After 40, maintaining lower-body strength becomes increasingly important – not just for performance in the gym, but for long-term health and day-to-day function.
According to strength coach Jack Hanrahan, there are three key lower-body benchmarks worth aiming for. ‘The first is to squat your bodyweight for five perfect reps,’ Hanrahan explains in an Instagram post. ‘The second is to reverse lunge 80% of your bodyweight for five perfect reps. And the third is to hip hinge your bodyweight for five perfect reps.’
3 Lower-Body Strength Standards Men Over 40 Should Aim For
- Squat: bodyweight x 5 reps
- Reverse lunge: 80% of bodyweight x 5 reps
- Hip hinge (dumbbell Romanian deadlift): bodyweight x 5 reps
Hanrahan admits these aren’t beginner-friendly standards, but stresses that they are achievable with consistent training and proper coaching.
‘These are not easy standards, but they are achievable with well-structured strength training over time,’ he says.
The benchmarks focus on three foundational movement patterns: the squat, lunge and hinge. Together, these compound lifts train the major lower-body muscles while also improving balance, coordination and resilience. Hanrahan notes that while the exact exercises are flexible, maintaining these movement patterns becomes increasingly important with age.
‘There’s such a strong connection between strength and longevity, particularly quality of life in later years,’ he explains.
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Hanrahan adds that strength relative to bodyweight is strongly linked to long-term functionality and injury resilience.
‘You don’t “need” to be this strong,’ he writes in the caption. ‘But your strength will decline at some point. So the stronger you can get now, the better you’ll fare later in life.’
