🔑 Key Takeaways
- Muscle loss with age is common, but not inevitable — strength training and a high-protein diet can help reverse it.
- Muscle loss around menopause is tricky to understand as natural menopause is a gradual transition, there are multiple lifestyle changes during this phase and it coincides with typical age-related muscle loss (~1% per year).
- Protein needs increase as we age, with 1.2–1.6g per kg of body weight recommended.
- Resistance training is highly effective for women in midlife and beyond — our muscles still respond!
- It’s never too late to start — women can build strength, support metabolic health, and maintain independence well into later life.
- Simple nutrition habits like adding protein-rich coffee or smart breakfasts make hitting your goals easier than you think.
Menopause and Muscle Loss – What’s Really Happening?
Let’s bust a myth right out of the gate: muscle loss during midlife isn’t caused solely by menopause itself—but rather by the natural process of ageing, often accelerated by hormonal and lifestyle changes that come with menopause.
Starting around age 30, we begin to lose muscle mass (and muscle function) gradually—a process called sarcopenia. As we get older, especially into our 50s and beyond, this muscle loss can accelerate. Typical muscle loss with aging is a scary ~1% per year. Some research suggests that the hormonal shifts of menopause, particularly falling oestrogen levels, may contribute by affecting muscle repair and protein metabolism. But the evidence isn’t rock solid, and menopause shouldn’t take all the blame.
In reality, muscle loss is more about age, inactivity, and under-fuelling. The good news? These are factors we can do something about.
Here’s what we know for sure:
- Ageing leads to slower muscle protein synthesis (muscle growth)
- Inactivity compounds the problem
- Inadequate protein intake makes it worse
- Hormonal changes may influence, but don’t dictate, the outcome
👉 For a broader look at how menopause affects the body beyond muscle, see Stats and Symptoms of Menopause.
Yes, You Can Build Muscle in Menopause
Here’s the good news: your muscles are still listening—you just need to give them the right message.
A 2025 study by O’Bryan et al., published in the Journal of Physiology, found that postmenopausal women responded to resistance training with significant increases in lean muscle mass and strength, nearly matching gains seen in younger control groups. This echoes findings from Refalo et al. (2025), which found no sex differences in muscle hypertrophy (gaiing muscle) when measured as percent change from baseline. Resistance training just needs to be tailored to goals, rtaher than physiology. This helps to emphasised that age is less of a barrier than inactivity and under-fuelling.
Women often hear that “it’s too late” to start strength training in midlife, but research increasingly shows the opposite: we may be the exception, not the rule. When supported with adequate protein, women in their 40s, 50s, and even 60s (and beyond) can gain muscle with consistency being, as well as increasing the ask from our body when it gets stronger.
This is why strength training isn’t just a lifestyle choice; it’s a form of preventative medicine. It helps:
- Rebuild lost muscle
- Improve metabolic markers like cholesterol and blood sugar
- Support bone density and joint health
- Preserve independence as we age
💡 For a breakdown on starting out, take a look at Orla’s guide on How to Grow Muscle.
Protein Needs After 40: How Much is Enough?
Protein is having a well-deserved moment — and for midlife women, it’s not just a trend, it’s a non-negotiable.
As we age, our muscles become less responsive to the same amounts of protein we consumed in our younger years. This phenomenon is known as anabolic resistance. In short, your body needs more protein to get the same muscle-building effect.
Current evidence suggests that 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day is the sweet spot for women during menopause aiming to preserve or build muscle — especially when paired with resistance training. If you’re living life in a bigger body, and by that I mean have significant excess fat tissue, please use your body composition results to guide your necessary intake, or if you haven’t had a reading done with us yet, please use a BMI of 25-27.
🍽️ Protein Intake Targets for Midlife Women
| Body Weight (kg) | 1.2g Protein (g/day) | 1.6g Protein (g/day) |
|---|---|---|
| 60 kg | 72g | 96g |
| 70 kg | 84g | 112g |
| 80 kg | 96g | 128g |
If that looks like a lot — you’re not alone. Many women fall short of these targets, particularly at breakfast and lunch. That’s where smart distribution across the day comes in.
🥚 Top Tips for Hitting Your Protein Goals:
- Aim for 20–30g of protein per meal
- Don’t skimp on breakfast — eggs, Greek yoghurt, or protein porridge can help
- Use snacks strategically: protein shakes, protein yoghurts, protein milk, protein coffee!
- Consider adding protein powder to smoothies, oats, or coffee if you feel you can’t meet your needs with everyday food, or if you like it!
Need help choosing a protein powder that actually delivers? Orla has you covered in Picking a Protein Powder and Whey Protein Powder Explained.
Strength Training: Your Midlife Superpower
If protein is the raw material, resistance training is the signal that tells your body, “Hey, we need this muscle — don’t let it go!”
