbells resting on your thigh, or held close to your chest. Lie back and bring the dumbbells to sides of chest, palms facing forward, thumbs wrapped around dumbbell.
Push dumbbells upwards with elbows to sides until arms are extended. Lower weight back to the side of your chest. Repeat.

Chest Fly

Grasp two dumbbells and lie flat on a weight bench. Dumbbells should be above the chest with arms fixed in a slightly bent position, palms facing inward. Elbows should point out to sides.
Lower dumbbells to sides with elbows fixed in a slightly bent position. Bring dumbbells together in a wide hugging motion until dumbbells are nearly together. Repeat.

Biceps

When we think of our biceps, we think of our upper arm, just below the shoulder. It’s what we flex when someone says, “Show me your guns!”. Your biceps are the primary muscles engaged when you lift heavy objects held close to the body, like groceries, a heavy tray, or a child.

Bicep curls

This exercise can be done from a standing or seated position.

Position two dumbbells to sides, palms facing in, arms straight.
With elbows to sides, raise one dumbbell and rotate forearm until forearm is vertical and palm faces shoulder. Lower and repeat with the opposite arm. Continue to alternate between sides.

Triceps

When we ladies raise our arms out to our sides and bemoan our “bat wings,” it’s our dwindling tricep muscles that are hidden underneath. As you may have guessed from the name, your triceps consist of three muscles, and they collectively help support the functions of our shoulders and elbow. If tennis is a leisure activity you love, strong triceps will protect your elbows.

Tricep kickbacks

Kneel over side of bench by placing knee and hand of supporting arm on bench. Position foot of opposite leg slightly back to the side.
Grasp dumbbell, palm facing inward. Your arm should hang parallel to the floor.
Extend arm straight back. Return and repeat. Continue with the opposite arm.

Lying tricep extension

Lie on bench and position dumbbells over head with arms extended.
Lower dumbbells by bending elbow until they are to sides of head. Extend arm. Repeat.

Back

Your back has four major muscle groups. Collectively, these support your core strength, good posture and spinal alignment, and assist your shoulders in their movement. A strong back helps you lift heavy objects, pull yourself up if using a railing and shoveling snow or dirt.

Bent over row

Kneel over side of bench by placing knee and hand of supporting arm on bench. Position foot of opposite leg slightly back to the side.
Grasp dumbbell from the floor, palm facing inward.
Pull the dumbbell up close towards your armpit. Slowing return your arm down until it is fully extended and shoulder is stretched downward. Repeat and continue with the opposite arm.

Superman

Lie on your stomach with legs straight and arms extended in front.
Keeping your neck in alignment with your spine, lift arms and legs off the floor simultaneously.
Hold for three seconds, then switch sides.

Quadriceps

If you see a pattern here with how our muscles are named, you can likely guess that your quadriceps, or “quads,” have four muscles. Strong quads are the solid foundation of daily movement and mobility. They help you transition from sitting to standing and support your knees while standing or walking. If you’ve ever heard someone say, “lift with your legs, not with your back,” it’s because your quads can and should absorb most of the weight you’re lifting.

These exercises can be done with or without dumbbells.

Squats

Stand with dumbbells grasped to sides, palms facing inwards.
Squat down by pushing your hips back, while allowing knees to bend forward, keeping back straight and knees pointed same direction as feet. Descend until thighs are just past parallel to the floor. Extend knees and hips until legs are straight.

Step Ups

Stand in front of a bench or jump box, with dumbbells grasped to sides, palms facing forward.
Step onto the bench with your right foot, taking care to control the movement.
Bring your left foot up to meet the right foot on the bench. Stand on bench by extending hip and knee of first leg and place foot of second leg on bench.
Step down your right foot first, then left.
Alternate by stepping onto the bench with your left foot first, bring the right foot to meet the left foot on the bench.
Completing one step-up on each side is one rep.

Hamstrings

Your hamstrings are the muscles that run along the back of your thigh. Strong hamstrings help stabilize your hips and knees and support your lower back.

Straight-legged Dead Lift

Stand with shoulder width or narrower stance. Grasp dumbbells in front, palms facing the front of your thighs
With knees straight, bend at the waist to lower the dumbbells to the top or sides of feet by bending hips.
Lift dumbbells by extending hips and waist until standing upright.

Gluteal Muscles

Three muscles make up your butt. Weak glutes can cause low back and hip pain and pelvic misalignment. Strong glutes support your core and help maintain a straight posture.

The same squats and step-up exercises that work your quads also work your glutes. Lunges are a good addition to the mix. Like squats and step-up exercises, lunges can be done with or without weight.

