Reps and Sets for Women Over 40: How to Actually Progress

Quick Answer: reps and sets for women over 40 in 30 seconds

For most women over 40: 6-15 reps per set with weights heavy enough that the last 2-3 reps feel hard. 3-5 sets per exercise. 2-3 strength sessions per week. Progressive overload built in (meaning you increase weight, reps or difficulty over weeks) [1][2].

Lower rep ranges (3-6 reps) build maximal strength and are what produced the bone density gains in the LIFTMOR trial [3]. Mid-range (6-15 reps) is the hypertrophy zone that drives visible muscle definition and is the right default for most women returning to or starting strength training in midlife. Higher reps (15+) build muscular endurance but are biomechanically less effective for the muscle and bone outcomes most women over 40 actually need [1]. Across the strength platforms reviewed at herdailyfit.com/programs, the programmes that produce visible body composition results in this age range all use the 6-15 rep range with progressive overload built into the structure. Caroline Girvan, Burn360 and EvolveYou all sit in this range. Always discuss any new exercise programme with your GP, especially if you have an existing musculoskeletal condition or are returning to exercise after a long break.

The reps-and-sets cheat sheet for women over 40

If you only have time to read one section, read this table. It summarises the rep range, set count, frequency, rest period and progression rule that produces the strength, muscle and bone outcomes women over 40 actually need.

Why reps and sets matter more after 40

Programming matters more after 40 because recovery capacity drops, the hormonal environment changes how you adapt, and the cost of getting it wrong is higher than at 25 [9]. Younger women can usually overcome poor programming with sheer volume. Women in midlife typically can’t.

The mechanism is several things at once. Oestrogen declines across the menopausal transition affect both muscle protein synthesis and recovery between sessions [9]. The cortisol response to high-volume training is more pronounced in perimenopausal women, which means high-volume programmes that worked at 30 can drive central fat accumulation and sleep disruption at 45 [10]. Joint and connective tissue take longer to remodel after a heavy session. The same training stimulus that recovered in 24 hours at 30 may take 36-48 hours at 50.

So programming (getting reps, sets, frequency and progression right) is no longer optional. A 25-year-old can do 8 random sets of curls and get away with it. A 50-year-old who trains the same way spends months wondering why she’s not seeing results, why she’s sleeping badly, why she feels depleted. The reps and sets framework below is what addresses those changes head-on.

This is also why our recovery guide sits as a companion to the strength training material. Recovery is part of the programme, not separate from it. And it’s why low cortisol workouts are a complementary topic rather than an alternative one. The right reps-and-sets configuration IS a low-cortisol approach when you get it right.

What each rep range actually delivers (strength vs hypertrophy vs endurance)

Lower reps build strength and bone density, mid reps build muscle (hypertrophy), higher reps build endurance. Most women over 40 should sit in the 6–15 mid-range as the default and add lower-rep heavy work for bone density once they have a base [1][3].

The reason these ranges produce different outcomes is the underlying physiology. Heavy loads (1–6 reps with 80–95% of one-rep maximum) recruit the largest motor units, drive maximal strength adaptations, and produce the bone-loading stimulus that triggers osteogenic adaptation. The 2018 LIFTMOR trial used 5 reps at 80–85% of one-rep maximum across deadlifts, squats and overhead presses to produce significant bone density gains in postmenopausal women [3]. Mid-range loads (6–15 reps with 65–80% of one-rep maximum) drive the metabolic stress and mechanical tension combination that produces the largest hypertrophy response. This is the “build visible muscle” range and where most women over 40 should spend most of their training time. Higher reps (15+ with under 65% of one-rep maximum) build muscular endurance and capillarisation but produce minimal hypertrophy or bone stimulus, which is why “light weights for high reps” programming is so often disappointing for women in midlife [1].

The 2017 Schoenfeld meta-analysis on low- vs high-load resistance training found that strength gains favoured heavier loads, while hypertrophy gains were similar across rep ranges as long as the sets were taken close to failure [1]. The practical implication: if you want to grow muscle, the rep range matters less than how close you push to failure. If you want strength or bone, you need the heavier loads. Most women over 40 want both, which is why mixed-range programmes are the standard recommendation.

