Benefits The TRX for Older Adults

The TRX is one of the best pieces of training equipment for older adults who are looking to train at home. It provides an extra support that training with bodyweight or external load cannot. It also allows us to make bodyweight variations more approachable for beginners or individuals with limited mobility.

This article is written to provide TRX exercises for older adults that are beginners to resistance training. If you’re more confident with resistance training and are looking for more challenging exercises, have a look through our TRX movement library you can use to create your training sessions.

The 5 TRX Exercises Older Adults Should Add To Their Training Regime

The Reverse Lunge with TRX Support is a great way for an older adult to be introduced to unilateral squat variations. It provide a way to move through this range of motion with security and confidence. Do not feel obliged to touch the knee to the floor as in the video, it’s important to use your full range of motion, so only move as low as you feel comfortable.

The Squat with TRX Support provides a similar support to the reverse lunge but this time through the bilateral squat variation. For elderly beginners the air squat can be a challenge, so this exercise can help ease into the bilateral squat range of motion. This exercise is also excellent at those who are rehabilitating after an injury. It can be progressed by putting less and less weight into the handles of the TRX over time, as can the reverse lunge.

The TRX Curtsy Lunge is slightly more challenging than the previous two exercises, but it is a great way to introduce more complex and balance intensive work into your TRX at home sessions. You may want to perform this once you have gained confidence with the reverse lunge with TRX support.

The TRX Press is a great way for older adults get used to the vertical press range of motion without putting too much strain on their mobility limitations. It can also get activation of the anterior core as a secondary benefit. If you have extremely limited mobility overhead you may want to make this exercise as easy as possible by putting nearly done of your bodyweight into the TRX, as you get more and more comfortable you can add more of your weight.

The TRX Top Of Press Up Hold is a great way for older adults to learn to take their bodyweight. A traditional top of press up hold can be slightly too challenging for beginners or people who have been sedentary for extended periods of time, so elevating the position with the TRX can be a great way to make it manageable.

The TRX Top of Row Isometric is a perfect static hold exercise for older adults to use to learn how to activated the muscles in the upper back in preparation for a TRX row. The intensity of this exercise can be modulated by changing the foot positioning, the further away the feet are from the TRX the easier the exercise is. Progressing this exercise in difficulty from week to week can be a great to build the initial strength in the upper back for other more challenging horizontal pulling variations.