09/20/2026
Are you taking the best possible care of yourself?
One of the most important reasons to exercise as you age has nothing to do with how you look.
It’s your bones.
As we age, we naturally lose muscle mass, strength, and bone density.
And here’s a pretty incredible real-life story of what may be possible when you consistently challenge your body as you age.
Meet Madeline, a.k.a. “Mad Dog.”
After Mad Dog broke her wrist and needed surgery, her orthopedic surgeon was surprised by the condition of her bones. He told her:
“I had to make sure I was operating on the right person because your bones look like those of someone who’s in their 20s.”
Think about that.
A septuagenarian was told by the surgeon who operated on her that her bones looked like those of someone in their 20s.
How is that possible?
Mad Dog has been diligently following a weight-training program three days a week for more than a decade.
That’s more than 10 years of consistently challenging her body with resistance training.
Now, let’s look at why this matters.
For women, bone loss can become particularly significant around menopause. Women can lose up to 20% of their bone density during the 5–7 years following menopause, along with the age-related decline in muscle mass and strength.
That’s a significant amount of bone to lose—and it’s one of the reasons giving your body the right stimulus through weight-bearing and resistance exercise is so important.
But is normal everyday activity enough?
Staying active is absolutely necessary as we age—but being active alone isn’t necessarily sufficient to put your body at its absolute best or give you the best possible quality of life as you age.
Walking, doing household chores, climbing stairs, and staying generally active are important. But your body needs a progressive resistance stimulus to continually challenge your muscles and bones.
And the consequences of losing physical resilience can become much more serious as we get older.
According to recent CDC data, more than 1 in 4 adults age 65 and older report falling each year. Falls are the leading cause of injury among older adults. About 37% of older adults who fall report an injury that requires medical treatment or restricts their activity for at least one day.
And a serious fall isn’t always something you simply recover from. Falls can result in broken bones, traumatic brain injuries, hospitalization, loss of independence, and a significant reduction in quality of life.
That’s why bone density, joint integrity, and overall physical resilience matter so much as we age.
Even just a few days a week of some type of progressive resistance training program can make a world of difference to your long-term quality of life.
Your body adapts to the demands you place on it.
Give your bones, joints, and connective tissues a reason to stay strong.
Follow Mad Dog’s example and take great care of yourself!
