How Bones Can Actually Get Stronger With Osteoporosis 

Dr. Alyssa Kuhn explains:

By the science

Bones are living tissue that constantly break down and rebuild, and weakness happens when breakdown outpaces rebuilding.

The “construction crew” for bones are living cells, and their cue to make things stronger is movement and exercise, and too little or too-easy movement doesn’t send a strong enough signal to rebuild. The body is very efficient like that, and won’t “waste” resources where it doesn’t see they’re needed.

Consequently, exercises must feel difficult enough to trigger adaptation, not just familiar or comfortable.

Due to Wolff’s law, it’s important to have variety: changing directions, speeds, and movement patterns (sideways, backwards, uphill) applies new stresses at different angles, and that’s what stimulate bone growth.

Since the level of resistance is also a factor, adding weights, resistance bands, or controlled impact increases bone-loading and improves rebuilding efficiency.

Some notes on some common strategies:

• Jumping practice: jumping can strengthen bones, but only when the landing creates enough force and when your joints and muscles are ready.
  • Also, generally a bad idea if your bones are already very weak, as the landing may create enough force to also fracture a bone, which you don’t want.
• Balance training: improving balance reduces fall risk and strengthens hips, core, and posture, which indirectly protects bones.
  • Obviously, do it in a way that ensures your safety so you don’t fall while training.
• Rebounding training: mini trampolines improve fitness and balance but absorb impact too much to significantly strengthen bones.
  • And if you land badly with weak bones, you may not rebound into good health.
• Weight vest use: light vests during normal walking are usually underdosed and less effective than targeted resistance training.
  • On the bright side, they’re less likely to cause harm than the other approaches above.
• Vibration plate use: vibration plates show small benefits but are weaker than resistance and weight-based exercises.
  • They are, nevertheless, probably the lowest-risk approach.

Some exercises to consider:

• Chair squats: squats are effective because difficulty can be increased with lower chairs, added weight, or more volume.
• Balance pass: standing on one leg while passing a weight challenges balance, hips, and core simultaneously.
• Heel drops: controlled heel drops provide mild impact when jumping isn’t appropriate.
• Step-up variations: step-ups build bone when height, load, or direction is varied beyond daily stair use.

In summary: bone strengthening works best when movement is challenging, varied, progressive, and done consistently over time.

For more on all of this plus some visual demonstrations, enjoy:

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Want to learn more?

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Take care!