The pattern across the platforms reviewed for the site matches the literature. Caroline Girvan’s programmes 7.8 use mostly 8-12 reps for hypertrophy work, with heavier 4-6 rep top sets in some of the intermediate and advanced programmes, and the body composition changes from this stimulus are well documented. Burn360 8.3 uses mostly 8-12 reps with linear progression and produces meaningful strength and muscle change in 12 weeks. Programmes prescribing mostly very high reps with light weights produce the smallest visible changes, not because the work isn’t hard but because the underlying stimulus doesn’t match the adaptation needed.

How many sets per exercise (the volume question)

3–5 working sets per exercise is the well-evidenced sweet spot, with diminishing returns above 10 weekly sets per muscle group [4]. “Working set” means a set close to failure (RPE 7–8), not warm-up sets.

The set-volume literature has converged on a clear pattern over the past decade. The 2017 Krieger meta-analysis on single vs multiple sets established that multiple sets are superior to single sets for strength and hypertrophy in most contexts [11]. The 2019 Schoenfeld systematic review on weekly set volume found a dose-response relationship between sets and hypertrophy up to roughly 10–20 sets per muscle group per week, after which gains plateau and recovery costs start to outweigh adaptation gains [4].

For women over 40 the practical floor is roughly 6–10 working sets per muscle group per week to maintain or build muscle. Below this, you may maintain strength but won’t see significant body composition change. The practical ceiling is roughly 12–20 sets per muscle group per week, with the higher end requiring excellent recovery (sleep, protein, life stress all dialled in). Most women in this age range get the best results-to-recovery ratio at 8–15 sets per muscle group per week, distributed across 2–3 sessions.

What that looks like in practice: if you train upper body twice a week, you might do 3 sets of bench press and 3 sets of rows per session, which gives you 12 sets per week for chest and back. Add a third session with some isolation work and you’re at 14-16 sets. Right in the sweet spot. The mistake beginners over 40 make most often is thinking more is always better, and ending up doing 8 sets per exercise per session, 30+ weekly sets per muscle group. That doesn’t produce more results. It just adds recovery cost.

Worth noting: warm-up sets don’t count toward the working set total. A warm-up set is at light load (50–60% of working weight) and is there to prepare the muscle and nervous system, not to drive adaptation. Most exercises benefit from 1–2 warm-up sets before the working sets begin, particularly for compound lifts.

How many sessions per week (frequency)

2–3 strength sessions per week is the well-evidenced range for women over 40 [5][12]. Two sessions produces ~75% of the gains of three; three produces ~95% of the gains of four. Above 3 sessions, returns diminish sharply for most women in this age range.

The frequency literature shows that what matters most is total weekly volume, not how many sessions you spread it across. The 2016 Schoenfeld meta-analysis on training frequency found that when total volume is matched, training a muscle group 2x/week produces marginally better hypertrophy than 1x/week, with smaller additional benefit from 3x/week [5]. For women over 40 with normal recovery capacity, 2 full-body sessions per week or a 3-day upper/lower/full-body split is the standard recommendation.

The reason higher frequencies often fail in midlife is recovery cost, not insufficient stimulus. A 4 or 5 session per week strength programme requires recovery infrastructure (7-9 hours sleep nightly, adequate protein, low life stress, careful programming) that most women in their 40s and 50s simply don’t have available consistently. The result is that the 4-day programme on paper becomes 2.5 actual sessions in practice, with the missed sessions causing guilt and inconsistency that compound the problem.

The general pattern across platforms reviewed for the site is that women on 2-3 day programmes progress more consistently than women on 5-day programmes, where burnout and dropout rates rise. Burn360 defaults to 3-4 sessions per week, Caroline Girvan’s programmes default to 5 sessions but explicitly allow swapping to 3 for women in this age range, and Fit with CoCo 8.1 uses a 3-2-1 weekly format that pairs well with perimenopausal recovery needs.

Rest periods between sets

Rest 60–90 seconds between sets in the hypertrophy range (6–12 reps) and 2–3 minutes between sets in the strength/bone range (3–6 reps) [6]. Insufficient rest reduces performance on subsequent sets, which reduces the training stimulus and the resulting adaptation.

The rest-period literature has updated significantly in the past 10 years. Older recommendations of 30–60 second rest periods for hypertrophy turned out to be wrong. The 2016 Schoenfeld randomised trial comparing 1-min vs 3-min rest periods found that the longer rest produced more hypertrophy, primarily because total volume per session was higher with adequate rest [6].

