If you are in your 40s or 50s and your body has started to feel different, with changes in sleep, recovery, or how your clothes fit, you are probably hearing a lot of conflicting advice. Here is what I tell the women I train: strength training is one of the most useful things you can do for your body in this stage, and the reason has a lot to do with your bones.
What happens to bone during perimenopause?
Bone mineral density findings from the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation show an accelerated rate of bone loss during the menopausal transition. The biggest reduction happens in the year before the final menstrual period and the first two years after it (DOI). That is a short window, and it is why I do not like waiting until after menopause to start paying attention.
The same review notes that clinical care includes adequate calcium and vitamin D, attention to risk factors, and osteoporosis screening. Screening and any treatment decisions belong to your physician. Bring it up at your next appointment if it has not come up.
Does lifting weights help bone?
A 2020 meta-analysis of 17 studies found that dynamic resistance training had significant, though low to moderate, positive effects on bone mineral density at the lumbar spine, femoral neck, and total hip in postmenopausal women (DOI). The authors also said the data could not identify one best protocol.
Two honest caveats. First, those studies were done in postmenopausal women, so applying them to perimenopause is an extension of the research, not a direct finding. Second, low to moderate is not magic. Lifting is one important piece alongside nutrition, medical care, and the rest of your life.
What I focus on with perimenopausal clients
Loading the hips and spine
Hinge patterns like Romanian deadlifts, along with hip thrusts, squats, and rows, load the areas where bone matters most. Weight goes up gradually, and only after sessions that felt controlled.
Training for how you feel that day
Sleep, stress, and symptoms vary a lot in this stage. In my coaching view, piling on high-intensity work without considering recovery is a common mistake, so I adjust intensity to how you are doing, within your doctor's guidance.
Tracking what changes
Every client gets a monthly progress report. My in-person clients also get monthly InBody scans, which help us see what is happening with muscle and body composition, along with nutrition guidance from the start.
Working alongside your care team
I am not a clinician. I do not diagnose or treat, and I do not interpret bone scans. If you are working with a physician about symptoms, hormones, or bone health, I want to support that plan, not compete with it.
Training in Dallas
I train in person at Recess in Dallas, close to Lower Greenville, SMU, and Highland Park. If you want a coach who builds your strength training around where you are right now, read about perimenopause and menopause training or apply to train with me.
This article is general education and not medical advice. Please talk with your healthcare provider about your own bone health and symptoms.
Sources
- Lo JC, Burnett-Bowie SM, Finkelstein JS. Bone and the perimenopause. Obstet Gynecol Clin North Am. 2011. DOI
- Shojaa M, et al. Effects of dynamic resistance exercise on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis with special emphasis on exercise parameters. Osteoporos Int. 2020. DOI
Train with me in Dallas
Hormone-informed strength training for pregnancy, postpartum and perimenopause, in person near Lower Greenville and SMU or remotely.
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