How Much Weight You Should Be Lifting for Your Age – From Your 20s to 70+

Strength doesn't suddenly disappear when you hit 40, 50 or even 60. While ageing can eventually affect muscle mass and recovery, your age is only one part of what determines how much weight you can lift.

Bodyweight, training experience, injury history, biomechanics and how consistently you train can all have a significant impact on your numbers. An experienced lifter in his 50s, for instance, may comfortably outlift someone half his age who's only recently started training.

With that in mind, the following numbers shouldn't be taken as gospel. Instead, consider them useful one-rep-max benchmarks for men with some lifting experience, expressed relative to bodyweight. Beginners should build up progressively rather than jumping straight into maximal testing, while experienced lifters may comfortably exceed them.

You don't need to test a true one-rep max to use these benchmarks, either – particularly as you get older. As a rough guide, your three-rep max will typically be around 90-93% of your one-rep max, while your five-rep max will sit at around 85-87%.

For the later decades, where age-specific lifting standards are less established, these numbers are best viewed as conservative ballpark targets rather than rigid prescriptions.

The bench press is heavily influenced by factors including arm length, muscle mass and training history, so two men of the same age and bodyweight may still put up very different numbers.

In Your 20s: 1-1.5 x Bodyweight

For a man who trains consistently, a bodyweight bench is a solid milestone, while 1.25-1.5 times bodyweight represents a strong intermediate target. Newer lifters may initially sit closer to 0.5-1 times bodyweight while building technique and strength.

In Your 30s: 1-1.5 x Bodyweight

There's little reason for your bench-press goals to change dramatically when you enter your 30s. A trained lifter can still aim for around bodyweight to 1.5 times bodyweight, depending on experience. If anything, years of consistent training may mean you're stronger in your 30s than you were in your 20s.

In Your 40s: 1-1.5 x Bodyweight

For intermediate lifters in their 40s, 1-1.5 times bodyweight remains a realistic benchmark. More advanced lifters may reach 1.5 times bodyweight or beyond, although shoulder health, training experience and individual biomechanics become increasingly important when lifting maximal loads.

In Your 50s: 1-1.35 x Bodyweight

A bench press of around bodyweight to 1.35 times bodyweight represents strong intermediate pressing strength for a man in his 50s. Experienced lifters may still exceed this, but maintaining strength can be just as valuable a goal as continually chasing new PBs.

In Your 60s: 0.75-1 x Bodyweight

Being able to bench around 0.75 times your bodyweight to bodyweight represents a useful strength benchmark in your 60s. Lifters with decades of training behind them may considerably exceed it, while those taking up resistance training later in life should progress gradually from their own starting point.

70+: 0.5-0.75 x Bodyweight

For men over 70, pressing around 0.5-0.75 times bodyweight is a strong general target. However, maintaining the ability to train your chest, shoulders and triceps progressively is more important than testing a true one-rep max.

The squat is another lift where body proportions can make a substantial difference. Femur length, torso length, ankle mobility and preferred squat style can all influence how much weight you can comfortably move.

In Your 20s: 1.25-1.5 x Bodyweight

For men with some lifting experience, a squat of around 1.25-1.5 times bodyweight is a useful target. Beginners may initially aim closer to 0.75-1 times bodyweight while mastering depth and technique.

In Your 30s: 1.25-1.5 x Bodyweight

Your 30s can still be prime strength-building years. A squat of 1.25-1.5 times bodyweight remains a strong intermediate benchmark, and experienced lifters may be capable of considerably more.

In Your 40s: 1.25-1.5 x Bodyweight

A 1.5-times-bodyweight squat represents a strong milestone for a well-trained man in his 40s, while an intermediate lifter may fall somewhere between 1.25 and 1.5 times bodyweight.

A double-bodyweight squat is possible, but remains uncommon outside serious strength-focused training.

In Your 50s: 1.25-1.5 x Bodyweight

The numbers don't necessarily need to drop sharply when you reach your 50s. For trained men, 1.25-1.5 times bodyweight remains a realistic intermediate benchmark.

The priority should increasingly be maintaining good technique and control rather than simply forcing additional plates onto the bar.

In Your 60s: 1-1.25 x Bodyweight

Squatting around bodyweight to 1.25 times bodyweight represents a strong general target in your 60s. Experienced lifelong lifters may remain well above this, but there's no need to chase maximal loads at the expense of comfortable technique or range of motion.

70+: 0.75-1 x Bodyweight

A squat somewhere between 0.75 times bodyweight and bodyweight is a useful benchmark for men over 70 who are comfortable training with a barbell.

At this age, simply continuing to progressively train your legs can offer considerably more value than comparing your one-rep max with younger lifters. Squat variations, boxes or other adjustments can also be used where appropriate.

Because it recruits so much muscle mass, the deadlift generally allows you to handle more weight than either the bench press or squat. It's also particularly affected by limb length and lifting style, so conventional strength standards should always be treated as rough guides.

In Your 20s: 1.5-2 x Bodyweight

For an intermediate lifter in his 20s, 1.5-2 times bodyweight is a strong target. Newer lifters may begin closer to bodyweight, while a double-bodyweight pull is an impressive longer-term milestone.

In Your 30s: 1.5-2 x Bodyweight

Men in their 30s can still aim for broadly the same numbers. Between 1.5 and two times bodyweight represents a useful benchmark for a trained lifter, depending on experience and body size.

In Your 40s: 1.5-1.75 x Bodyweight

For intermediate lifters in their 40s, 1.5-1.75 times bodyweight provides a realistic benchmark. A double-bodyweight deadlift represents particularly strong pulling strength, while anything beyond that becomes increasingly uncommon outside dedicated strength training.

In Your 50s: 1.25-1.5 x Bodyweight

A deadlift of around 1.25-1.5 times bodyweight represents a useful strength target for trained men in their 50s. Those who have lifted consistently for decades may still pull considerably more.

As loads increase, recovery and fatigue management become increasingly important, so there's little benefit in chasing a maximal pull simply for the sake of matching a chart.

In Your 60s: 1-1.25 x Bodyweight

Being able to deadlift approximately bodyweight to 1.25 times bodyweight is a strong benchmark in your 60s.

If pulling from the floor becomes uncomfortable, adjusting the range of motion or using another deadlift variation can allow you to continue training the same fundamental movement pattern.

70+: 0.75-1 x Bodyweight

For men over 70, lifting somewhere around 0.75 times bodyweight to bodyweight provides a useful general benchmark.

But at this point, the real win is preserving the ability to pick up meaningful loads confidently and safely. The number on the bar matters much less than continuing to train your strength consistently.

Strength standards can give you something concrete to work towards, but they shouldn't become a verdict on how strong you 'should' be simply because of your age. For many lifters, testing a true one-rep max isn't necessary or appropriate, either. Working with lighter weights and higher rep ranges may be a better option.

A well-trained 60-year-old may comfortably exceed these numbers, while a 25-year-old who's new to lifting may sit well below them. Your bodyweight, training history, genetics, injury history and biomechanics all matter.

Use these benchmarks as reference points, build your lifts progressively and focus on remaining strong for the decade you're in – and the ones still to come.

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