The mechanism is straightforward. Heavy or near-failure sets create local muscular fatigue, central nervous system fatigue, and metabolic byproducts that take 90–180 seconds to clear. If you rest too short, your second set is performed in a fatigued state, you do fewer reps or use lighter weight than you should, and the cumulative training stimulus across the session is lower than it would have been with longer rest. The exception is for accessory and isolation work where shorter rest (30–60s) is fine because the loads are lighter and recovery is faster.

For women over 40 specifically, longer rest periods serve a second purpose: they reduce the cardiovascular and cortisol load of the session. A circuit-style workout with 30-second rest periods can spike cortisol the same way a HIIT session does, particularly in perimenopausal women whose stress response is more reactive. A more traditional strength session with 90-180 second rest periods feels less metabolically demanding but produces better strength and hypertrophy outcomes, with lower cortisol cost.

Practical guidance: time your rest periods on a phone or watch rather than guessing. Most people significantly under-estimate how long they’ve actually rested. Use the rest time to focus on your next set. Don’t scroll. Between heavy sets you should feel ready to perform the next set as well as the previous one. If you’re still breathing hard or know the next set will be a grind, you need more rest, not less.

Progressive overload: what it is and how to do it

Progressive overload is the principle of gradually increasing the demand on your muscles over weeks and months, so they keep adapting. Without it, training stops producing results within 6-8 weeks regardless of how hard you work in any individual session [2].

The simplest reliable progression model is “double progression.” You set a rep range (say 8-12), pick a weight you can lift for 8 reps with good form, and add reps each session until you can do 12 reps for all sets with 1-2 reps in reserve. Then you increase the weight by the smallest increment available (typically 1-2.5kg per dumbbell, 2.5kg on a barbell) and start back at 8 reps with the new weight [2]. This produces consistent week-to-week progression without requiring you to track 1RM percentages or follow rigid weekly increments.

What women over 40 most need to understand about progression: it doesn’t happen linearly forever. The rate slows over time, particularly after the first 6-12 months of consistent training, when “newbie gains” taper off. Progression after that looks like adding 2.5kg every 4-6 weeks rather than every week, and that’s normal and healthy. The mistake to avoid is forcing progression by sacrificing form, which is the single most common cause of training injury in this age group.

Other valid forms of progression beyond adding weight: adding reps within the same load (3 sets of 10 becomes 3 sets of 12), adding sets (3 working sets becomes 4), increasing range of motion (parallel squat becomes deeper squat), reducing rest periods within metabolic conditioning blocks, or increasing exercise difficulty (goblet squat to front-rack squat). Most well-programmed strength training for women over 40 uses a combination of these rather than just adding weight.

How progression is implemented across the platforms reviewed for the site: Burn360 uses explicit linear progression cues (“add weight when you hit 12 clean reps”). Caroline Girvan uses self-selected weights with the cue to lift challenging weights in the prescribed rep range. EvolveYou uses RPE-guided progression with periodised volume changes. Evlo [?] uses moderate-load progression with explicit emphasis on joint-friendly loading. All of these are valid; the common thread is that progression is built into the structure rather than left to chance.

How to know when to add weight (RPE and reps in reserve)

Add weight when you can complete the top end of your rep range with 1–2 reps still in reserve (RPE 7–8) for all working sets [7]. If your last set still feels easy, the weight is too light; if you can’t finish the prescribed reps with good form, the weight is too heavy.

RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) is a 1-10 scale of how hard a set feels. The complementary concept of RIR (Reps in Reserve) maps directly onto it: RPE 10 is RIR 0 (no reps left), RPE 9 is RIR 1, RPE 8 is RIR 2, and so on. The 2016 Helms et al review on RPE application to resistance training established RPE 7-8 (RIR 2-3) as the sweet spot for hypertrophy training. Close enough to failure to drive adaptation, far enough away that form remains clean and recovery isn’t excessive [7].

For women over 40, RPE-guided progression is more useful than rigid percentage-based programming, for three reasons. First, your one-rep maximum changes faster than you can test it in the early phase of training. Second, daily fluctuations in sleep, stress and hormonal phase mean the same percentage feels different on different days. Third, RPE accounts for those fluctuations naturally. On a tired day you’ll hit RPE 8 with less weight, which is the right answer.

