In 151 postmenopausal women over 18 months, a combined exercise program increased lumbar spine bone density, and adding whole body vibration lowered the number of falls but not bone density further.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 151 women · 78 weeks · 2011PostmenopausalCited 101 timesPubMed
A systematic review of nine studies using virtual reality exercise games in climacteric women found improvements in pelvic floor strength, balance, cardiorespiratory fitness and bone density versus conventional approaches.
Reported an improvementSystematic review · 298 participants pooled · 2022PerimenopausalCited 5 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women aged 50 to 75 did 9 months of weighted vest exercise and showed improved balance, leg strength and power versus controls, but no change in femoral neck bone mass.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 44 women · 39 weeks · 1998PostmenopausalCited 75 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women who practiced a modified Eight-Section Brocade exercise for 12 months, with or without calcium, had increased bone density, less back pain and better balance than controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 198 women · 52 weeks · 2015PostmenopausalCited 36 timesPubMed
In 44 healthy postmenopausal women, 12 months of daily heel drops plus weekly high-impact classes did not significantly increase bone density at any site versus low-impact controls.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 44 women · 52 weeks · 1995PostmenopausalCited 78 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with osteopenia did 52 weeks of hip-targeted strength, balance and jumping exercise with calcium, and showed a small hip bone density benefit plus better quality of life versus controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 39 women · 52 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 49 timesPubMed
Sedentary postmenopausal women did foot stamping, squats and line dancing; the program maintained hip bone density and improved leg strength and balance.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 45 women · 2007PostmenopausalCited 36 timesPubMed
Sedentary postmenopausal women with back problems did four years of therapeutic exercise, and compliant participants showed slowed bone loss and fewer back complaints than controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 92 women · 208 weeks · 1996PostmenopausalCited 35 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with osteoporosis did 10 months of land or aquatic exercise; land exercise improved muscle strength, flexibility, gait time, pain and bone density more than aquatic exercise.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 58 women · 43 weeks · 2014PostmenopausalCited 22 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with osteopenia did 9 months of resistance exercise plus either whole body vibration or balance training twice weekly, and bone density increased at the distal tibia in both groups.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 57 women · 39 weeks · 2013PostmenopausalCited 21 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with osteopenia and a healed wrist fracture did a 6-month weighted vest and balance exercise programme, showing no significant difference from education alone in strength, bone density, balance or quality of life.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 80 women · 26 weeks · 2015PostmenopausalCited 17 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women did 6 months of single-leg standing exercise; overall hip bone density did not improve versus controls, though women aged 70 and older showed increases.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 94 women · 26 weeks · 2010PostmenopausalCited 14 timesPubMed
52 postmenopausal women with osteopenia did Kinect-based virtual reality training three times weekly for 24 weeks and showed greater bone density gains and lower fracture risk scores than controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 52 women · 24 weeks · 2024PostmenopausalCited 10 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with low bone density did a 20 week program of aerobic, balance and strength training and researchers found improved bone quality measures and leg strength versus controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 49 women · 20 weeks · 2008PostmenopausalCited 13 timesPubMed
914 older women aged around 76 were followed for 2 years in an exercise intervention trial, and better balance and functional test scores predicted fewer falls and fall injuries.
Mixed resultsRandomised trial · 914 women · 104 weeks · 2024PostmenopausalCited 4 timesPubMed
In 151 postmenopausal women over one year, multifunctional training with or without whole-body vibration increased lumbar spine bone density, and vibration training reduced falls versus controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 151 women · 52 weeks · 2009PostmenopausalCited 9 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women did high-intensity resistance, weight-bearing and balance training twice weekly for 8 months and showed greater gains in lumbar spine bone density and muscle performance than a low-intensity group.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 28 women · 32 weeks · 2022PostmenopausalCited 7 timesPubMed
In menopausal women, 8 weeks of walking or bone joint exercise increased estrogen and bone mineral density and decreased RANKL and PTH compared to a control group.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 8 weeks · 2024Midlife womenCited 3 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with low bone mass and past fractures followed a long-term home exercise program, but showed no differences in fracture rates, falls, or bone density versus controls.
No difference foundControlled trial · 25 women · 2000PostmenopausalCited 20 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women did 19 weeks of community-based high- and odd-impact, resistance and balance training and showed reduced body fat and modest bone density gains but no change in strength or balance.
Mixed resultsControlled trial · 22 women · 19 weeks · 2022PostmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed
Among 60 postmenopausal women, worse single-leg balance and slower timed-up-and-go walking tests were associated with lower bone mineral density on DEXA scans.
Reported a worseningCross-sectional study · 60 women · 2021PostmenopausalCited 12 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with osteopenia did a 6-month weighted-vest and education program, with high adherence and improved quadriceps strength and hip bone density.
Reported an improvementBefore-and-after study · 42 women · 26 weeks · 2015PostmenopausalCited 7 timesPubMed
This narrative review summarized medical literature finding that regular exercise in midlife and postmenopausal women is linked with reduced obesity, cancer, dementia, mood symptoms, and osteoporosis.
Reported an improvementOther · 2015Midlife womenCited 56 timesPubMed
In 38 postmenopausal women with low bone density, 8 months of weekly OsteoStrong sessions did not improve hip or spine bone density, though some physical function measures improved.
No difference foundBefore-and-after study · 38 women · 32 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed
Three elderly women did 40 weeks of jumping, balance and strength exercise, with or without raloxifene, which improved balance, gait speed and leg strength but had limited effect on bone density.
Mixed resultsBefore-and-after study · 3 women · 40 weeks · 2002PostmenopausalCited 4 timesPubMed
A position statement concluded regular exercise may reduce bone loss rate and improve muscle strength and balance in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis, though less effective than estrogen for bone density.
Reported an improvementOther · 2000PostmenopausalCited 23 timesPubMed
A trial protocol will compare 12 weeks of urban dance versus functional fitness against a control group for physical and psychological effects in postmenopausal women aged 40 to 59.
Direction not statedOther · 12 weeks · 2025Early postmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed
A 55-year-old postmenopausal breast cancer survivor following a supervised resistance, aerobic and balance program with diet and supplements for 16 months saw bone density rise at the spine and hip.
Reported an improvementOther · 1 women · 70 weeks · 2026PostmenopausalPubMed
A primary care guideline review recommended adults 50 and older, including postmenopausal women, do balance, functional, and resistance training twice weekly to help manage fracture risk.
Direction not statedOther · 2026PostmenopausalPubMed
A review reported that combined muscle strengthening, aerobic, progressive resistance and high impact exercise programs were linked to increased bone mineral density, and balance exercises reduced falls in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis.
Reported an improvementOther · 2014PostmenopausalPubMed