How to Begin Strength Training

There is no doubt that including strength training in your fitness regimen is important when you're over 50 to maintain bone strength, balance, and metabolism- but how do you get started, and how do you adopt a strategy that will work for you?

One of the first things you can do is assess what approach would work best for you. Should you:

• Join a gym

• Work with a personal trainer

• Begin at home with bodyweight and resistance

• Use an app

• Take a class

• Watch videos that you can follow along with

• Assemble a home gym

• Some combination

It's important to craft a strategy that will "stick" for you, which means identifying all the reasons that prevent you from regular strength training. Ask yourself some questions about what will motivate (or de-motivate) you. Examine all the things that have prevented you from strength training up to this point:

• "I don't have time."

• "I am in pain some/most of the time."

• "I don't want to have big muscles."

• "I have trouble building new habits."

• "I don't know how."

• "I can't afford it."

• "I am worried about injuries."

You get the gist - when we're over 50, adding new routines is a challenge, and we are great at coming up with reasons not to. So, the first and most key step is to change our mindset. Using positive self-talk is an effective means of challenging and changing how we think. Instead of the above, try mental phrases like:

• "I can do this for ten minutes."

• "The right movements and exercises will help me manage my pain."

• "I want to be strong."

• "Getting started is the hardest step, and I can do it."

• "I can learn from others."

• "I can work with what I have."

• "I can learn good form from experts."

Once your thinking is in a good place, what do you need to get started? First things first, discuss your plans with your healthcare provider - if there are medical issues you should factor into your strategy, your healthcare provider can help you with resources, suggestions, and tools.

You really can begin with what you have, as many bodyweight exercises are among the top recommendations from trainers, like push-ups, planks, squats, and lunges. If you are prone to lower back pain, glute/hip bridges can help minimize and manage it. There are plentiful resources to show you how each exercise should be done, for how many repetitions, and for how many sets. You can find many free apps that show you how to properly do bodyweight exercises, if apps are something you find useful. One we like and use often is Nike Training (NTC), which lets you filter workouts and programs by level, by focus, etc.

There are also videos on YouTube and other platforms. If you have a Smart TV, there are channels/genres you can use. Netflix, for example, has a workout/fitness genre you can check out.

Some of us need the discipline and social aspects of either taking an in-person class or working with a trainer. These options provide real-time feedback on your form, so that you can master the fundamentals.