About Liftspan

Liftspan is a strength training app for lifters over 40. I'm Dave Newman, I'm in my late 50s, and I built it because I couldn't find the app I needed when I came back to lifting.

Why I built it

I lifted in my 20s, the way you do at 25: a five-day split copied out of a magazine and no thought about what it would cost later. Then work and family took over, and it was a long time before I got back under a bar.

When I did come back, in my 50s, every app I tried assumed I was still 25. Barbell squats on day one. The same weight jumps whatever my history. No idea that my shoulder has opinions about overhead pressing. I pushed through anyway, because that's what the plan said, and the shoulder made me pay for it.

What I wanted was simple to describe: a plan that knows what I can actually lift today, trains around the shoulder instead of through it, adds weight only when I've earned it, and still works when all I have is a hotel gym. I couldn't find it, so I built it.

Who's behind it

One person. I've spent my career in web and tech, and I built Liftspan on my own, with a lot of help from AI tools. I use it every time I train, which is also how most bugs get found: in the gym, by me, and fixed that night.

That's also why it's honest about age. It asks for your real age and the joints that give you trouble, and it plans around both. Nothing about it assumes you're 25, and nothing about it assumes you're fragile either.

How the guides are written

I write every guide myself. Each one is grounded in published research, and the sources are linked at the bottom of the page so you can read them yourself. When a guide says the app does something, I check it against the app before it goes up.

I'm not a doctor, a physical therapist or a certified coach. I'm a lifter who reads the research and has made most of the mistakes. Nothing on this site is medical advice. If something hurts, and especially if it's sharp or getting worse, see a doctor or a physio before you train it.

If you're a physical therapist or a certified strength coach and you'd be willing to review the injury guides, I'd like to hear from you: dave@liftspan.fit.

What Liftspan is built on

Recovery is the point, not the obstacle. Weight goes up when you've earned it, not on a schedule. Rest days and deload weeks are part of the plan, not a failure of it. Showing up every day counts, even when all you did was walk. And your training history is yours: it exports any time, including in the formats Strong and Hevy use, so you're never stuck here.

Get in touch

Email me at dave@liftspan.fit, or find Liftspan on X and Instagram. Feature requests, bug reports and "this doesn't work for my knee" are all welcome. That last kind is how the app gets better.