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Senior Strength Training Exercises

Senior strength training exercises help build strong muscles and bones. With strengthening exercises you are increasing your muscle mass.

This helps reduce bone loss, increases our slowing metabolism and builds muscles to help prevent falls. Your strength exercises can be done using just your body weight or you can add resistance bands or dumbbell weights.

Many of these strengthening exercises for seniors can be performed in a chair or while holding onto a chair. This also helps increase your balance and stability.

List of Strengthening Exercises for Seniors

These senior strength training exercises include strengthening the lower back, shoulders, biceps and more. Click on a link below to go directly to the particular strengthening exercise for instructions and a video. You can also scroll through this page to see them all.

	Lower Back Press
	Bicep Curls
	Heel Toe Rocks
	Knee Lift

Senior Strength Training Exercise #1

Lower Back Press

You will need a small exercise ball for this one. Placement of the ball is important so that you are contracting and strengthening the back muscles. Have someone help you place the ball in the right place if needed.

Sit in a chair with your buttocks slightly forward. You want some room between your back and the chair to place the ball.
Put your feet flat on the floor shoulder width apart.
Place the small exercise ball between your shoulder blades. Adjust your sitting position if needed to ensure your body holds up the ball. You don't want this to drop down too low.
With small movements, press your back towards the ball and hold for a moment.
Release the hold and move forward slightly. Don't move too far as you still want your shoulder blades to hold the ball to the back of the chair.
Repeat this move several times and remember to breathe as you strengthen your back.

Click on the play button to see this senior strengthening exercise demonstrated.

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Senior Strength Training Exercises #2

Bicep Curls

This one strengthens your arms, especially the bicep muscles. The biceps are one of the larger arm muscles. You can do this exercise while seated in a chair or while standing up. Choose what is most comfortable for you. The directions and video below are for a seated chair bicep curl.

You can use small dumbbell weights for this strengthening exercise or modify the instructions and use a resistance band. You can also just use your own body weight and squeeze or contract the muscle as you do this move to build strength.

Sit in the chair with your back resting against the chair. Make sure to keep your back straight.
Place your feet flat on the floor with your legs butted up against the legs of the chair.
Holding the dumbbell weights in both hands, drop your arms to the sides of your body. Face your palms and forearms outward (away from you).
Take a deep breath in and as you exhale, slowly bend your elbows bringing the dumbbells up towards your shoulders. Keep your elbows close to your sides.
Hold this at the top for just a second and as you inhale return your arms to starting position.
Repeat this several times.

As a slight variation to this strengthening exercise, turn your hands to where your palms are facing in towards your sides. Follow steps 4 through 6 above. The slight change in your hand position will work different parts of your arms and biceps. This move is often called the hammer curl.

Click on the video below to see the bicep curl demonstrated to ensure you are doing your strengthing exercises for seniors correctly.

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Senior Strength Training Exercises #3

Heel Toe Rocks

This one helps to strengthen the ankles as well as the hamstrings and calf muscles. If you are unsure of your balance or have limited mobility, do this strengthening exercise sitting down. If you want to challenge yourself, do this senior strength training exercise standing up. The video shows both versions while the instructions are just for the seated position heel toe rock.

Start by sitting in your chair with feet together and flat to the floor.
Place your hands on your thighs for support.
Slowly lift up on your toes as you remain seated in the chair.
Rock your feet back lifting your toes off the ground and rolling back onto the heels of your feet.
Repeat this heel toe rock several times.

If you do this strengthening exercise standing up, make sure you have a stable chair or table to hold onto. The video below demonstrates both the sitting and standing version of this strengthening exercise for seniors.

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Senior Strength Training Exercise #4

Knee Lift

This move helps to strengthen your hips and thighs for a stonger lower body to help prevent falls. You can use resistance bands with this exercise to give yourself an extra challenge.

Sitting in your chair place your feet on the floor with the knees close together.
Slowly lift your right leg keeping the knee bent. This exercise is sort of like marching in place while sitting in a chair.
Return your right leg to the floor and lift your left leg.
Repeat this several times alternating legs.

Click the play button to see this exercise demonstrated with and without resistance bands in both the seated position as well as standing. If you stand for this strength exercise make sure you have a table or chair handy for holding onto for support if needed.

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These are just a few of many exercises seniors can do to help strengthen the muscles. For more senior strength training exercises try these balance exercises. Balancing exercises not only help increase your stability but helps build muscle strength.

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Senior Stretching Exercises
Senior Fitness Tips

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