Experts share a few tools, from dumbbells to resistance bands to cooling towels, to help women get stronger
Unfortunately, muscle mass peaks long before wisdom does. After age 40, we lose about 3% to 8% of it per decade, and after 50 the losses accelerate. Known as sarcopenia, this decline means our muscles don’t respond to exercise the way they once did. For many women, perimenopause makes the uphill climb even steeper, making it tougher to build strength and recover after workouts.
That doesn’t mean it’s pointless to exercise later in life – in fact, it’s fully the opposite. You may not get abs, but your health improves across the board when you strength train: “Regular aerobic and resistance training cuts the risk of almost every noncommunicable disease – type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s,” Leigh Breen, an expert in skeletal muscle physiology and metabolism at Birmingham University, previously told the Guardian.
Stephanie Gaudreau: a certified personal trainer who founded Strong With Steph, a program that focuses on training women over 40
Anne Marie Chaker: a professional bodybuilder and author of Lift, a book on weightlifting for women
Caroline Idiens, age 54: the founder of the popular fitness program Caroline’s Circuits and author of Fit at 50
Kate Whetsel, age 51: a certified personal trainer and health coach, specializing in women going through perimenopause
CAP Neoprene Dumbbells
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