Practical guidance: most beginners over 40 under-rate their RPE. If you’re convinced your set was an RPE 8, it was probably an RPE 6. The reason is that RPE 8 is genuinely uncomfortable. The last 2 reps are a grind, your form is on the edge, and you’re grateful when the set ends. If your set ended with the feeling of “I could have done several more,” it was probably RPE 5-6, which is too easy to drive adaptation. A useful calibration exercise: pick an exercise, choose a weight, do as many reps as you can in good form. That’s your RPE 10 for that day. Then back off to a weight you could lift for 4-5 fewer reps. That’s your RPE 7-8.

Should you deload? Periodisation for women over 40

Yes. One lighter week (50–60% of normal volume) every 6–8 weeks of consistent training prevents accumulated fatigue, supports continued progress and is particularly important in midlife where recovery capacity is lower [8].

Periodisation in plain language is the planned variation of training intensity and volume over weeks and months. The simplest version (linear periodisation) involves gradually increasing intensity over a 4-8 week training block, then taking a deload week before starting a new block at a slightly higher baseline. More sophisticated versions (block periodisation, undulating periodisation) exist but aren’t necessary for most women over 40 who aren’t competing.

The deload week itself: keep the same exercises and roughly the same weight, but cut the volume in half. If your normal session is 4 sets of each exercise, do 2. If you normally hit RPE 8, drop to RPE 6. Keep the movement quality high and the load familiar. The goal is to reset accumulated fatigue while maintaining the movement patterns and conditioning you’ve built. After a deload week, the first session back at normal volume usually feels excellent. Better than training through fatigue would have produced.

For women over 40, deloads matter more because the cost of accumulated fatigue is higher. In your 30s, you might train through 4-6 weeks of accumulating fatigue and bounce back from a single weekend off. In perimenopause, the same accumulated fatigue can show up as poor sleep, mood disruption, joint pain, and a stalled progression that takes 2-3 weeks of full rest to resolve. A planned deload every 6-8 weeks prevents most of this.

Across the platforms reviewed for the site, programmes that build deloads into their structure (most CGX programmes have a lighter week between phases; Evlo structures regular lighter weeks; Fit with CoCo’s 3-2-1 weekly format effectively functions as a continuous mini-deload) produce more sustainable progress than programmes that ramp intensity continuously. Week 7 of a hard programme without a deload feels genuinely different from week 7 with one. The difference between sustainable training and overtraining is often a planned reduction.

A worked example: 12-week beginner programme using these principles

Here’s what an 8-12 week beginner strength programme for a woman over 40 actually looks like when you apply the rep, set, frequency and progression rules above. This is the structure most appropriate for a woman in her late 40s starting strength training, and is similar to how the well-programmed beginner offerings reviewed for the site (Caroline Girvan’s Ultimate Beginner, Burn360’s starter weeks, Evlo’s foundation block) are structured.

The format

Three full-body sessions per week, on non-consecutive days (Monday, Wednesday, Friday is the classic). Each session is 35–45 minutes including warm-up. Five exercises per session, hitting the five movement patterns (squat, hinge, push, pull, carry/core). Three working sets per exercise after one warm-up set. Rest 90 seconds between sets. Walk on rest days for 30–45 minutes if you want.

The programme

How to progress this programme over 8 weeks

Use double progression on every exercise. When you can complete all three working sets at the top of the rep range with 1–2 reps in reserve, add the smallest weight increment (1–2.5kg per dumbbell) and start back at the bottom of the rep range. Most exercises will progress every 2–3 weeks; some will progress every week initially and then slow.

Example progression for goblet squat over 8 weeks for a beginner who started with a 6kg dumbbell:

That’s 8 weeks of consistent measurable progression on one exercise from a 6kg dumbbell to a 10kg dumbbell. The same approach applies to every exercise in the programme, with each progressing at its own rate. The hip thrust will probably progress faster than the overhead press; that’s normal.

When to deload this programme

After 6–8 weeks of consistent training, take one lighter week. Same exercises, same weights, but cut to 2 working sets instead of 3. This is the deload. The week after the deload, you should feel notably better and progression typically resumes faster than it would have without the planned reduction.

