Lifting Weights for Osteoporosis

If you’re looking for a personal trainer because you’ve recently been diagnosed with osteoporosis or osteopenia, I’m so glad you’re here!  

As you probably know, osteoporosis and osteopenia occur when your body’s creation of new bone material can’t keep up with the clearing out of old bone (a natural process that occurs throughout your body).  Osteopenia is a more mild form of osteoporosis, but both occur when bone mineral density (BMD) is suboptimal.  This puts the person at a higher risk for bone fractures.  

The good news is that there is quite a bit that you can do to not only improve your bone mineral density (BMD), but potentially even come out of osteoporosis or osteopenia.   Research published by Belinda Beck of Griffith University demonstrated that heavy resistance training is not only safe but highly effective for improving BMD in those with osteoporosis and osteopenia: [1, 2, 3]. This landmark research is called The LIFTMOR (Lifting Intervention for Training Muscle and Osteoporosis Rehabilitation) study.

My philosophy on working with clients who have osteoporosis and osteopenia is based on the LIFTMOR study.  I’ve seen it help clients significantly improve their BMD.  If you decide to work with me, here’s what you can expect:

• Therapeutics & Preparation.  Depending on your unique needs, we’ll spend about 3 weeks making sure that you can perform foundational movements like core bracing, hip hinging, squatting, and overhead pressing.  We’ll also ensure that these movements are pain-free and biomechanically sound.  This phase is often done using no, or very light weight. Therapeutic exercises are strategically chosen to help you overcome painful movements and prepare you to be able to handle heavier weights.

• Starting to Lift. After establishing proper foundational movements, we start to add load (AKA, external weight). This phase might overlap with therapeutic exercises. 

• Getting it Done. When ready, you’ll begin to lift heavier!  The exercises we will eventually focus on are the core exercises used in the LIFTMOR study cited above.  They are:

  • Deadlifts

  • Back squats

  • Overhead presses

  • Jumping chin-ups with drop landings [1, 2] - likely a derivative of this to begin. 

  • For clients who are interested, I often include balance drills to help offset the risk of bone fractures due to falling. 

Want to learn more, or have a question, you can leave a comment or reach out to me via email.  I’d love to hear from you.  

Lynne