Lunges

Stand with dumbbells grasped to sides.
Lunge forward with first leg. Land on heel then forefoot. Lower body by flexing knee and hip of front leg until knee of rear leg is almost in contact with floor. Return to original standing position by forcibly extending hip and knee of forward leg. Repeat by alternating lunge with opposite leg.

How much weight should you lift?

This is the best question ever. If you Google the answer, you’ll get dozens of results. Typically, lower weights and higher reps support endurance. Heavier weights and lower reps support muscle growth.

My suggestion to you is this: if you are new to weight lifting, you should lift a heavy enough weight so that you are fatigued by the time you hit the 8^th or 10^th rep. If you can breeze through 10 reps, the weight is too light.

I typically do 3 sets of 12 reps. When I’m no longer fatigued at the end of the 12^th rep, I’ll jump up the weight, lower the reps, and increase the rest time between sets. Speaking of rest times….

How long should you rest between sets?

Again, if you are just starting, I suggest you rest 60 seconds between sets. Don’t count in your head; watch the clock. Resting between sets allows the fancy and complicated chemical processes in your muscle to regroup and get your muscles ready for the next set of reps.

Not only is resting in between sets important, so is resting between workouts. Which gets us to the next question…

How often should you lift?

You should allow for a day of rest in between each body part. So, if you do a full-body workout, meaning you do one or two exercises for each body part during every weight training session, you should have a day of rest before in between.

In addition, if building strength is your goal, you should be hitting the same body part multiple times a week. By targeting all muscles in the body more than twice a week, you build muscle more rapidly than you would if you target one body part one time per week.

So, my overall recommendation is every other day, at least 3 times a week. In between, you should continue with active resting movements, such as walking or yoga.

I am a big fan of “A” and “B” full-body workouts done every other day. First, I can get them done in about 45 minutes. Second, I can hit every body part every workout, therefore

What a beginner weight training program looks like

Here’s where things get fun – and useful. Looking at the exercises in this article, here is how you can put that all together to build your own “A”/”B” weight lifting program and schedule.

Workout Program A

Front Raise: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Chest Press: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Bicep Curl: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Tricep Extension: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Bent over Row: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Squats: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Straight Leg Dead Lift: 3 sets of 10-12 reps

Workout Program B:

Lateral Raise: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Chest Fly: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Bicep Curl: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Lying Tricep Extension: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Superman: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Step-Ups: 3 sets of 10-12 reps
Lunges: 3 sets of 10-12 reps

Workout Schedule:

You will alternate every other day with the A and B Workouts, taking a day break in between. You should not perform any A/B workout split on back-to-back days. Your muscles need a day in between each session to rest and rebuild muscle. You should still strive to stay active on the rest days by walking, jogging, or biking for 30 minutes a day.

5-day workout schedule:

Week 1:

Monday/Friday-Workout A;
Wednesday-Workout B; Tuesday/Thursday-Walking, etc.

Week 2:

Monday/Friday-Workout B;
Wednesday-Workout A; Tuesday/Thursday-Walking, etc.

A 7-day workout schedule

Week1:

Day 1-Workout A;
Day 2-Walking, etc
Day 3-Workout B;
Day 4- Walking, etc;
Day 5-Workout A;
Day 6- Walking, etc;
Day 7-Workout-B

Week 2:

Day 1- Walking, etc;
Day 2-Workout A;
Day 3- Walking, etc;
Day 4-Workout B;
Day 5- Walking, etc;
Day 6-Workout A,
Day 7- Walking, etc

Tracking your progress

I highly recommend you keep track of your workout activity.

First and foremost, it promotes accountability toward your goals. It’s a very rewarding feeling to fill up the workout log pages. When you look back, you’ll note with pride that you showed up and committed to yourself and your fitness on schedule.

Second, it keeps you motivated. With each entry you make, you build momentum, and you begin to carve out a habit for yourself. Third, you can see where you are making gains. When the weights and reps become easier, you’ll see where you can adjust and make changes.

You can use anything to track your progress. You can use several smartphone apps to track your progress, but I’m a pen and paper kind of girl. As a rule, I never bring my phone into the gym. It’s too distracting.

I use Composition Books because they have a stitched binding, which does two things: It keeps me from ripping pages out of the book if I skip several weeks of exercises, and it keeps the pages from being inadvertently ripped inside my gym bag. In reality, any notebook will do.

Final Words

Women over 50 absolutely can lift weights. Weight training has profound benefits that promote functional mobility so you can keep up with your grandchildren, move more freely, and be more independent.

If not knowing what to do, when to do it and how to do it was holding you back, now you have a starting point. Grab some dumbbells and get after it!