Common rep and set mistakes women over 40 make

The five most common rep and set mistakes I see: doing too many reps with too little weight, not progressing weight when ready, doing too many sets thinking more is better, resting too short between sets, and skipping deloads entirely. Each of these has a cost in either training stimulus or recovery, and fixing them produces immediate results.

Mistake 1: too many reps, too light a weight. Doing 25 reps of bicep curls with 2kg dumbbells feels like work but produces almost no muscle, bone or strength stimulus. The fix: pick a weight you can do for 10 controlled reps with the last 2 being hard, and do 3-4 sets of that. The total time is shorter and the result is meaningfully different.

Mistake 2: not progressing weight when ready. Many women find a comfortable weight in week 2 and stay at that weight for 6 months. The body adapts in 4-6 weeks and then maintains; without progression, training becomes maintenance rather than improvement. The fix: every 2-3 weeks, ask “am I closer to RPE 6 than RPE 8 on this exercise?” If yes, the weight is too light and needs to go up.

Mistake 3: too many sets per exercise. Doing 8-10 sets of squats per session is well past the point of diminishing returns. The first 3-4 sets produce most of the adaptive signal; sets 5+ produce more fatigue than additional adaptation. The fix: 3-5 working sets per exercise, period. If you have time and energy left, add a different exercise rather than more sets of the same one.

Mistake 4: resting too short between sets. Many women rush between sets out of a sense that “rest = wasted time,” which costs you the second-set performance you needed for the training stimulus. The fix: time your rest. 60-90 seconds for hypertrophy, 2-3 minutes for heavy compound lifts. Use the time to focus on the next set, not to scroll.

Mistake 5: skipping deloads. Especially common in perimenopause when motivation is fragile and any reduction feels like backsliding. The fix: schedule a lighter week every 6-8 weeks as part of the programme, not as a response to feeling tired. The planned deload prevents the unplanned crash.

Reps and sets by specific goal: fat loss, muscle, strength, bone density

The same broad framework (6–15 reps, 3–5 sets, 2–3 sessions per week, progressive overload) works for all four goals; the emphasis just shifts. Fat loss: prioritise total weekly volume + adequate protein. Muscle: stay in 8–12 reps with progressive overload. Strength: include some 3–6 rep work with longer rest. Bone density: add LIFTMOR-style heavy compound lifts.

If your goal is fat loss

The rep/set framework is essentially unchanged from the cheat sheet above (6-15 reps, 3-5 sets, 2-3 sessions per week with progressive overload). What changes is the broader programme context: pair the strength training with a moderate calorie deficit (300-500 kcal/day under maintenance), 1.4-1.6g protein per kg of body weight, and 7,000-10,000 daily steps for general activity. The specific rep range matters much less than total weekly training volume and the dietary context. Don’t do circuit-style high-rep workouts thinking they’ll “burn more calories.” The evidence is consistent that strength training with normal rest periods produces better long-term body composition than rushed circuit training, even though the per-session calorie burn is lower [12]. See our menopause belly fat guide for the diet-and-training combination in depth.

If your goal is muscle (hypertrophy)

Stay in the 8–12 rep range as your default, do 3–5 sets per exercise, and accumulate 10–15 working sets per muscle group per week. The 2017 Schoenfeld meta-analysis found this is the productive range for hypertrophy in women, with diminishing returns above 20 weekly sets per muscle group [1][4]. Eat 1.6–2.0g protein per kg of body weight (slightly higher than the fat-loss recommendation) and aim for slight calorie surplus or maintenance. Large deficits work against muscle gain. The visual change typically takes 12 weeks of consistent training plus the protein intake; women who train without enough protein get strong but not visibly more muscular.

If your goal is strength

Include 1-2 sessions per week with 3-6 rep work on the major compound lifts (squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press, row), with 2-3 minute rest periods. The remaining sessions can be in the 8-12 hypertrophy range. This combination, sometimes called “strength + hypertrophy” programming, produces both maximal strength gains and the muscle base that supports them. The mistake to avoid is doing only heavy low-rep work without the hypertrophy base. That produces strength gains but limited muscle, which means strength plateaus once neurological adaptation maxes out.

