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The Benefits of Weight Training
John Litchfield
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Cardiovascular exercise on machines such as treadmills
and exercise bikes burns more calories than lifting weights,
so is
it just a waste of gym time to add strength training to your
workout?
The simple answer is no. Working your muscles as well as
your heart and lungs can improve your health and help
you drop a clothes size faster.
"I only exercise to lose weight and get thinner. I can
burn far more calories doing light cardiovascular work than
heavy lifting, shouldn't I just stick to the treadmill?"
While cardiovascular exercise is a great way of burning the
fat, adding a little strength training to your workouts will
earn you extra calories every day. You'll even be
burning
extra calories while you're sleeping or sitting on the couch
watching Eastenders.
Aerobic exercise may burn a few hundred extra
calories for dinner, but for every additional pound of muscle
you gain, your body burns around 50 extra calories every day of the
week.
Research has shown that regular resistance training can
increase your Basal Metabolic Rate by up to 15%. So for
someone burning 2000 calories per day, that's a potential 300
extra calories, more than a Mars bar, burned every single day.
Do not be disheartened if initially you seem to be staying
at the same weight or gaining slightly.
Muscle weighs more per square inch than fat, so whilst your weight might not
be dropping very quickly, your clothes are feeling baggier and you are
seeing a healthier, slimmer and better toned you in the
mirror. That's far more important than anything those
nasty scales have to say, any time.
"Is weight training right for women? I loved Terminator,
but being 5ft6 and female I'm not sure Arnie's muscles would
suit me."
Weight training is just as suitable for women as it is
for men. Many women are wary of taking it up
for fear that increased muscle means increased masculinity,
this is not the case.
Testosterone is a very important factor in the development
of muscle shape, so as women have very low levels of this
hormone their muscles develop differently, meaning a little
resistance training will not lead to a bulky, butch physique.
"I'm not getting any younger, shouldn't I just stick to
low resistance exercise to avoid injury?"
No in fact building a little extra muscle can actually
reduce the risk of injury.
Strong muscles, tendons and ligaments are much more capable
of withstanding stress, and the improved flexibility gained by
strength training also reduces the likelihood of pulled
muscles and back pain.
Weight training is an excellent way of combating several
symptoms we all face as we get a little older.
Resistance exercise can reduce bone deterioration and build
bone mass, preventing osteoporosis.
Working your muscles can also inhibit the affects of
sarcopenia, the age related loss of muscle mass, strength and
function. After the age of thirty there is a loss of 3-5% of
muscle mass per decade, making day to day tasks gradually
harder to perform and slowing down metabolism -
increasing the risk of weight gain.
"How can weight training make me healthier?"
Recent research has shown that weight (or resistance) training can
greatly reduce a number of health risks.
It has been proven to have a positive
affect on insulin resistance, resting metabolism, blood
pressure, body fat and gastrointestinal transit time, factors
that are linked to illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease
and cancer.
"Why am I still reading this and not starting my new
stronger, fitter, healthier and happier life right now?"
Good point. Research shows that just two 15-20 minute
sessions a week is enough to gain all the potential
health benefits of strength training.
I'm not talking about lifting 100 kilos above your head or
chest pressing the weight of a bus. Start slowly and work your
way up. Even using tins of baked beans as makeshift
dumbbells
or using light
ankle weights is a good start.
Over the course of your sessions, use exercises that work
all the muscle groups and do 8-12 repetitions. Be sure to use
a suitable weight so that the last rep really feels like hard
work. Don't overdo it and make sure that you leave a day or
two to recover in between sessions. Muscles grow while
resting, so pushing yourself as hard as you can seven days a
week won't do you any favours.
A little effort will reap big benefits.
You can feel healthier and look better, which in turn will
make you feel better about yourself and the benefits can last
for the rest of your life. |
