What Is Strength Training
Strength training uses resistance exercises to condition and strengthens the body's system. Resistance exercise conditions the musculoskeletal system by improving muscle tone and endurance. The word "strength training" is used synonymously with words like "resistance training" and "weightlifting."
During my twenty years of teaching exercise classes, I made sure my students performed strength training twice a week. The health benefits of strength training include increased muscle strength and increased muscles size and tone. In addition, there is an increase in tendon, bone, and ligament strength.
Many tools are available to use with strength training; however, my favorites are exercise or resistance chairs. They both do the same thing. The difference is that the resistance chair is a physical therapy chair. Whichever one you decide on, these chairs are so convenient. I recently retired from my brick-and-mortar job. The exercise chair is now my desk chair.
It reminds me that I needed to continue my strength training regimen. Now that I am working as an online promoter of healthy aging, I use the exercise chair at my work desk. I take breaks from my computer throughout the day to do strength training.
Tools For Strength Training
Weightlifting is also known to improve psychological health by increasing confidence, self-worth, and self-esteem. So, if you choose to embark on a strength training journey and lift weights, get the bench shown here: Embracehealthyagingproducts.
Strength Training Improves Physical
Appearance and Performance
One health benefit of strength training is that it will significantly impact your ability to increase your physical performance. As muscles get stronger, they utilize energy to move, causing them to function as the powerhouse or the body's engine. As a result, strength training increases the muscles' endurance, size, and strength.
This increase contributes to significant improvements in your performance at work and your participation in your favorite sports or hobbies. In other words, you increase your overall involvement in day-to-day activities.
Another benefit of a good strength-training program is that it positively affects your overall appearance and body composition. This benefit will play an important role in directly influencing your self-worth, self-esteem, and confidence level.
Consider This Scenario
Let us consider a man who weighs 170 and has a body fat level of 20 percent. His weight of 170 pounds is equivalent to 34 pounds of fat and 136 pounds of bones, muscle, organs, water, etc. If he gets started with strength training, he will soon replace five pounds of fat with five muscle pounds. However, he will still weigh 170 pounds with 17 percent fat.
It would equal 29 pounds of fat weight and 141 pounds of lean body weight. Although his body weight remains the same, his muscle tone, strength, and metabolism have improved, giving him a fit appearance.
Muscle gain or being hampered by muscle loss can improve your physical performance and appearance. Research indicates that unless we participate in strength training regularly, we will lose about one-half pound of muscle yearly after age 30.
Unless we get involved in a safe and effective weightlifting program, our muscles will gradually decrease in strength and size. This process is known as "atrophy."
Strength Training Helps Us as We Age
Strength Training is also critical in preventing muscle loss that is common during the aging process. A popular belief by many is that as we reach senior citizens' age, it is customary to stop being active.
Many accept that all older people will someday start using ambulatory aides like wheelchairs and canes. Many people think we have no choice in the matter and that canes and wheelchairs are typical.
Research shows that this idea is not accurate. It is far from the truth. There is no reason we cannot be mentally, physically, socially, and sexually active in our old age.
We should be living a healthy, vibrant life until our last day on Earth! There is a reason why many older adults rely on ambulatory aides and are fatter and slower is simple. Over the years, their muscles wasted away.
Hence, their metabolism and physical performance also decrease, making them less efficient. I am not sure how you feel about this, but I desire to grow old gracefully. I want to grow older without using a cane or wheelchair due to muscle loss.
Strength Training Helps Us Burn Calories
Do you know that every year after age 30, you will lose one-half pound of muscle? This decrease produces a one-half percent reduction in basal metabolic rate (BMR) each year. The decline in your BMR will interfere with your body's ability to use foods you eat as energy.
What the body does not use for energy, it stores as body fat. BMI (basal metabolic rate) relates to your body's energy during rest to help you maintain normal body functions.
Your muscles require high energy to work correctly, even during sleep. As a result, your muscles burn more than 25% of your calories. Therefore, it is crucial to implement practical strength training principles consistent with your strength training program.
As a result, you will see an increase in your entire body's lean muscle mass, and your BMR will increase. In other words, through strength training, your metabolism will work better and more efficiently, even when you are at rest.
A decrease in muscle tissue causes a reduction in metabolic rate. In addition, there is an increase in muscle tissue, which causes an increase in metabolic rate. Therefore, strength training is necessary to decrease your body fat percentage and disease risk.
Simultaneously to increase your appearance and physical performance, you should engage in strength training to condition your metabolism (BMR).
It is a big mistake to start a weight-management program that does not include the three main ingredients. What are they: A regular strength training routine, cardiovascular exercise, and low-fat eating regimen? Lack of strength training can lead to other problems. When you cut calories but fail to commit to exercise, you will lose muscle and fat.
Strength Training Decreases The Risk of Injury
Your muscles play a critical role and function as balancing agents and shock absorbents throughout your body. When the muscles are well-conditioned, they will help to protect you from the repetitive landing forces.
Landing forces occur during weight-bearing activities such as playing basketball or jogging. Well-conditioned muscles also reduce the risk of injuries when a muscle becomes weaker than its opposing muscle group.
You can reduce the risk of having unbalanced muscle development. It is crucial to make sure you are training a specific muscle group and the opposing muscle groups. You do not have to train them on the same day. However, you have to make sure you train both groups.
For example, if you are doing rowing exercises for your back muscles, you should also include some bench-presses for your chest if you perform three sets of bicep curls. Likewise, you must perform three sets of triceps curls.
In Conclusion:
I am sure by now, you realize how necessary it is to include a strength training regimen. In other words, you should include it as a part of your exercise routine. Weightlifting has many benefits that any other activity or exercise cannot achieve. In addition, when you begin to achieve the results you desire, the excitement you experience will make the change worth the effort.
I know you will enjoy all the incredible benefits you will achieve as you commit to an effective strength training program. Let me know if I can be of help. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.
Thank you
Pat Bracy
For more helpful information, visit Embrace Healthy Aging.
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I enjoyed reading this article it is very detailed about all the benefits of strength training
This is very true strength training is a must. My experience is if you dont have some type of weight training you will be disappointed like me when I first tried to do the healthy living did aerobics 3hrs straight didnt know to do weight training also lost nothing gained nothing but got discouraged