After seeing the changes I've made in my life the past few months, my mom is asking me to help her with nutrition and weight training. I got her on an eating plan without any issues. However, I'm clueless when it comes to strength training for her.

Her stats (all approximate, except age)
Age: 50
Weight - 140-145
Height - 5'6"-5'7"ish

She has virtually no arm strength, and chest is just as bad. She struggled with a 45 pound bench press(bar only). Her legs are probably pretty strong, if genetics are right, as the whole family has pretty strong legs, even untrained. Other than that - I'm totally clueless.

Thanks in advance.

Start with some bodyweight squats, and very light (5lb) overhead press and straight leg deadlifts.

She has virtually no arm strength, and chest is just as bad. She struggled with a 45 pound bench press(bar only). Her legs are probably pretty strong, if genetics are right, as the whole family has pretty strong legs, even untrained. Other than that - I'm totally clueless.

No, you're not. Why would you think she can't do something similar to what you're doing?

No, you're not. Why would you think she can't do something similar to what you're doing?

Agreed! Provided she's healthy and has no pre-existing medical limitations I don't think she needs do anything differently. Just look at Carole!

She has virtually no arm strength, and chest is just as bad. She struggled with a 45 pound bench press(bar only).
A woman's lifting need not be different from a man's. However, use weights that make sense for her level of strength. If she can't bench the bar, have her work with a lighter one or use dumbbells.

Agreed! Provided she's healthy and has no pre-existing medical limitations I don't think she needs do anything differently. Just look at Carole!
:)Thank you...........high praise.........smiling at you here.........

J-W and Chopaholic.......they have it right you know, just tell her to lift as heavy as she can and to NEVER STOP pushing up, one way or another be it reps or weight. The only limits she has are the sky and the vagaries of 'health'..........tell her to go for it!!

very light (5lb) overhead press and straight leg deadlifts.:confused:

That seems low to me. I don't have the time right now to think about what might be appropriate starting numbers, but I'm sure she could handle a lot more than that. If she has full access to a full gym and you to spot, she should try out the weights until she finds one that starts getting difficult after about 8 reps, or that she can't lift more than 12 or 15 reps.

Please don't let her waste her time. It's really sad for me to watch my sister lift exactly the same poundage of weights for every workout and half-heartedly grumble that she's not seeing results. (She only has a limited weight set, so she'd have to buy more equipment to actually challenge herself. She's not the slightest bit interested in lifting anything heavier than 15 pounds. :blank:)

That seems low to me. I don't have the time right now to think about what might be appropriate starting numbers, but I'm sure she could handle a lot more than that.

It is low. Think of what you do every day - laundry baskets, grocery shopping, home maintenance, pushing a lawn mower, throwing a ball, etc. I can't think of a good reason to assign a starting weight. Pick one up, try to lift it. Fail, reduce. Too light, increase.

She struggled with a 45 pound bench press(bar only).

:)For Christ sake (and her own) tell her to press that 45lb bar until she can do 6 reps and then stick a couple of 2.5lb plates on it and just 'do it'........go from there, up, up, up..........she's young and healthy..........Then tell her there are lots of people on this forum in her corner waiting to learn of her success!! :)

That seems low to me. I don't have the time right now to think about what might be appropriate starting numbers, but I'm sure she could handle a lot more than that. If she has full access to a full gym and you to spot, she should try out the weights until she finds one that starts getting difficult after about 8 reps, or that she can't lift more than 12 or 15 reps.

I totally agree. :tucool:
The only reason I indicated squat, dead lift and press was to get her started; with the compound movements (somehow natural = every day tasks) she can see the results in a meter of weeks.

Recently I started a similar program with a 63 years old lady with very brief instructions: cut the sugar, cut the meals in half, (so she will have 6 meals instead of 3,) walk 30mins every other day and do the above mentioned lifts the other days, (for as many repetitions as she can), Sunday off. For lifting she used 1l (later 2l) bottles of water. She lost 6kgs in 2 weeks and she is buying dumbbells now.;)