Evidence library · Muscle strength

Does walking affect muscle strength in menopause? What 17 studies found

Studies of walking in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women that measured muscle strength. 12 reported an improvement and 3 found no difference against the comparison group.

  1. 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.

    Reported an improvementSystematic review · 2,646 participants pooled · 2004Early postmenopausalCited 219 timesPubMed

  2. In 107 sedentary women aged 50 to 60, 13 weeks of brisk walking with or without poles similarly improved peak oxygen uptake, with no major differences between the two methods.

    No difference foundRandomised trial · 107 women · 13 weeks · 2007Midlife womenCited 47 timesPubMed

  3. Over 2 years, postmenopausal women doing resistance training and walking with creatine supplementation showed no extra bone density benefit over placebo, but some bone geometry and lean mass measures improved.

    No difference foundRandomised trial · 237 women · 104 weeks · 2023PostmenopausalCited 24 timesPubMed

  4. Obese postmenopausal women walked and strength trained with diet and GH or IGF-I injections for 12 weeks; all groups lost fat and gained muscle strength without losing lean mass.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 28 women · 12 weeks · 1998PostmenopausalCited 60 timesPubMed

  5. In postmenopausal women, 8 months of whole-body vibration or walking differently improved fitness measures, with walking better for walking speed and chair rise, vibration better for vertical jump.

    No difference foundRandomised trial · 27 women · 35 weeks · 2009PostmenopausalCited 28 timesPubMed

  6. Women recently through menopause did brisk walking with resistance training for 15 weeks and improved leg strength and walking time, but not balance, with 92% adherence.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 134 women · 15 weeks · 2006Early postmenopausalCited 20 timesPubMed

  7. Breast cancer survivors who did Nordic walking showed improved trunk muscle endurance and posture compared with a general gymnastics control group, with age-related differences.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 39 women · 2021Midlife womenCited 14 timesPubMed

  8. Middle-aged women did 12 weeks of resistance training or walking three times weekly, and resistance training improved body image more than walking.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 60 women · 12 weeks · 1993Midlife womenCited 19 timesPubMed

  9. In menopausal women aged 50 to 65, a 12 week SaBang-DolGi walking program improved physical measures and mental well-being compared to a control group.

    Direction not statedRandomised trial · 40 women · 12 weeks · 2020Midlife womenCited 9 timesPubMed

  10. In postmenopausal women, 8 weeks of Nordic walking with a resistance shock absorber improved femur strength index and shoulder muscle torque but did not change whole-body or spine bone density.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 25 women · 8 weeks · 2022PostmenopausalCited 5 timesPubMed

  11. Obese women aged 40 to 50 did combined aerobic and resistance exercise for 16 weeks, and the exercise group showed significantly greater increases in chest, leg and abdominal strength than controls.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 16 weeks · 2013Midlife womenCited 10 timesPubMed

  12. In 71 postmenopausal women, 12 weeks of HIIT Nordic walking increased lean mass and lower limb strength, while strength training reduced fat mass and improved upper limb strength and walking speed.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 71 women · 12 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalCited 2 timesPubMed

  13. Women aged 63 to 79 with osteopenia or osteoporosis did 12 weeks of Nordic walking three times weekly and showed increased skeletal muscle mass, knee strength, and functional performance versus controls.

    Reported an improvementControlled trial · 45 women · 12 weeks · 2016PostmenopausalCited 33 timesPubMed

  14. Over 12 weeks, postmenopausal women doing Nordic walking with high protein intake and time-restricted eating showed the largest gains in handgrip strength and physical performance.

    Reported an improvementRandomised trial · 96 women · 12 weeks · 2026PostmenopausalPubMed

  15. In 40 postmenopausal women, 24 weeks of walking and strength training combined with dieting increased muscle strength, while bone density and VO2max did not change.

    Reported an improvementControlled trial · 40 women · 24 weeks · 1997PostmenopausalCited 14 timesPubMed

  16. Obese postmenopausal women did a 10 week mixed Nordic walking and strength training program and showed improved fitness, strength, waist to hip ratio and cholesterol levels.

    Reported an improvementBefore-and-after study · 10 weeks · 2014PostmenopausalCited 8 timesPubMed

  17. A protocol describes a 9 month mHealth guided jumping and fast walking program in 120 postmenopausal women to test effects on bone density, with results not yet reported.

    Direction not statedOther · 120 women · 36 weeks · 2025PostmenopausalCited 4 timesPubMed

How to read this. Each line is one study, summarised in plain language from its PubMed abstract, with the authors' own sentence underneath on the study page. A count of studies is not a verdict: trials differ in size, length and quality, and a result in one group of women may not hold in another. Nothing here is medical advice.

Summaries are generated, then checked by machine against the abstract they came from; any summary that could not be matched word for word was left out. Our clinical lead is reviewing the summaries topic by topic, and this note will change when that is done. Corpus last refreshed 2026-11-03. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix the summary or remove the study.

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