If your goal is bone density

The protocol with the strongest evidence is LIFTMOR-style training: 5 reps at 80-85% of one-rep maximum on heavy compound lifts (deadlift, squat, overhead press), twice a week, with 2-3 minute rest periods [3]. This is genuinely heavy. It requires good form built up over a base-building phase first, and is best done under initial supervision. A women’s health physiotherapist or qualified coach for the first 4-6 weeks pays for itself in injury avoidance. If you can’t train this heavy for any reason (including diagnosed osteoporosis where heavy loading needs medical clearance), moderate-load resistance training (8-12 reps at 60-70% 1RM) still produces some bone benefit, just less dramatically. See our bone density exercises guide for the LIFTMOR protocol in detail.

If your goal is general health and longevity

The framework in the cheat sheet is the answer with no modifications. 2–3 strength sessions per week of 6–15 rep work covers the muscle, bone, metabolic and functional outcomes that matter for long-term health. Add 150 minutes of moderate cardio per week (per WHO and NHS guidelines) and you have the well-evidenced exercise framework for women over 40 [16]. Most women in this category over-complicate it; the basic framework done consistently for years beats elaborate programming done inconsistently for months.

How long until you see results from this approach?

Strength gains are visible at 4-6 weeks, muscle definition typically appears at 6-10 weeks, meaningful body composition change usually takes 12 weeks of consistent strength work plus adequate protein [12]. The first thing most women notice isn’t a visible change. It’s a functional one. Getting up off the floor without using their hands. Carrying groceries in one trip. Going up stairs without thinking about it.

The progression follows a fairly predictable pattern. Weeks 1-2: mostly nervous-system adaptations. You get more efficient at the movements without much actual muscle change. The weights you can use go up faster than your muscles grow, because your nervous system is learning to recruit motor units more effectively. Weeks 3-6: early hypertrophy. You’ll see slightly fuller-looking muscles, particularly in the shoulders and quads where adaptation tends to show first. Strength gains accelerate. Sleep often improves around this point as the training becomes a regular rhythm. Weeks 6-10: visible muscle definition starts to appear, particularly under reduced body fat. This is when most women first notice clothes fitting differently and start receiving compliments. Weeks 10-16: meaningful body composition change. The difference between “I’ve been lifting” and “you can see I’ve been lifting.” Months 4-12: continued progression at a slower rate. After the first year of consistent training, gains slow further to roughly the rate competitive lifters experience: a few percent strength increase per quarter rather than per month.

The pattern observed across CGX-style heavy compound strength programmes is consistent with the literature: the first 12 weeks produce the most dramatic body composition change (visible toning across legs, glutes, shoulders and arms), the second 12 weeks consolidate those changes and add strength gains, and progression slows after the first year as the trainee approaches their genetic ceiling. Most of the visible change in CGX-style programmes happens in the first 6-12 months of consistent training. Strength gains continue beyond that.

The variable that most affects how quickly results show up isn’t the rep range or set count. It’s consistency and protein intake. A woman doing 2 sessions a week consistently for 16 weeks will out-progress a woman doing 4 sessions a week for 6 weeks then quitting. A woman eating 1.4g of protein per kg of body weight will see different results than a woman eating 0.8g/kg, even with identical training. Both consistency and nutrition are where most women under-deliver, not in the training itself.

Programmes that programme reps and sets well for women over 40

The programmes below are the ones whose rep and set programming I trust for women in this age range. Each links to the full review with the scoring, what worked, what didn’t, and who it’s for.

For the head-to-head context, see our best strength training app for women ranking, our best workouts for perimenopause, and the comparison pages like Burn360 vs Pvolve for direct programme matchups.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where the evidence is still evolving

Most of the rep, set and frequency programming evidence for women over 40 is extrapolated from research in mixed populations. The female-specific and menopause-specific literature is still maturing. Here are the open questions to know about.

Female-specific volume requirements

Most volume-and-frequency research recruits mixed-sex populations and reports averaged results. Whether women in midlife respond to the same set volumes as men in the same age range is not well-established. Some emerging work (Sims and others) suggests women may benefit from slightly higher volumes per session and slightly lower frequencies than the standard recommendations, but the evidence is preliminary [13].

