Ladies, if your body is feeling completely different than it did 5 or 10 years ago, this message is for you.
Yes, your hormones may be all over the place and things can feel out of your control, but I am here to tell you that there are very specific things you can do to regain those feelings of vitality and strength that you had when you were younger.
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Too often I have seen women reach this point in their lives only to throw their hands up in the air and submit to the idea that, “this is just how things are going to be now…”.
“I guess my bones are just going to get more brittle now.”
“I guess I am just going to lose my muscle and strength now.”
“I guess my energy is just going to be zapped now.”
“I guess my body is just going to be achy now.”
I am here to tell you NO, it does not have to be this way. There are three very potent things you can do to get back to feeling like yourself again, and they are all 100% in your control.
This article will focus on the first one, with subsequent articles focusing on the other two. Let’s dive in.
1. Focused, Challenging, & Consistent Strength Training
I don’t know of anything that is more important for women to be doing to maintain their health, strength, and vitality than strength training. But, the way many women go about doing it disregards three important variables.
The first is your strength training must be focused, specifically on squeezing your muscles.
Too often I see women who want to check their strength training off their list for the week without really doing anything during their workout.
Sure, they show up, do the exercises, and move on, but the entire time they are chit-chatting with their friend or trainer or they are trying to combine their strength training and cardio together so it becomes dancing with weights.
Not only does this lack of focus leave them at higher risk for injury, it also sacrifices their results in terms of building muscle, increasing bone density, and getting stronger.
So make sure you are focused on squeezing your muscles while you are doing your strength training, and leave the talking and the dance moves for after you finish your set.
The second big thing that is missed is your strength training must be challenging.
A lot of women in their 50s and beyond are hesitant to really challenge themselves when they strength train out of fear of getting hurt.
Fortunately, this concern can be completely put to rest when you utilize the four Exercise For Life Principles. We cover these principles frequently in our podcast, Exercise Is Health®, so if you are new to this idea or want a refresher on them, be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube.
Here’s the thing – your muscles and bones aren’t going to get stronger all by themselves. Your environment needs to signal to your body to tell them to get stronger over and over again for them to change.
Doing strength training exercises that aren’t very challenging won’t signal to your body that your muscles and bones need to get stronger. In fact, many of the research papers that I have read have shown that your strength training needs to be done with at least 80% of your maximum weight in order for your bones to get stronger. That is challenging!
So, don’t shy away from the challenge. If you are concerned about hurting yourself, remember to always implement the four Exercise For Life Principles, and you will greatly reduce the chances of that happening.
The third part that is often missed is you must do your strength training consistently throughout your week, a minimum of three days a week.
I know that three days a week can feel like a lot, but believe me, you DO have time and it WILL be worth it. You may need to make some shifts and adjustments in your current schedule, but that is part of the process.
If doing what you have always done was the answer, then you would already be set and good to go. But some things need to change, and one of those things is how you prioritize your strength training throughout your week.
And, when you follow the four Exercise For Life Principles, you will be far less likely to end up feeling sore or achy after your workouts, so your body will recover fast enough to be able to strength train again in the coming days.
I cannot stress this enough. Once per week is not enough. Twice per week is not enough. The very bare minimum you need to be doing for your strength training is three times per week.
Make it a priority to do your strength training at least three times every week and you will quickly notice fantastic changes with your strength, muscle tone, and energy levels.
This wraps up Part 1 of this series. In Part 2, I will dive into the second tip I have to help you start feeling like yourself again.
In the meantime, if you would like any help or guidance with this tip, you will love my new online fitness class – OsteoStrength For Her. You can find out all of the details about the class as well as get your first class for free when you join my weekly OsteoStrength For Her Newsletter here.
In health and strength,
Julie
