A network meta-analysis of 38 trials in postmenopausal women found water exercise best improved blood pressure and total cholesterol, combined training improved triglycerides and HDL, and resistance training improved LDL.
Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 1,407 participants pooled · 2022PostmenopausalCited 16 timesPubMed
A review of 28 randomised trials in postmenopausal women aged 50 to 65 found walking combined with resistance training could preserve weight and bone density and increase muscle strength.
Mixed resultsSystematic review · 2,646 participants pooled · 2004Early postmenopausalCited 219 timesPubMed
A meta-analysis of 19 trials in postmenopausal women found resistance training reduced total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides, especially in those with obesity or high cholesterol.
Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 2023PostmenopausalCited 14 timesPubMed
A meta-analysis of 12 trials in postmenopausal women found resistance training reduced C-reactive protein and improved lipid profile but had little effect on waist circumference.
Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 482 participants pooled · 2022PostmenopausalCited 3 timesPubMed
A network meta-analysis of 142 trials in postmenopausal women found combined training, aerobic exercise, resistance training and mind-body exercise each improved different metabolic syndrome risk factors.
Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 7,967 participants pooled · 2025PostmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed
A meta-analysis of RCTs found that 16 weeks of aerobic training or 12 weeks of resistance training improved cholesterol and triglyceride levels in obese postmenopausal women.
Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 16 weeks · 2025Midlife womenCited 9 timesPubMed
A network meta-analysis of 51 RCTs in postmenopausal women found HIIT, aerobic and combined exercise significantly lowered triglycerides versus control, while resistance training did not.
Reported an improvementMeta-analysis · 2,046 participants pooled · 2026PostmenopausalPubMed
In 107 overweight postmenopausal women over 6 months, adding resistance training to calorie restriction reduced body fat more but did not further improve lipids, insulin or inflammation markers versus diet alone.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 107 women · 26 weeks · 2009PostmenopausalCited 87 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women did 2 years of resistance and walking exercise with or without soy isoflavones, and exercise groups maintained hip bone density and improved balance compared with control.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 351 women · 104 weeks · 2013PostmenopausalCited 62 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women did low or high volume resistance training three times weekly for 16 weeks, and both groups gained strength while high volume training reduced waist size, cholesterol and inflammation more.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 32 women · 16 weeks · 2016PostmenopausalCited 70 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women aged 49 to 55 took hormone therapy or placebo, each with or without exercise, and researchers found exercise improved bone density mainly in the placebo group, with no added effect when combined with estrogen.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 78 women · 104 weeks · 1997PostmenopausalCited 83 timesPubMed
Fifteen sedentary postmenopausal women did 8 weeks of low intensity resistance training, which significantly increased muscle strength but did not change blood lipid profiles or body composition.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 15 women · 8 weeks · 2002PostmenopausalCited 95 timesPubMed
In 46 postmenopausal women, 16 weeks of resistance training with or without soy protein increased muscle mass and reduced waist circumference, while soy alone lowered cholesterol and LDL.
Mixed resultsRandomised trial · 46 women · 16 weeks · 2007PostmenopausalCited 61 timesPubMed
Twenty nine postmenopausal breast cancer survivors did 15 weeks of combined walking and resistance training, and the exercise group showed improved fitness, blood pressure, weight, insulin, glucose and cholesterol measures.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 29 women · 15 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 45 timesPubMed
In 35 obese postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome, resistance band training improved blood glucose, insulin resistance, lipids, blood pressure, body fat and lean mass compared to no change in controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 35 women · 2021PostmenopausalCited 24 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women who did supervised aerobic or resistance exercise 3 days a week for 8 weeks reported improved menopausal symptoms, lower depression and better quality of life, with no change in lipid profiles.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 36 women · 8 weeks · 2010PostmenopausalCited 31 timesPubMed
Over 12 weeks, 50 midlife women doing aerobic exercise improved peak oxygen uptake by 18%, while a strength training group showed no fitness change; lipid changes were similar between groups.
