It’s Never Too Late for Starting Strength

by Victoria Holt | May 12, 2026

I’m a 53yr old grandmother and I
started strength training on the advice of my healthcare provider.
That’s the short version.

When I first visited my provider, I had
a laundry list of complaints, nearly all of them stemming from
perimenopause. Some were obviously related to my age: irregular
periods, hair loss, joint paint, fatigue and brain fog. But when I
stopped sharing my issues, my healthcare provider who specializes in
treating hormone-related symptoms in women proceeded to tell me about
underlying conditions I didn’t realize were contributing to my
current health state. Once estrogen production starts decreasing,
bone and muscle mass start decreasing and tendons start stiffening.
Enter joint pain and overall discomfort, not to mention a decreased
desire to move – either from exercise or otherwise – to avoid
pain.

As a formerly athlete, I had let my
love of movement falter by the wayside when I spent my twenties,
thirties and forties as a Stay-at-Home-Mom. Playing with the kids and
occasional periods of regular aerobic exercise weren’t enough to
stave off the impending muscle and bone mass deterioration along with
the host of other conditions that fluctuating hormone levels were
going to trigger. I’d love to say that my provider’s words
spurred me to immediate action, but it took me a year to commit to
strength training.

When I learned about Starting Strength,
I bought the Blue Book and started devouring it. As a science fiction
author, I’m no stranger to research, especially anything with a
scientific or physics bent. I appreciated the diagrams and
explanations for why bar placement in relation to the body during all
of the lifts was crucial for maximum effect and reasonable safety.

I was diagnosed with osteoarthritis in
my forties, and with bone spurs in my vertebrae, I wasn’t confident
that lifting was the best option for me. But the physics made sense,
and I decided to find a SS coach because I wanted the best possible
results for my training.

With excellent consistent communication
with my online coach, we took a conservative approach to my SS
training. As my strength increased, so did my confidence in my body’s
ability to handle lifting. My willingness to share every twinge and
creak with my coach, and my coach’s willingness to listen to my
concerns has resulted in a transparent and effective process, but
that trusting relationship is a topic for another day. Suffice it to
say that the Starting Strength program has been effective in helping
me on my way to my goal of getting stronger.

Something that surprised me only a few
weeks into my programming was the excitement I felt before heading to
the gym. I’d done assorted exercise programs in the past: tae bo,
HIIT, yoga, and the like. Nothing kept my interest for long, and more
importantly, nothing got me past the dread of “leg day” or “arm
day.” Exercising felt like a slog, and at least for me the results
were unpredictable at best, negligible at worst. It made me hungry,
but as my age increased, my body’s ability to put on muscle
decreased.

Even before I started getting results
from strength training, I noticed that my mental health was
improving. Something about being under the bar for squats had me
“settling” into my body and my mind. My focus became centered on
my technique, the sensation of the heavy weight on my back, and
trying to get all my moving parts to behave in sync. The intense
focus was a balm to my normally racing thoughts. Leaving the gym
after my session had me blissed out and calm, and this inner peace
lasted for hours afterward.

I realized that even if I never noticed
any body changes, I was going to visit the gym for the rest of my
life in order to soak up the incredible sense of well-being that
lifting heavy gave me.

But things improved even more. One of
the perks of Starting Strength is the Novice Linear Progression.
Watching the weight on the bar go up every session was another mental
health boost that showed up in the form of increased confidence,
often with a side of bemused wonder. (I can lift that much? Wow, I
can!) Steady, measurable improvement kept my gym attendance
interesting and evidence-based. Showing up with my best effort at
each session meant that I was going to be able to perform at my next
session. Consistent effort begat consistent effort.

My coach, Bruce Trout, told me at the
beginning of my journey that my body would undergo changes. I admit
to some skepticism of his unapologetic optimism; I’d tried lots of
exercise programs before, so I took his prediction with a grain of
salt.

