What is strength training, and where do you actually start?
You'll hear it everywhere now: lift weights, do resistance training, build muscle. Less often does anyone explain what that means in practice.
Strength training is any exercise that asks your muscles to work against a resistance greater than they're used to, also commonly known as resistance training. That resistance can come from weights, machines, resistance bands, or your own body weight. The key isn't the equipment, it's the progressive challenge. Your muscles, bones, and tendons adapt to load by getting stronger. The adaptation only keeps coming if the load keeps increasing over time.
Why it matters in menopause
Muscle mass declines from around 30, and the menopause transition accelerates that loss. Without intervention, women can lose 1–2% of muscle mass per year after menopause.
Resistance training is the most direct response to this. Loading a muscle creates small amounts of stress (micro-damage) in the muscle fibres. In response to this, immune cells are activated to clean up damaged tissue, which is often why you can experience soreness after a workout. The muscle fibres are then repaired through satellite cells (muscle repair and rebuild cells) and protein synthesis (using amino acids from protein sources to strengthen protein strands in muscle fibres), which rebuilds stronger and thicker muscle fibres. Do that repeatedly and progressively, and you build more muscle tissue, improve strength, and raise your resting metabolic rate.
What a session actually looks like
You don't need a gym, though having access to one helps. A well-structured session includes compound movements, exercises that use multiple joints and muscle groups simultaneously. Squats, deadlifts, hip hinges, rows, and pressing movements all fall here. These are the foundation because they train the body how it actually moves and create the most stimulus for bone and muscle adaptation.
Progressive overload means consistently challenging yourself over time by adding weight, increasing reps, or reducing rest. Without this, you'll maintain what you have, but you won't keep building. Two to three sessions per week is enough for most people to see meaningful benefit. More isn't necessarily better, especially in perimenopause when recovery can take longer.
THE STARTING POINT
If you're new to lifting, begin with bodyweight or light resistance and focus on movement quality first. Deadlifts, goblet squats, glute bridges, banded rows, and wall press-ups are all effective starting points. Once the movement pattern feels confident, add load. This isn't about going straight to the heavy rack; it's about building a foundation that will support years of training.
How heavy is 'heavy enough'?
A useful rule of thumb: the last two to three repetitions of a set should feel difficult, not dangerous, but effortful. If you can complete all your reps with plenty in reserve, the weight is too light to drive meaningful adaptation.
If you have joint pain, a history of injury, or haven't done resistance training before, starting with guidance from a physiotherapist or qualified trainer who understands the menopause transition is worth the investment. The principles are straightforward; the individual application is where nuance matters.
Key references: Watson et al. (2018), LIFTMOR Trial, BJSM; Daly et al. (2019)
These resources are for educational purposes only and do not constitute medical advice. Please consult your GP, physiotherapist, or menopause specialist before making changes to your exercise, nutrition, or medication.