No difference foundRandomised trial · 50 women · 12 weeks · 1991Midlife womenCited 41 timesPubMed
In 38 dynapenic-obese postmenopausal women over 12 weeks, resistance training improved physical capacity while caloric restriction with or without resistance training improved body composition and metabolic markers.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 38 women · 12 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 26 timesPubMed
In postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome, 8 weeks of resistance training or HIIT reduced weight, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar, with HIIT improving metabolic markers more and resistance training improving muscle mass and strength more.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 45 women · 8 weeks · 2023PostmenopausalCited 19 timesPubMed
In postmenopausal women, 12 weeks of resistance training improved blood pressure, estimated peak VO2 and total cholesterol compared with controls, with no change in homocysteine.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 45 women · 12 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 24 timesPubMed
Twenty-two postmenopausal women did 12 weeks of progressive resistance training, and researchers found increased strength, reduced waist circumference, cholesterol and blood glucose, with no change in blood pressure.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 22 women · 12 weeks · 2015PostmenopausalCited 25 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome features did 6 months of low-load circuit resistance or aerobic cycling training; both groups reduced body fat, blood pressure and cholesterol with no difference between methods.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 34 women · 24 weeks · 2017PostmenopausalCited 20 timesPubMed
Obese postmenopausal women who did 12 weeks of whole body resistance training 3 days a week gained muscular strength and had lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol than controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 21 women · 12 weeks · 2011PostmenopausalCited 25 timesPubMed
Overweight postmenopausal women did 16 weeks of resistance training with or without DHA supplementation, with training maintaining bone mineral content, increasing lean mass and strength, and improving glucose tolerance.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 16 weeks · 2021PostmenopausalCited 36 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women did 11 weeks of resistance training three times weekly, and high-volume training reduced post-meal blood fat levels more than low-volume training.
Mixed resultsRandomised trial · 36 women · 11 weeks · 2015PostmenopausalCited 18 timesPubMed
Sedentary postmenopausal women doing 16 weeks of periodized resistance training three times weekly showed significant decreases in total and LDL cholesterol, with no change in HDL or triglycerides.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 50 women · 16 weeks · 2012PostmenopausalCited 16 timesPubMed
In a 15 week trial, resistance training in postmenopausal women with vasomotor symptoms reduced ferritin, total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol compared with a sedentary control group.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 55 women · 15 weeks · 2020PostmenopausalCited 12 timesPubMed
Early postmenopausal women did 12 weeks of resistance training with placebo or transdermal estrogen; placebo group lost more fat mass, while estrogen group improved cholesterol and glucose markers.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 31 women · 12 weeks · 2021Early postmenopausalCited 11 timesPubMed
Obese menopausal women did 6 months of caloric restriction with or without resistance training; adding resistance training improved muscle strength more in women with low baseline strength.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 109 women · 26 weeks · 2015Midlife womenCited 9 timesPubMed
Middle-aged women doing one bout of resistance exercise with or without DHEA supplementation showed improved glucose tolerance, with lipids lowered only when DHEA followed exercise.
Mixed resultsRandomised trial · 20 women · 2005Midlife womenCited 12 timesPubMed
Twenty-six obese middle-aged women with prehypertension did 6 weeks of resistance plus moderate or high-intensity aerobic training; both groups improved body composition, blood pressure, and fitness, with resistance plus HIIT improving lipids more.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 26 women · 6 weeks · 2025Midlife womenCited 6 timesPubMed
Perimenopausal women received dietary guidance combined with resistance exercise for three months and showed reduced waist circumference and triglycerides compared to controls.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 78 women · 12 weeks · 2021PerimenopausalCited 5 timesPubMed
Sedentary overweight or obese postmenopausal women underwent a diet based weight loss program with or without resistance training, and visceral fat measured by two methods decreased similarly after the intervention.
Direction not statedRandomised trial · 92 women · 2012PostmenopausalCited 6 timesPubMed
Sedentary postmenopausal women did a 1-year elastic band resistance training program and showed reduced weight, waist circumference, cholesterol, and inflammation compared to controls.
Reported an improvementControlled trial · 38 women · 52 weeks · 2018PostmenopausalCited 31 timesPubMed
Moderately obese postmenopausal women did diet alone or diet plus walking and resistance exercise for 24 weeks, and both groups lost weight with no added effect of exercise on blood lipids or glucose.