Actually, could you pass that salt? I
need it to season the humble pie…

So it turns out, just as my healthcare
provider had recommended for my health and my coach had told me would
happen, that consistent heavy lifting/strength training does effect
significant body changes. You might remember from health class in
school that the femur is the largest human bone. Your quadriceps and
hamstrings are the biggest muscles in your body; once you start using
them to lift heavy weight, you’re setting off a cascade of amazing
changes.

The thighs increase in circumference.
The glutes get stronger. The calf muscles get stronger. Along with
all of the leg muscle attention, the knee joints become more stable.
I have arthritis in both knees; I was concerned that I might not be
able to lift for very long before my knees gave up on me, but the
opposite happened. The more I lift, the better my joints feel – my
leg strength is improving my quality of life.

But the beauty of the Starting Strength
program is that it’s not something that puts laser-focus on any one
body part. I don’t have “leg day” or “arm day”. My
programming involves lifts that utilize my whole body every time, and
I love it.

My legs aren’t the only place on my
body where I’m seeing profound changes. Underarm flab? Gone. It’s
all muscle now. I beat my 17yr old son arm-wrestling a few weeks ago…with my non-dominant arm. My grip strengthened; my back and
shoulders are stronger.

I mentioned earlier how exercising
would make me hungry, but I could never tell if it was doing anything
helpful for my body. Now I can see the changes every day, and when I
pay attention to my macros and consume enough protein, I don’t gain
extra weight.

You might remember that old maxim
“muscle burns more calories than fat,” so what’s happening as
you employ the Starting Strength program is that you’re creating a
super efficient muscle-making machine out of your body, and your
bigger muscles require more calories. I started trimming down other
places on my body without drastically changing my diet (I do attempt
to eat 100 grams of protein a day). But in general, I haven’t had
to make major adjustments to the food I eat.

Along with a calmer mind and a stronger
body, my emotional health is also improving as I continue with my
strength training. I mentioned the confidence I felt from adding more
weight to the bar over time. After nine months of training, I can’t
adequately describe the quiet inner strength I feel just going about
my day. Wandering aisles in the grocery store or dropping my kids off
at school, volunteering at the county park, or standing in line at
the theater. Knowing what my 53-yr-old body is capable of lends me a
sense of private accomplishment that I don’t even feel the need to
tell anyone about – unless it’s other older women.

See, I never imagined that I would be
able to lift heavy. Even when I started, I figured I would plateau at
some weight below my bodyweight. I couldn’t comprehend that my own
muscles would strengthen to the extent that they have. I still kinda
can’t believe it, but then my coach will add a new higher weight to
my programming, and I’ll go to the gym with the mindset of “Coach
thinks I can do it, and as a matter of fact, I’ve done hard things
before, so I’ll give this a try,” and the next thing I know I’m
benching 117 pounds for two sets of three reps. And if this grandma
in her fifties can squat 215 pounds and deadlift 285 pounds, I’d
love to see other grandmas hit the gym, too!

It really is never too late to get
started. That is the main takeaway I’d love for women to think
about when they read my story. When I began lifting, I had “bad
knees” and a “bad back.” Lifting heavy didn’t magically heal
those problem areas, but I’ve actively strengthened all of the
muscles surrounding those weaker hinge points. If my osteoarthritis
flares up, I’ll tell my coach, and we can back off weights until
the flare-up dies down, but in nine months it only happened once.
Prior to strength training, I would have had back pain several times
a year.

Along with my healthcare provider’s
advised hormone replacement therapy, my strength training program is
helping to alleviate my other perimenopause symptoms. Stronger
muscles and consistent exercise mean I’m no longer losing bone or
muscle mass. The insomnia and brain fog are minimal, my mental health
has improved, and I have an overall positive outlook on life.

Full-body strength training has given
me a new approach to aging. I feel great, and simple things like
hefting the dog food bag or maneuvering the lawn mower don’t leave
me gasping for breath. My sons look at me and see a very strong mom,
and when I look in the mirror, I see a strong and healthy future that
can last the rest of my life. Aging doesn’t have to mean slowing
down. It can mean adding more weight to the bar and consistently
growing stronger. I honestly can’t wait to see where I’ll be in
the coming years, because I plan to keep showing up under the bar and
lifting heavily ever after.

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