Is Lifting Weights Safe After 50? What Health Guidelines Say

The short answer

For most healthy adults, strength training is safe and recommended. The World Health Organization's 2020 guidelines and the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans both advise muscle-strengthening activity on at least two days per week for adults, including older adults.

Injuries usually come from starting too heavy, rushing technique, or training through sharp pain, not from lifting itself.

Why it matters as you age

Muscle mass and strength tend to decline gradually from midlife, and inactivity speeds that up. Resistance training is among the best-supported ways to maintain strength and the everyday abilities that depend on it, such as climbing stairs and standing up from a chair.

Talk to a clinician first if you have

A doctor or physical therapist can tell you which movements to modify or avoid.

• Heart disease, or chest pain or pressure with exertion
• High blood pressure that is not controlled
• Recent surgery, a joint replacement, or an active injury
• Osteoporosis, or a history of fractures
• Dizziness, fainting or unexplained shortness of breath

How to start

Begin with two full-body sessions a week of 20 to 30 minutes. Use light weights or bands and choose a load you can lift 8 to 12 times with good form while feeling you could do two or three more.

Practice the basic patterns: standing up from a chair, hinging at the hips, pushing, pulling and carrying. Breathe steadily instead of holding your breath, since breath-holding briefly raises blood pressure.

When to stop

Muscle fatigue and mild soreness that fades within about two days are normal. Stop and seek medical care for chest pain, severe breathlessness, dizziness or fainting. Sudden sharp joint pain or swelling is a signal to stop that exercise and get it checked if it persists.