No difference foundControlled trial · 41 women · 24 weeks · 1996PostmenopausalCited 51 timesPubMed
Early postmenopausal women did high impact aerobic, jumping and resistance exercise for 50 months, maintaining spine bone density and improving cholesterol, body fat and strength versus non-training controls.
Reported an improvementControlled trial · 68 women · 217 weeks · 2007Early postmenopausalCited 18 timesPubMed
In postmenopausal women, a 15-week resistance training program reduced hot flush frequency for up to 6 months, but the benefit was not maintained at 2-year follow-up.
No difference foundCohort study · 35 women · 104 weeks · 2024PostmenopausalCited 11 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with overweight or obesity did 16 weeks of resistance training and/or DHA supplementation, with muscle quality improving more with resistance training and cardiometabolic markers improving more with DHA.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 16 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed
In 23 sedentary middle-aged women, six weeks of resistance training combined with electrical stimulation reduced LDL and total cholesterol more than resistance training alone, with no difference in glucose or CRP.
Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 23 women · 6 weeks · 2026Midlife womenPubMed
Postmenopausal women did a single high or low volume resistance exercise session, and researchers found no reduction in blood lipid levels measured 16 hours later compared to controls.
No difference foundControlled trial · 39 women · 2014PostmenopausalCited 6 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women with obesity who did 4 months of resistance training saw decreased body fat and increased strength and fitness, with smaller effects on cholesterol and no change in blood sugar control.
Mixed resultsControlled trial · 51 women · 16 weeks · 2024PostmenopausalCited 2 timesPubMed
Postmenopausal women did 8 weeks of circuit resistance training at varying intensities, with or without Zataria Multiflora supplementation, which together changed blood lipid and viscosity markers.
Reported an improvementControlled trial · 96 women · 8 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalPubMed
Postmenopausal women with abdominal obesity did 12 weeks of interval Nordic walking or strength training, both reduced waist circumference, raised HDL, and lowered blood glucose versus controls.
Reported an improvementControlled trial · 12 weeks · 2026PostmenopausalPubMed
Among 31 menopausal women, those with more years and higher weekly frequency of resistance training had lower trunk fat mass and an association with higher HDL cholesterol.
Reported an improvementCross-sectional study · 31 women · 2022Midlife womenCited 4 timesPubMed
A review of exercise training in hypertensive postmenopausal women reported that aerobic and resistance exercise were linked to improved blood pressure, lipid profiles and cardiorespiratory fitness.
Reported an improvementOther · 2018PostmenopausalCited 56 timesPubMed
Fourteen postmenopausal breast cancer survivors on tamoxifen did 12 weeks of resistance training then 12 weeks of detraining, with fat mass decreasing and muscle strength and cholesterol improving after training.
Reported an improvementOther · 14 women · 12 weeks · 2021PostmenopausalCited 12 timesPubMed
A cross-sectional study of menopausal women practicing resistance training found metabolically unhealthy women were older, had less RT experience, lower HDL cholesterol and higher visceral adiposity.
Mixed resultsCross-sectional study · 31 women · 2023Midlife womenPubMed
A review reported that aerobic and resistance exercise in menopausal women was linked to improved cardiovascular fitness, increased bone mineral content, greater muscle strength and reduced body fat.
Direction not statedOther · 1990Midlife womenCited 21 timesPubMed
This review reported that higher-volume aerobic exercise raised HDL cholesterol in pre and postmenopausal women, while resistance training lowered LDL, total cholesterol and body fat without raising HDL.
Mixed resultsOther · 2001Midlife womenCited 2 timesPubMed
This review of strength training studies in postmenopausal women reported that resistance training reduces postprandial lipid concentrations after meals.
Reported an improvementOther · 2015PostmenopausalCited 1 timesPubMed
This review reports that regular aerobic or resistance training, alongside Mediterranean or DASH diets, can help mitigate adverse lipid changes during the menopause transition.
Reported an improvementOther · 2026Midlife womenPubMed