Strength Training Guide: How To Stop Strength Loss With Age

Standing up from your chair

Balancing

Picking up a bag

Tasks that seem simple at first, but as we age, these activities become much more of a chore than they used to be.

In fact, these tasks can be the very reason that over £4 billion is spent each year on hospital treatments and social care for people over 65 who experience a bone fracture from falling over.

But why are so many older people losing their ability to function?

The reason is quite simple - as we age, we lose strength.

A study published in 2025 found that, beyond the age of 65, leg power and grip strength reduced by up to 3% per year. To put this into context, between the ages of 65 and 75, that could be the difference between you being able to lift your bag or not. Being able to get up out of your chair... or not. This process of strength decline actually starts around the age of 40, but becomes more pronounced with older age.

Now, the good news is, this is reversible through strength training, and Brits have clocked on to this, as more than half of the country are choosing strength training as their primary, or one of their chosen, forms of activity.

The next step is simple. Start. But how? How long will it take? What do I do? The truth is that progress depends on several factors, including the quality and consistency of your training, as well as your lifestyle. This post breaks down what to expect and how to set realistic goals for long-term results.

Consistent, guided training is essential to see the best strength training results.

Strength Training Requires Good Movement

When starting a strength training journey, technique is the foundation you build on. Without it, your strength improvement may not progress at the rate you would hope for. Good movement technique:

• Prevents injuries that can set you back weeks or months

• Improves efficiency, helping you consistently see improvements

• Builds confidence by mastering the movements

• Supports joint health and mobility, which typically declines with age

  
  

Take a squat, for example. A well-executed squat, with the knees aligned with the toes and the torso upright, builds strength in the quads, glutes, and core, while improving hip mobility. A poor squat can contribute to greater lower back pain, knee and hip pain, while failing to give you the strength gains you are looking for.

Rather than rushing to lift heavier, focus on learning movements slowly and correctly. This ensures that you not only build strength, but build strength consistently from session to session.

How Long Until I See The Benefit of Strength Training?

Strength gains follow a predictable pattern but vary based on individual factors, such as training history, consistency, nutrition, and recovery. Here’s a general timeline for someone starting a well-structured strength programme for the first time:

• First 4 to 6 weeks: Rapid strength improvements, mostly coming from your central nervous system learning to activate muscles better. You may find you can lift heavier without looking visibly bigger.

• 6 to 12 weeks: Strength gains continue steadily and, if you're training and eating in the right way, you may start to see some muscle size increase.

• 3 to 6 months: Significant improvements in strength. You’ll also feel more energetic and notice better posture and balance.

• 6 months to 1 year: Seeing strength gains over this time period requires consistent progressive overload, whereby the challenge of the workouts progresses through an increase in weight or volume across the session.

  
  

The most important aspect of the above is the consistency. A person who chooses to lift twice per week, every week for 6 months, will see greater strength gains than someone who lifts three times per week one week, and then not at all the next.

What Do I Need To Do In My Sessions?

This part is important.

This is the part of your routine that will challenge your body to adapt and improve.

Make sure you are including the right exercises to ensure strength improvements, including what type of exercises, how many sets and reps and how intense you need to work. Below, I have included a checklist of what to include in each session, as well as an example week of sessions.

Checklist for Strength Training

What kind of exercises?

Compound Exercises e.g. Squats, Deadlifts, Shoulder Press, Pull Up

Isolation Exercises e.g. Leg Extension, Bicep Curl, Leg Curl

How many sets and reps?

Between 2-4 Sets of 3-8 reps will put you in a good zone for your compound lifts, whereas your isolation lifts should be slightly higher in rep volume, ranging from 8-15 reps.

How much should I be lifting?

For strength building, you should focus on lifting heavy weights. If you want the technical term, it would be anything above 80% of your maximum load for 1 rep (1RM), for your compound exercises. For those who don't know this number: as long as the last 2 or 3 reps are hard and you're lifting 8 reps or less, you're in the right place. For isolation lifts, as long as you feel challenged towards the end of each set, that is the primary aim.

Example Session

Below is an example of what a session may include if you were training twice per week.

Notice how the reps decrease to 5 reps in week 5; this is your opportunity to challenge yourself to lift a little heavier; however, it should not be at the detriment of movement quality or technique.

Summary

Building strength as you move into older age takes time, but the journey is rewarding. Focus on mastering movement technique first to avoid injury, and this will give you a greater baseline for consistent strength improvements. In turn, this will not only give you a strong body, but a functional one that you can use throughout your whole life!

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