Fifteen years ago, exercise guidelines had a shake-up. Instead of just doing exercise, like running or cycling, we should be adding regular bouts of strength training, also called resistance training, to our workouts.
Despite the advice, women have been slower than men to take up strength training, with 24 per cent doing so twice a week, compared with 29 per cent of men, according to a UK study from 2022.
Yet, older women, the demographic least likely to be doing strength training, have the most reason to do it, as the activity not only maintains muscle but also bone strength. And women are most likely to develop the brittle bone disease, osteoporosis, as they age.
Shorts
As women tend to be smaller and less muscular than men to begin with, they might assume they need to go about strength training differently.
