How much weight lifting is required to build bone?

I guess it's rather late to be commenting on this thread but I hadn't noticed it before. On exercise and how much resistance to use I keep encouraging people to look at the three LIFTMOR trials. They are in my opinion the best studies done using exercise with heavy resistance to build bone. The studies appear to be well done and they get significant gains with their protocol. One of the trials compared the LIFTMOR protocol to a Bio-Density machine (like OsteoStrong). LIFTMOR did better. You can search in this forum for some discussion of this and the studies are all available on the internet. Plus the lead researcher Belinda Beck has interviews and the like on Youtube and other websites. Best of luck

@raven12, there is some good information in this thread, so scroll through. It takes 'force' to build bone...there are several suggestions for that. And, as we go forward, we all need to share what seems to work for us and what doesn't.

With the help of a trainer I am working up to the regime described in the LIFTMOR protocol. If you are inexperienced with weights as I was, there is a need to lay down a foundation first. The squat and overhead press are technical moves and must be mastered before more weight is added to prevent injury. 80-85% of the one rep max, 5 x for 5 sets will be challenging for me, but I am very committed to this.
We anticipate implementing the full LIFTMOR program by mid-February.

@jasperina ,thank you. I need to do some research locally to see if there are any trainers anywhere near me who are familiar with LIFTMOR.

My trainer was not initially, but I gave her a copy of the LIFTMOR study and she read it. She also ordered the Keith McCormick books to educate herself.

This forum has been a great source of information to me. My medical provider just said, ‘ take Fosomax, calcium and vit D’ and that was that - no education or talk of alternatives or complementary therapies.

So I’ve been in search of natural ways to build back bone strength.
When I see a reference to something here that sounds intriguing, I google it and find out more. This is a great group with a lot of resources to share and I appreciate it.

Best of luck to you on your journey to find a trainer or PT who will work with you😊

With the help of a trainer I am working up to the regime described in the LIFTMOR protocol. If you are inexperienced with weights as I was, there is a need to lay down a foundation first. The squat and overhead press are technical moves and must be mastered before more weight is added to prevent injury. 80-85% of the one rep max, 5 x for 5 sets will be challenging for me, but I am very committed to this.
We anticipate implementing the full LIFTMOR program by mid-February.

So you weigh 123 pounds. Nice. Our 4.2 is right, but thank you for catching LIFT! With osteoporosis we do NOT LIFT that weight. Both yoga for osteoporosis and OSTEOstrong have us use safe PRESSURE to stimulate bones--with excellent back posture. Yoga has us hold a posture--with a straight back--that is a stretch or twist to pressure/stimulate bones. Always in control. OSTEOstrong has machines with handles or plates that we press on with our arms or legs at a precise angle. And the machine measures the pounds of pressure. My first visit, I pressed 630 pounds with my legs (4.8%+). My arms and core did only 1.5-2.6. Yes, do not lift.

Hi Margo,
I was considering joining Osteo strong, are you still a member, did you get any positive results? I guess I'm asking does it work?

I attended one session of OsteoStrong in La Jolla and had a good experience. I liked being able to measure what I press, and their machines measure the press and print it out for you. The staff were nice and friendly, and they offered a free chance to stand in a tiny room with red light or do one of two other choices.
BUT (1) I pressed so hard I got nauseated (and found out later that is simply overdoing). (2) They have you stand on the Whole Body Vibration Machine for only three minutes to "warm up" before pressing. (3) The super-nice trainer is not a PT or trained beyond what I learned by researching online. (4) I'd spend more time driving to Osteo than exercising. (5) It's expensive. (6) I work with a superb PT for all my overexercising injuries.
CONCLUSION: I do my own "OsteoStrong" session every Wednesday at home--the routine they use: upper, core, legs, leg adductors, and Whole Body Vibration, but I stand 10 minutes on my own whole body vibration machine. I don't get to measure what I'm pressing, and I have to improvise. For my leg work, I'm now lying under our piano and pushing it up with my feet! I'm rocking the piano on its back wheels until it hits the wall, so it's not technically LIFTING. It's hard to find something we can press our hardest on without breaking it and injuring ourself.
I've done 33 weeks straight.
I'm also doing Dr. Fishman's 12 Yoga Poses for Osteoporosis every day. Kendra Fitzgerald leads excellent-back-posture poses online in various videos. (Find your favorite.) I do see that yoga stresses bones in ways that should logically trigger natural bone growth. And it builds posture.
My last Dexascan showed my bone density stayed precisely the same for two years, with only the whole body vibration machine no more often than three times a week, plus ballet and running. (Doing whole body vibration every day for 10+ minutes trashed my joints from ankles to shoulders. But they healed.)
Thank you all for our community of caring, information, and inspiration.

I attended one session of OsteoStrong in La Jolla and had a good experience. I liked being able to measure what I press, and their machines measure the press and print it out for you. The staff were nice and friendly, and they offered a free chance to stand in a tiny room with red light or do one of two other choices.
BUT (1) I pressed so hard I got nauseated (and found out later that is simply overdoing). (2) They have you stand on the Whole Body Vibration Machine for only three minutes to "warm up" before pressing. (3) The super-nice trainer is not a PT or trained beyond what I learned by researching online. (4) I'd spend more time driving to Osteo than exercising. (5) It's expensive. (6) I work with a superb PT for all my overexercising injuries.
CONCLUSION: I do my own "OsteoStrong" session every Wednesday at home--the routine they use: upper, core, legs, leg adductors, and Whole Body Vibration, but I stand 10 minutes on my own whole body vibration machine. I don't get to measure what I'm pressing, and I have to improvise. For my leg work, I'm now lying under our piano and pushing it up with my feet! I'm rocking the piano on its back wheels until it hits the wall, so it's not technically LIFTING. It's hard to find something we can press our hardest on without breaking it and injuring ourself.
I've done 33 weeks straight.
I'm also doing Dr. Fishman's 12 Yoga Poses for Osteoporosis every day. Kendra Fitzgerald leads excellent-back-posture poses online in various videos. (Find your favorite.) I do see that yoga stresses bones in ways that should logically trigger natural bone growth. And it builds posture.
My last Dexascan showed my bone density stayed precisely the same for two years, with only the whole body vibration machine no more often than three times a week, plus ballet and running. (Doing whole body vibration every day for 10+ minutes trashed my joints from ankles to shoulders. But they healed.)
Thank you all for our community of caring, information, and inspiration.