Resistance Training in Perimenopause Online CE Course

This course consists of the following:

• Resistance Training in Perimenopause video presentation
• Slide deck
• Practice exam
• Online continuing education exam

Resistance Training in Perimenopause examines the physiological challenges associated with perimenopause and details how resistance training can be leveraged to improve metabolic health, strength, body composition, and quality of life.

You’ll learn about the hormonal changes that occur during perimenopause and the physiological effects of those changes. You’ll get an overview of current research showing why perimenopause is an opportune time to introduce or improve resistance training habits, then examine common barriers to exercise, along with the contextual and environmental solutions you can implement with clients to help them overcome these barriers.

The presentation includes practical programming strategies and current evidence-based recommendations for starting and designing resistance training programs, including exercise prescriptions for different client goals, such as strength, power, speed, and hypertrophy. You’ll explore mesocycles and how to implement progressive overload across mesocycles, with examples including 2-, 3-, and 4-day splits, empowering you to design programs for women with a variety of training day schedules. Additional programming tips will prepare you to create flexible, enjoyable, and accessible programs that will help women overcome common barriers and develop strength training habits to last through perimenopause and beyond.

Learning Objectives

• Describe the hormonal changes that occur during perimenopause and explain how these changes influence musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and metabolic health.
• Explain how resistance training can mitigate age- and hormone-related declines in muscle mass, bone health, and metabolic function.
• Identify key principles for designing and implementing resistance training programs that support health and functional capacity during perimenopause and beyond.

Audience

Certified strength and conditioning professionals, personal trainers, small-group fitness instructors, and other professionals working with women in perimenopause.

Alyssa Parten, PhD, CSCS,*D, is a clinical assistant professor in the department of kinesiology at the University of Alabama. Her research focuses on resistance training–induced adaptations in women, with an emphasis on performance outcomes and metabolic health across the lifespan. Her work explores physiological responses in trained, perimenopausal, and metabolically compromised populations, with the goal of advancing sex-specific training recommendations. Parten has authored multiple peer-reviewed publications in leading journals, has presented frequently at national conferences, and is an active contributor to the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). She is a former strength coach and current competitive powerlifter, holding multiple state records in the USA Powerlifting women’s divisions.