Muscle and Bone Health for Women Over 35: Why Strength Training Matters

I talk a lot about strength training for women over 35 in terms of muscle building, changing your body composition, and getting stronger - all of which are important and amazing reasons to lift weights.

But there’s another reason I want women to start thinking about strength training earlier rather than later: your muscle and bone health matter for the long game.

Your 30s and 40s aren’t just about taking care of how your body looks today; they’re also an opportunity to build strength, maintain muscle, and support healthy bones for the decades you still have left to come.

This doesn’t mean that you need to do anything overly crazy; it’s just yet another reason to make strength training a permanent part of your weekly routine.

Why Muscle Health Matters as You Get Older

Muscle isn’t just about looking “toned” and fit. Your muscles help you move, maintain your balance, perform everyday tasks, and stay physically capable as you age. Think about all of the things you’ll want to be able to do independently as you get older:

• Carry your groceries
• Pick up your kids/grandkids
• Get up and down from the floor
• Lift a suitcase into an overhead compartment
• Go hiking
• Travel
• Play with your future grandkids
• Do your own yard work
• Get up and down from the toilet
• Clean your own home

These are some of the biggest reasons why I think strength training becomes increasingly important as women move through their 30s, 40s, and beyond.

Why Bone Health Matters, Too

It’s not just the health of your muscles that’s important; it’s your bones, too. Your bones are living tissue that is constantly being remodeled, and physical activity can help support bone strength.

Specifically, weight-bearing activities like resistance training place a mechanical demand on your bones. Exercise can strengthen bones and muscles, help maintain bone density, and improve balance and coordination. And this matters a lot for women in particular because we’re at a greater risk for osteoporosis than men.

One major factor that can contribute to bone loss is declining estrogen levels around menopause. For this reason, women need to be extra diligent about building and maintaining bone health before and around menopause, as it's an important part of reducing future risk.

Which brings me to an important point: You don't have to wait until menopause to start caring about your bones. In fact, you shouldn’t.

Why You Should Start Before Menopause

If you're 35, 38, 42, or somewhere in that neighborhood, you may not be thinking much about osteoporosis or bone density yet, but you should be. Think of your 30s and 40s as an opportunity to build and maintain your physical foundation. The stronger you are going into the later decades of life, the more you’re investing in your future ability to move, lift, balance, and maintain your independence.

But keep in mind that your bone health is influenced by a number of factors, including genetics, hormones, nutrition, and physical activity. You can’t fully control your bone health, but you can absolutely take steps to do your part. And exercise is one piece of the bone and muscle health puzzle that you can control, and you shouldn’t wait until there’s a problem to start doing it.

Strength Training Is One of the Best Things You Can Do

If you’ve been working out with the mindset of trying to burn as many calories as possible, that’s not the best approach when it comes to your overall health and longevity. There are so many other things to be training for at this stage of life than just calorie burn.

Weight resistance training challenges your muscles and places load on your bones, and when you progressively increase resistance over time, you're giving your body a reason to adapt.

Resistance training has been shown to improve functional capacity and may improve bone mineral density in postmenopausal women, although the research varies by training protocol and outcome.

That's why I don't want women to think of strength training as something you do only when you want to change your body composition; it’s something you do because you want to keep your body strong and capable.

What Should Women Over 35 Actually Be Doing?

It takes a lot less than you think to take care of your bone and muscle health as a woman over 35. You don’t need a gym membership, a complicated program, or to work out 6x per week. Instead, you should focus on following a well-designed strength training program that fits your schedule.

A basic strength training program that focuses on progressive overload and the most important exercises and movement patterns will do wonders for your body.

Focus on movements that train your major muscle groups, including:

• Squatting
• Lunging
• Hinging
• Pushing
• Pulling
• Core stabilization

Then progressively challenge yourself over time. I recommend women over 35 strength train 3-5x per week for 30-45 minutes each session, following a progressive overload program that has you repeating key exercises.

What This Looks Like in Simply Strong

This is exactly why strength training is at the center of Simply Strong. My goal isn't simply to give you a workout that burns a bunch of calories; it’s to help you build strength and muscle through structured workouts that progress over time.

Rather than having you do random workouts that change every time you exercise, you’ll follow a program that builds on itself throughout the month. We repeat movements, track our reps and weights, and gradually work on getting stronger. And the best part is that you don’t need a gym full of equipment to do it. All you need are some dumbbells, bands, and a bench or sturdy chair.

Simply Strong is designed around practical at-home strength training using dumbbells and bands, with 30- and 45-minute workouts that fit into real life. The goal is to help you build a strength training routine that fits your real life and that you can stick with long-term, because that’s what’s going to help you protect your body (bones, muscles, joints) against aging and keep you active and able.

Final Thoughts

Your 30s and 40s are an excellent time to start taking your muscle and bone health seriously. Not because you should be afraid of aging, but because you have a prime opportunity to build a strong foundation for the years ahead. Plus, the more muscle you build, the better your metabolism will be, and the more efficiently you’ll be able to maintain your body weight through perimenopause, menopause, and beyond.

If you’re ready to start strength training in a way that supports your muscles, bones, joints, and metabolism without requiring a complete overhaul of your life and routine, take my quick quiz to see if the Simply Strong App is a good fit for you.