Optimal load for bone density gains

The LIFTMOR protocol used 80–85% of one-rep maximum and produced significant bone density gains [3]. Whether moderate loads (60–70% 1RM) sustained over longer periods produce equivalent benefit is still being worked out. The pragmatic answer for most women: train heavy when you can, train moderately when you can’t, both produce some bone benefit.

Cycle-phase programming in perimenopause

Some practitioners recommend higher-volume training during the follicular phase and lower-volume during the luteal phase based on hormonal fluctuations. The evidence for this is mostly observational and from premenopausal athletic populations; whether it’s practical or beneficial in perimenopause where cycles are increasingly irregular is uncertain. See our cycle-based training guide for the longer discussion.

Progression rate after the first year

The expected rate of progression for women over 40 in their second and third years of consistent strength training is poorly characterised in the literature. Anecdotally and from programme-tracking, the rate slows to 2.5kg per 4-6 weeks rather than per session, but individual variation is large. The honest answer is “keep showing up and progressing when ready” rather than a precise prediction.

Glossary of terms used in this guide

References

Sources cited above and used to inform this guide. External links open in a new tab.

1. [1] Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Strength and Hypertrophy Adaptations Between Low- vs. High-Load Resistance Training: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2017;31(12):3508-3523. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28834797/
2. [2] American College of Sports Medicine. Position Stand: Progression Models in Resistance Training for Healthy Adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 2009;41(3):687-708. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19204579/
3. [3] Watson SL, Weeks BK, Weis LJ, Harding AT, Horan SA, Beck BR. High-Intensity Resistance and Impact Training Improves Bone Mineral Density and Physical Function in Postmenopausal Women With Osteopenia and Osteoporosis: The LIFTMOR Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 2018. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28975661/
4. [4] Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Krieger J. How many times per week should a muscle be trained to maximize muscle hypertrophy? A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining the effects of resistance training frequency. Journal of Sports Sciences, 2019;37(11):1286-1295. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30558493/
5. [5] Schoenfeld BJ, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Effects of Resistance Training Frequency on Measures of Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Medicine, 2016;46(11):1689-1697. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27102172/
6. [6] Schoenfeld BJ, Pope ZK, Benik FM, et al. Longer Interset Rest Periods Enhance Muscle Strength and Hypertrophy in Resistance-Trained Men. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2016;30(7):1805-1812. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26605807/
7. [7] Helms ER, Cronin J, Storey A, Zourdos MC. Application of the Repetitions in Reserve-Based Rating of Perceived Exertion Scale for Resistance Training. Strength & Conditioning Journal, 2016;38(4):42-49. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27531969/
8. [8] Bell L, Ruddock A, Maden-Wilkinson T, Rogerson D. Overreaching and overtraining syndrome in strength sports and resistance training: A scoping review. Journal of Sports Sciences, 2020;38(16):1897-1912. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32568000/
9. [9] Maltais ML, Desroches J, Dionne IJ. Changes in muscle mass and strength after menopause. Journal of Musculoskeletal and Neuronal Interactions, 2009;9(4):186-197. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19949277/
10. [10] Hackney AC. Stress and the neuroendocrine system: the role of exercise as a stressor and modifier of stress. Expert Review of Endocrinology & Metabolism, 2006;1(6):783-792. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16645310/
11. [11] Krieger JW. Single vs. multiple sets of resistance exercise for muscle hypertrophy: a meta-analysis. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2010;24(4):1150-1159. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20300012/
12. [12] Capel-Alcaraz AM, García-López H, et al. Effects of resistance training on body composition and physical function in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis. 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35055015/
13. [13] Sims SL, Yeager S. Next Level: Your Guide to Kicking Ass, Feeling Great, and Crushing Goals Through Menopause and Beyond. Rodale Books, 2022. https://www.drstacysims.com/books
14. [14] Phillips SM, Chevalier S, Leidy HJ. Protein “requirements” beyond the RDA: implications for optimizing health. Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 2016;41(5):565-572. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26960445/
15. [15] Liu CJ, Latham NK. Progressive resistance strength training for improving physical function in older adults. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2009. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19588334/
16. [16] NHS. Physical activity guidelines for adults aged 19 to 64. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/exercise-guidelines/physical-activity-guidelines-for-adults-aged-19-to-64/
17. [17] British Menopause Society. Tools for clinicians: exercise and the menopause. https://thebms.org.uk/publications/tools-for-clinicians/

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