{"id":233377,"date":"2026-01-08T01:47:10","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T01:47:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/233377\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T01:47:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T01:47:10","slug":"why-midlife-women-are-using-the-4-rep-rule-to-build-muscle-and-strength","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/233377\/","title":{"rendered":"Why midlife women are using the 4-rep rule to build muscle and strength"},"content":{"rendered":"

As you move through perimenopause and beyond, the way your body responds to training starts to shift. Hormonal changes \u2013 particularly declining oestrogen \u2013 can mean reduced muscle mass, strength, and recovery, but that doesn\u2019t mean lifting lighter or doing endless reps; it means training smarter. In the latest episode of Women\u2019s Health podcast Just As Well<\/a>, female physiologist Dr Stacy Sims<\/a> reveals that the number of reps you do per set should evolve with age in order to future-proof your body against strength<\/a>, power<\/a> and resilience loss over time \u2013 with the ideal number being three-four.<\/p>\n

\u2018When you\u2019re ready to lift heavy \u2013 so you\u2019ve been strength training for at least six months and know how our body works and we can work with pretty heavy loads \u2013 we want to look at doing three-four sets of three-four reps, at 80% of your one rep max<\/a> [the maximum weight you can lift for one rep]. So, it\u2019s heavy,\u2019 she explains.<\/p>\n

She caveats, however, that this only applies to women who have experience strength training. \u2018If you\u2019re just getting into heavy lifting, know that it could take six to eight months to learn how to lift heavy properly,\u2019 she says. \u2018If you\u2019re just starting out, then any kind of resistance training is good because you\u2019re learning how to move, and only add load when you\u2019re ready to lift heavy.\u2019 <\/p>\n

As for why three-four reps is optimal for women in perimenopause and beyond, Dr Sims says it\u2019s about power \u2013 the ability to generate maximum force in the shortest possible time. \u2018One of the things that really comes up for women who are perimenopausal \u2013 and I get this all the time \u2013 is that their running pace slows from a 4:30 minute\/km pace to a 6:30 minute\/km pace over the course of six months. Or that they\u2019re having a hard time opening a jar of something that they used to be able to open. <\/p>\n

‘It\u2019s because we lose power if we do strength training in the traditional sense [with higher reps and lighter loads]. When we do high reps, we\u2019re going to build some lean mass, but we\u2019re not addressing the power and pure strength part. <\/p>\n

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The Good Brigade\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u2018If we lift heavier with fewer reps, it promotes a central nervous system response. What happens is that it stimulates our contractile proteins. They work by coming together, bonding and pulling our filaments together to create a muscle contraction. Oestrogen is also largely responsible for how these proteins function, so when oestrogen reduces, these proteins can\u2019t function as well.\u2019 <\/p>\n

Lifting heavy with fewer reps is the solution to counteracting that change. \u2018If we lift heavy, we get an adaptive response from our central nervous system that recognises that we need those proteins to work. So, we override the reduction in oestrogen by adding heavy loads and using our central nervous system to get our muscles to work and to maintain and build muscle.\u2019 <\/p>\n

\u2018This is why we really want to push women in perimenopause and beyond to get into lifting heavier. These proteins don\u2019t just shrink with age, they actually go away \u2013 so we need the stimulus from heavy lifting to keep them working. This also helps attenuate things like dementia and cognitive decline.\u2019 <\/p>\n

The takeaway? Lift heavy, repeat less.<\/p>\n

Losing fat while building muscle is the goal for many fitness fans \u2013 and while it isn\u2019t easy, it is possible, says FIIT personal trainer and coach Laura Hoggins<\/a>. In this four-week plan \u2013 created exclusively for Women\u2019s Health COLLECTIVE members \u2013 you\u2019ll get the workouts and nutrition guidance needed to improve body composition in 2026.<\/p>\n

Ready to build and burn? Tap the link below to unlock 14 days of free access to the WH app, find the plan and start training today.<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a><\/p>\n

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\u00a0As Women\u2019s Health UK\u2019s fitness director and a qualified Pilates and yoga instructor, Bridie Wilkins has been passionately reporting on exercise, health and nutrition since the start of her decade-long career in journalism. She secured her first role at Look Magazine, where her obsession with fitness began and she launched the magazine\u2019s health and fitness column, Look Fit, before going on to become Health and Fitness writer at HELLO!. Since, she has written for Stylist, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Elle, The Metro, Runner\u2019s World and Red.Now, she oversees all fitness content across womenshealthmag.com.uk<\/a> and the print magazine, spearheading leading cross-platform franchises, such as \u2018Fit At Any Age\u2019, where we showcase the women proving that age is no barrier to exercise. She has also represented the brand on BBC Radio London, plus various podcasts and Substacks \u2013 all with the aim to encourage more women to exercise and show them how.Outside of work, find her trying the latest Pilates studio, testing her VO2 max for fun (TY, Oura), or posting workouts on Instagram. \u00a0<\/p>\n