Stronger together: More seniors raising the bar on strength training

SINGAPORE - After two strokes in 2015 and 2022 that left half her body immobilised, Ms Esther Teo could not stand on her feet for even two minutes.

Worried about becoming bed-bound and inspired by a TV programme that featured an 80-year-old doing deadlifts, Ms Teo, 66, sought out and found a guided strength training programme by social service agency Care Corner Singapore.

Today, she can deadlift 50kg, and stand for longer than 15 minutes at a stretch. She is also working hard towards her goal of lifting her 70kg body weight.

With Singapore rapidly ageing, more seniors like Ms Teo are cottoning on to the importance of endurance and strength-based activities to keep frailty at bay, said programme providers here.

Mr Tan Leong Boon, chief of the Agency for Integrated Care’s (AIC) Care Systems Integration Division, said AIC has observed a steady increase in seniors here taking part in endurance and strength-based activities over the past few years.

For instance, Sport Singapore’s (SportSG) Active Health initiative runs the Combat Age-related Loss of Muscle (CALM) programme across 132 active ageing centres (AACs).

The eight-week programme, which integrates assessments, nutrition education and guided strength training, has reached approximately 4,000 seniors since its launch in September 2024. SportSG said it is aiming to expand CALM to 5,500 seniors across 180 AACs by end-2026.

Meanwhile, more than 2,700 people are on the wait list across the 30 community Gym Tonic sites, with wait times ranging from three to nine months. This is up from a wait list of about 1,000 people in 2024.

The programme, launched by philanthropic organisation Lien Foundation in 2015, offers a 12-week, twice-weekly strength training regimen that uses AI-enabled hydraulic gym machines. It currently has more than 3,200 active members, and estimates that it will serve over 6,300 members in 2026.

AIC’s Mr Tan said the AACs have shared that factors driving the rise in participation in these programmes include stronger awareness of their benefits, and encouragement from peers and caregivers. More senior-friendly options are also being offered across the island.

NTUC Health, for instance, will open its seventh senior-focused gym in 2026. The social enterprise said it saw a 60 per cent rise in senior gym users between 2024 and 2025. Thrive Healthcare, a private physiotherapy provider, likewise said its physiotherapist-led strength and conditioning classes have seen their take-up rise by 20 per cent year on year.

Social connection another benefit

Care Corner senior wellness trainer Gerald Ang echoed the importance of encouragement, adding that the main challenge he faces is getting seniors to take the first step in exercising.

“You need to constantly remind them that exercise can enhance their quality of life and support their day-to-day activities like going to the market and carrying groceries,” said Mr Ang, who is Ms Teo’s trainer.

According to the Singapore Physical Activity Guidelines developed by the Health Promotion Board and SportSG, adults aged 50 and above should engage in multi-component physical activity that emphasises strength and functional balance at least three days a week, at a moderate or greater intensity.

Associate Professor Wee Shiou Liang at the Singapore University of Social Sciences’ gerontology programmes noted that while regular walking is often prescribed to help seniors stay active, this has relatively little effect in preventing muscle and bone loss as it does not stimulate muscle and bone cells enough.

The chief exercise for middle-aged and older adults should thus be strength training, with a progressively increased training load to reverse or prevent declines in one’s ability to perform daily functional activities, he added.

Prof Wee said such activity is particularly important for women, as they live longer, experience menopause, and face a wider gap between lifespan and health span compared with men.

Beyond physical benefits, group classes foster community, purpose and belonging, which are equally important for healthy ageing, said Thrive Healthcare physiotherapist Lenis Phoa.

One senior who has made new friends through such a programme is retired driver Chng Eng Chong, 79.

Mr Chng, who has hypertension and a heart blockage, has been on Care Corner’s frailty management programme since January. Seeing the benefits of the exercises, he now also walks around his neighbourhood with a weighted backpack, an activity known as rucking.

On March 28, Mr Chng and his friends will be among some 550 seniors expected to take part in Care Corner Uplift for Life Ruckathon 2026. The event at Gardens by the Bay will see participants complete a 5km walk while wearing a 5kg backpack, in support of a campaign to raise $1 million for Care Corner’s programmes.

Ms Sharon Tang, head of Care Corner’s active ageing group, said the funds raised will enable the social service agency to expand its strength training programmes, which prevent seniors from becoming socially isolated and disengaged from the community because of poor physical health.

For Ms Teo, the benefits to her mobility, confidence and independence are clear.

“Most of my friends commented that I look and walk better now. I can even show off my ‘little mice’,” she said, flexing her biceps.