Among all the lifestyle tools we have, strength training is arguably the most powerful for midlife women. Not only does it preserve lean mass, but it also:
- Boosts metabolic rate, helping manage weight
- Improves insulin sensitivity and blood glucose control
- Supports bone density and joint health
- Reduces risk of falls and fractures
- Most importantly: it helps maintain independence as we age
The 2023 big analysis by Refalo et al. using 101 studies involving 5,697 postmenopausal women indicated that exercise training effectively increased muscle mass/ volume, and fat-free mass, and decreased fat mass, body fat percentage, waist circumference and visceral fat. Results also suggested that cardio or else doing cardio and strength training were best when tackling body fat levels. So, nothing too surprising;
- exercise training is effective for improving body composition in postmenopausal women.
- cardio is effective for fat loss,
- strength training is effective for muscle gain
- A combination is best at improving body composition.
Another analysis by the same researcher in 2025 reported that females have a similar potential to grow muscle as males when you consider relative increases in muscle size from baseline.
💪 What Kind of Training Works?
- Bodyweight exercises: squats, lunges, push-ups
- Free weights or resistance bands: ideal for home workouts
- Gym-based machines: good for beginners or those seeking structure (I love home workouts myself)
- Pilates and yoga: helpful, though need to be supplemented with progressive overload for muscle growth (keep making it harder, basically)
🗓️ Minimum Recommendations:
- 2–3 sessions per week
- Focus on progressive overload (gradually increasing resistance)
- Target all major muscle groups
Even if you’ve never lifted a dumbbell before — it’s never too late to start. In fact, your midlife self will thank you, and so will your future self.
Practical Tips for Getting Started
You don’t need to overhaul your life overnight. Building muscle during menopause is about smart, consistent choices — not perfection.
🏋️♀️ Training Tips
- Start with 2 sessions per week: keep it simple with bodyweight exercises, resistance bands, or a few dumbbells.
- Focus on form first, then gradually increase the resistance or reps. This stops you getting injured and having to start from scratch all over again!
- Consistency beats intensity — stick with it, and your body will respond. So, if you don’t like lifting heavy stuff, totally fine.
🍽️ Nutrition Tips
- Spread protein intake evenly across the day — muscle growth is fast when we eat about ~30g in a meal.
- Make breakfast count: many women under-eat in the morning and miss a key opportunity for muscle support.
Here are a few delicious, dietitian-approved ways to start your day with oodles of protein:
☕ Protein-Rich Coffee – A quick and tasty way to get a protein boost first thing in the morning. Simply add a scoop of protein powder to your coffee — creamy, satisfying, and muscle-friendly.
👉 Sensitive to caffeine? Decaf works just as well, and won’t interfere with your sleep. Since good sleep is essential for muscle building and recovery, aim to avoid caffeine in the second half of the day.
Other breakfast ideas:
❓ FAQ: Gaining Muscle During Menopause
1. Can I still gain muscle after menopause?
Yes. Research shows that women post-menopause can still build muscle with strength training and adequate protein — age is not a barrier, consistency is key.
2. How much protein do I need per day during menopause?
Aim for 1.2–1.6g of protein per kilogram of body weight daily. For a 70 kg woman, that’s 84–112g per day, split across meals. For muscle building, the focus is how much you eat each day. However, spreading it out comes with a heap of other benefits.
3. What type of exercise is best during menopause to prevent muscle loss?
Resistance training is most effective. Think squats, lunges, weights, bands — anything that challenges your muscles. However, cardio still helps build muscle and support health bones.
4. Do I need supplements like protein powder?
Not always, but they help if you struggle to meet protein targets with food. Check out Orla’s guide on Picking a Protein Powder.
5. What’s the best breakfast to support muscle building?
Try a breakfast with 20–30g of protein. Options include eggs, Greek yoghurt, or Protein-Rich Coffee.
6. How long does it take to see results from strength training in menopause?
You may notice increased strength within 4–8 weeks. Visible changes in muscle mass may take longer but are absolutely achievable. How fast we gain muscle mass depends on age, genetics and medical history. PCOS may help women gain muscle faster.
7. Does menopause cause muscle loss?
Not directly, we don’t think. However, more research may shed more light on this. Muscle loss is more linked to ageing and inactivity, though menopause may influence the rate. Action makes the difference.
8. What’s the role of oestrogen in muscle maintenance?
Oestrogen supports muscle regeneration, but its decline can be overcome with good nutrition and training.
9. Can I combine strength training with cardio?
Yes. Just make sure resistance training is the priority for muscle preservation and growth.
10. Where can I learn more about menopause and nutrition?
Start with Orla’s Simple Guide to Menopause and browse her evidence-based blog for more.
