When people think about exercise, they often think about walking, running, cycling or doing a fitness class. All of these are wonderful forms of movement, but there is another incredibly important part of keeping our bodies healthy as we get older: resistance training.
Resistance training simply means asking your muscles to work against some form of resistance. That could be dumbbells, resistance bands, weight machines, kettlebells or even your own body weight.
You don’t need to be a bodybuilder, lift enormous weights or spend hours in a gym to benefit from it. Resistance training can be gentle, progressive and adapted to almost every level of fitness.
What happens when we get stronger?
When we regularly challenge our muscles, the body adapts. Over time, we can become stronger and better able to manage the physical demands of everyday life.
And that’s important because strength isn’t just about what happens in the gym.
It’s about living well.
It’s carrying your shopping.
Getting up from the floor.
Climbing the stairs.
Gardening.
Picking up your grandchildren.
Walking confidently.
Travelling.
Maintaining your independence.
And continuing to do the things you love.
Resistance training helps preserve muscle
As we get older, we naturally tend to lose muscle mass and strength, particularly if we are inactive.
Resistance training provides the muscles with a reason to remain strong.
Building and maintaining muscle can help us remain physically capable as we age and make everyday activities feel easier.
This becomes increasingly important in midlife and beyond.
Stronger bones
Resistance training isn’t only good for muscles.
Our bones also respond to physical loading.
Weight-bearing activity and resistance exercise can help maintain bone strength and bone mineral density, making strength training particularly valuable as we get older.
For women, this becomes especially important around and after menopause, when hormonal changes can accelerate the loss of bone density.
Think of resistance training as an investment in your future body.
Better balance and stability
Strengthening the muscles of the legs, hips and core can improve our ability to control and stabilise our bodies.
That can support better balance and may help reduce the risk of falls as we get older.
Exercises don’t have to be complicated. Squats to a chair, controlled step-ups, calf raises and simple resistance exercises can all contribute to a stronger, more stable body.
Supporting healthy joints
People sometimes worry that resistance training will be hard on their joints.
But appropriately chosen and correctly performed resistance exercises can actually help support the structures around our joints.
Stronger muscles can provide greater support and stability around areas such as the knees, hips, shoulders and spine.
The important thing is choosing exercises appropriate for your body, using good technique and progressing gradually.
Supporting metabolism and body composition
Muscle is metabolically active tissue, and maintaining muscle contributes to our overall energy requirements.
Resistance training can therefore be an important part of managing body composition alongside nutrition, cardiovascular exercise, sleep and everyday movement.
But I think it’s helpful to move the conversation beyond simply losing weight.
Instead of only asking:
“How much do I weigh?”
we can also ask:
“How strong am I?”
“How well can I move?”
“How much energy do I have?”
“What can my body do?”
Those can be much more empowering measures of progress.
Supporting metabolic health
Regular resistance training can also contribute to metabolic health.
Working muscles use glucose for energy, and regular exercise can help improve the body’s ability to manage blood glucose and insulin.
Alongside cardiovascular activity, everyday movement, good nutrition and adequate sleep, resistance training can therefore form an important part of a healthy lifestyle.
Confidence
One of my favourite benefits of becoming stronger isn’t something you can necessarily measure on a set of scales.
It’s confidence.
There’s something incredibly empowering about realising:
“I couldn’t do that a few months ago — and now I can.”
Perhaps you can lift a heavier weight.
Perhaps you can do a squat more comfortably.
Perhaps carrying your shopping isn’t as difficult.
Perhaps you’re less frightened of walking into a gym.
Strength can change how we experience our bodies.
Exercise stops being punishment for what our bodies look like and becomes a celebration of what our bodies can do.
Mental wellbeing
Resistance training can also support our mental wellbeing.
Like other forms of exercise, it can help improve mood, provide structure and give us a sense of accomplishment.
And concentrating on movement can be wonderfully grounding.
For a little while, we’re not thinking about tomorrow’s jobs, yesterday’s worries or our endless list of things to do.
We’re simply breathing, moving and paying attention to our bodies.
You don’t need a gym
Resistance training doesn’t have to mean rows of intimidating machines.
You can start at home.
You might use:
Your own body weight
Resistance bands
Light dumbbells
Household objects
A chair for support
Stairs or steps
Even simple movements such as sitting down and standing up from a chair can be a form of resistance exercise.
The important thing is to start at the right level for you.
Start gently and progress gradually
More isn’t always better.
A good resistance programme should be appropriate for your current fitness, experience, health and goals.
Learn the movements first.
Then gradually progress as your body becomes stronger.
That progression might mean increasing the resistance, performing more repetitions or sets, changing the exercise, or improving your technique and range of movement.
And remember that recovery matters too. Your body needs time to adapt to the work you’re asking it to do.
Strength is for everyone
You are not too old.
You don’t have to already be fit.
You don’t have to look a certain way.
And you certainly don’t have to be the strongest person in the gym.
You simply have to begin where you are.
Whether you’re 30, 50, 70 or beyond, maintaining strength is one of the most valuable gifts you can give your future self.
Because ultimately, resistance training isn’t just about lifting weights.
It’s about creating a body that supports the life you want to live.
Strong body. Strong bones. Stronger future.
