A Well-Rounded Exercise Plan for Women Over 50
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Exercise Plan for a 50-Year-Old Woman

Exercise Plan for a 50-Year-Old Woman
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Updated on July 31, 2025
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If you’re 50 or older, know that it’s not too late to start or return to a regular exercise routine — research shows that people who started to do cardio regularly in their 40s, 50s, and 60s saw about the same drop in their mortality risk as people who’d exercised regularly since their teenage years.

 While people who’d been exercising regularly since their youth saw their mortality risk reduced by 36 percent, those who started in their 40s or later saw a 35 percent reduction during the time period covered by the study.
You don't have to join a gym or invest in a lot of expensive equipment to build an effective routine. The best exercise program for women 50 and over is a well-rounded one — make sure you incorporate resistance training, cardiovascular activity, stretching, core strengthening, and balance work.

 A solid routine will help you maintain your health as you age.

 Research has shown that regular exercise can even slow physical aging — including cognitive decline — on top of enhancing immune function, mood, and energy levels.

Always talk to your doctor before starting a new exercise program.

Strength Training for Women

It’s crucial to incorporate resistance exercises into your weekly routine to prevent muscle loss and stay strong.

 Incorporate exercises that utilize all the major muscle groups of your body, which include your chest, back, arms, shoulders, core, hips, and legs.

 Muscle-building options include exercises that use your own body weight, resistance bands, free weights, and machines. Aim to do strength training at least twice per week; start slow and work your way up, both in terms of the number of reps and the amount of weight or resistance you use.

Heart-Healthy Cardio

Cardiovascular exercise keeps your heart healthy by lowering blood pressure and increasing “good” cholesterol levels.

 It also helps prevent diabetes and weight gain, and improves your quality of life by improving cognition, endurance, mood, and sleep. Cardio exercise — sometimes referred to as aerobic exercise — includes any activity that actively elevates your heart rate. Walking, running, biking, hiking, swimming, and dancing all count as cardiovascular exercise, as do many other activities.

 Choose exercise you enjoy, so you’re more likely to stick with your routine.
Women over 50 should aim for cardio that’s moderate intensity, vigorous intensity, or a mix of both.

 A moderate-intensity workout will have you breathing heavier but still able to talk (or you can aim to hit 50 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate).

 A vigorous-intensity workout will have you breathing rapidly and unable to speak more than a few words (or aim for about 70 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate).

Build a Solid Core

Training your core will help maintain your posture and balance, as well as keep your midsection toned.

 Target different groups of abdominal muscles with a mix of exercises, including crunches, planks, bridges, and others.
One core exercise you can try is the reverse crunch using a fitness ball, where you lie on the ball on your stomach, feet on the floor behind you.

 Lean forward, touching the floor with your hands. Walk your hands away from the ball, until the ball is underneath your upper thighs. Keep your shoulders directly above your hands. Then, contract your abs and push your knees into the ball. Use your ab muscles to bring your knees toward your chest. Hold for three deep breaths, then roll back to the starting position. Repeat for five repetitions; work your way up to 10 to 15 reps.
Pilates and yoga are also ideal for core strengthening.

Bend and Stretch

Stretching is a must if you’re a woman over 50.

 It's often an understated aspect of fitness, but increasing flexibility allows you to have greater range of motion, which can alleviate stiffness and discomfort. Stretching also enhances circulation, reduces risk of injury, and improves posture.
Before engaging in static stretching, do about 5 to 10 minutes of movement to warm up the muscles (or stretch after a workout).

 Stretch until you feel a slight pull — if you feel pain, reduce the range of motion. Hold each stretch for about 30 seconds, and repeat two to four times on each side. Stretch each major muscle group without bouncing, straining, or holding your breath.

Safe and Smart Scheduling

When it comes to strength training, aim to work out each major muscle group at least twice per week on nonconsecutive days.

 After weight training, sit and stretch your muscles.

 Aim for flexibility training three days per week; try to stretch all major muscle groups, but even five minutes will be beneficial.

On non-weight-training days, work on your core and balance.

 Try to engage in moderate amounts of cardiovascular exercise most days.

 Each week, aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardio, or at least 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity cardio, or an equivalent combination of both. If you are new to exercise, consider breaking this down into 10 to 15 increments one to three times per day.

The Takeaway

  • A well-rounded exercise plan for women over 50 should include strength training, cardiovascular exercise, stretching, core strengthening, and balance work.
  • Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity cardiovascular exercise weekly, and strength-train major muscle groups at least twice a week on nonconsecutive days.
  • Regular stretching and core strengthening are crucial for flexibility, posture, balance, and preventing injury.
  • Always talk to your doctor before starting a new exercise program.
EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
  1. It's never too late to start exercising. Harvard Health Publishing. June 1, 2019.
  2. Fitness training: Elements of a well-rounded routine. Mayo Clinic. July 3, 2025.
  3. How Exercise Helps You Age Well. National Council on Aging. October 11, 2022.
  4. Nourkhalaj Y et al. Strength Training for Women 50+. Stanford Lifestyle Medicine. March 6, 2025.
  5. Resistance Training Workouts for Beginners. American Council on Exercise. May 24, 2024.
  6. Physical Activity and Your Heart: Benefits. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. March 24, 2022.
  7. Physical Activity and Your Heart: Types. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. March 24, 2022.
  8. What Counts as Physical Activity for Older Adults. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. December 22, 2023.
  9. Exercise intensity: How to measure it. Mayo Clinic. August 25, 2023.
  10. Core exercises: Why you should strengthen your core muscles. Mayo Clinic. March 25, 2025.
  11. Healthy Lifestyle: Fitness. Mayo Clinic. April 6, 2023.
  12. Yoga vs. Pilates: The Differences Between Two Great Exercises. Cleveland Clinic. January 2, 2024.
  13. Kayser K. Benefits of Stretching as You Age. University of North Carolina Greensboro. April 29, 2024.
  14. A guide to basic stretches. Mayo Clinic. June 18, 2024.
  15. Exercise vs. Physical Activity. Penn State College of Medicine.
  16. The Best Stretches for Weightlifters (and Why They Are Important). USA Weightlifting. February 9, 2024.
  17. Stretching: Focus on flexibility. Mayo Clinic. November 18, 2023.
  18. Mahaffey K. Active Recovery Workouts: What to Do on Your Rest Day. National Academy of Sports Medicine.
  19. Bilodeau K. Exercise may heal the heart as well as prevent future problems. Harvard Health Publishing. January 1, 2022.
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Kara-Andrew-bio

Kara Andrew, RDN, LDN

Medical Reviewer
Member of American College of Lifestyle Medicine

Kara Andrew, RDN, LDN, is the director of health promotion for Memorial Hospital in Carthage, Illinois. She is also licensed as an exercise physiologist and certified in lifestyle medicine by the American College of Lifestyle Medicine. Her experience includes corporate wellness, teaching for the American College of Sports Medicine, sports nutrition, weight management, integrative medicine, oncology support, and dialysis.

She earned her master's in exercise and nutrition science at Lipscomb University.

Andrew has served as a president and board member of the Nashville Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. She was recently elected a co-chair of the fitness and medicine group in the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.

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Riana Rohmann

Author

Riana Rohmann has been working for the Marine Corps doing physical training and writing fitness articles since 2008. She holds personal trainer and advanced health and fitness specialist certifications from the American Council on Exercise and a Bachelor of Science in kinesiology and exercise physiology from California State University-San Marcos.

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