Strength training is a vital tool for maintaining health and fitness, as it helps in gaining strength, reducing body fat, increasing lean muscle mass, and burning calories more efficiently. It can provide numerous health benefits when done correctly, and training with a qualified exercise professional or fitness instructor can ensure safety and effectiveness.
Strength training increases muscle tone and may even increase muscle mass if done correctly. It also helps maintain healthy body fat levels by increasing the amount of weight or repetitions of a particular weight your muscles can handle. The main point of strength training is to increase the amount of weight or the number of repetitions of a particular weight your muscles can handle, or both.
Experts share the top benefits of strength training, including increased bone density and strength, reduced risk of osteoporosis, improved sense of wellbeing, improved sleep, and increased self-esteem. Strength training may lower the risk of developing diabetes and help those with the condition manage it better. By stressing your bones, strength training can increase bone density and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.
Regular weight training workouts can build and tone muscle, burn fat, increase strength, and boost metabolism. Challenged muscles through resistance exercises promote the development of lean muscle mass. Regular weight training workouts help manage weight and improve physical functioning. Muscle-strengthening exercises are beneficial because they lead to better physical functioning and can improve glucose levels.
The positive impact of weightlifting for mental health is scientifically proven, and strength training has been associated with significant improvements in several dimensions of body image, health-related quality of life, and physical activity.
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How can weight lifting enhance your life?
Strength training is a vital tool for enhancing bone density, managing weight, improving quality of life, managing chronic conditions, and sharpening thinking skills. It can help develop strong bones, manage weight, protect joints from injury, and improve balance, reducing the risk of falls and maintaining independence as you age. Strength training can also help manage chronic conditions like arthritis, back pain, obesity, heart disease, depression, and diabetes.
There are various options for strength training, including body weight exercises like pushups, pullups, planks, lunges, and squats, resistance tubing, free weights like barbells and dumbbells, weight machines from fitness centers, and cable suspension training, which involves suspending part of the body while performing body weight exercises like pushups or planks.
In summary, strength training is a vital tool for enhancing bone density, managing weight, improving quality of life, managing chronic conditions, and sharpening thinking skills. It can be done at home or in the gym, and can be beneficial for older adults.
What benefits does weight training provide for an individual?
Strength training is a crucial component of any fitness routine, enhancing muscle tone, balance, and overall health. It also has mental health benefits, such as reduced anxiety and depression symptoms. Strength training is one of four types of exercise, alongside flexibility, endurance, and balance, and includes exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, and weightlifting. It helps the body perform daily tasks, prevent injury, and improve overall health. Fitness and medical experts emphasize the top benefits of strength training.
Does lifting weights make you a better person?
A study comparing aerobic exercise and resistance training on the psychological health of obese adolescents found that resistance training led to greater self-esteem and perceived strength over four weeks. The feeling of getting stronger was the most significant factor in the boost. Strength training is a good motivator as it allows for instant gratification, as it can be felt in the muscles even after one session. Additionally, strength training can boost brain power, as researchers are studying whether it affects the brain differently than cardio.
One Italian study of 80 older people found that those who completed a 12-week strength regimen showed improved capacity for practical skills, while cardio training helped bolster them on analytic tasks. Researchers are still trying to understand the “why” behind this study, but so far, they are impressed.
What does lifting weights teach you?
Strength training is a powerful tool that teaches mental toughness, patience, discipline, resilience, determination, and confidence. It helps individuals face difficult challenges, be patient, and adopt discipline. The process of failing and coming back to try again builds resilience and determination. Weightlifting, particularly in Olympic weightlifting and Powerlifting, can sharpen life skills.
Learning to lift weights, gain strength, and build muscle size requires patience, dedication, and perseverance. Building muscle takes time and effort, and a lack of discipline, proper nutrition, and adequate sleep can stall the process. Intermediate and advanced levels of strength come slowly and require hard work over time.
To get bigger and stronger, individuals must push through training sessions until they cannot physically lift anything more. The goal is to be struggling through the last few reps of a set, such as in a barbell squat, to make changes in the body. In essence, strength training is about pushing through the last few reps of a set to overcome the weight pushing them down.
Why is weight training so effective?
The practice of strength training has been demonstrated to enhance the range of motion and mobility of the body, thereby strengthening the major joints, including the knees, hips, and ankles. It has been demonstrated that strength training can reduce the incidence of acute sports injuries by approximately one-third and overuse injuries by nearly 50%. The American Heart Association asserts that regular strength training can result in a reduction in blood pressure and a lowering of total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels.
How does weight lifting help you mentally?
Weightlifting is a popular exercise for mental health due to its numerous benefits, including reducing depression, anxiety, fatigue, and improving self-esteem, sleep quality, and cognitive functions. It is also a natural antidepressant, as depression rates have been increasing globally, particularly among teens and young adults. The rise in depression is a result of the normalization of seeking mental help in modern society, leading to more people being diagnosed and treated with medication like antidepressants.
How does weight training improve self-confidence and self-esteem?
Weight training can help improve self-esteem by burning calories and fat, fighting osteoporosis, reducing diabetes risk, protecting heart health, regulating blood glucose, preventing back pain, and improving balance. The body’s transformation after starting a weight training regimen can indicate discipline, hard work, and achieving results. However, it’s crucial not to let appearance become the sole source of self-esteem. While toned or muscular appearance may make you appear more attractive, it should not be the primary motivation for weight training.
Stable and long-lasting self-esteem doesn’t come from having big muscles; it depends on recognizing your virtues, skills, and positive qualities and fully expressing them in the world. This approach helps build confidence and prevents the negative impact of appearance on self-esteem.
How beneficial is the training for your personal benefits?
A personal trainer can help clients improve their fitness for recreational and competitive sports, change problematic lifestyle habits, enhance stress management, and avoid potential medical problems due to improved fitness and weight loss. The progression rate depends on the client’s motivation level and the time of day, as high ambient temperatures and humidity can limit outdoor workouts. It’s important to note that a certified personal trainer is not a doctor or physical therapist, and they cannot diagnose or treat specific medical conditions like asthma or diabetes.
How does training help with mental health?
Regular exercise can improve self-esteem, control, and coping abilities, as well as provide opportunities for new experiences. It also contributes to better mental health and emotional wellbeing, lower rates of mental illness, and boosts mood, concentration, and alertness. Exercise doesn’t have to be strenuous or structured, but experts recommend adults should be active most days, aiming for 2. 5-5 hours of moderate physical activity and 1. 25-2.
5 hours of vigorous physical activity per week. Regular exercise is especially important for people with mental illness, as it boosts mood, concentration, and alertness, as well as overall physical health.
What does lifting weight do to your body and mind?
Resistance training, a form of strength training that uses resistance from weights, bodyweight, or resistance bands, is crucial for optimal health. It can boost longevity, reduce anxiety and depression, improve balance and flexibility, aid weight management, reduce the risk of injury, improve blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and significantly improve heart health. A well-designed resistance training program can improve mobility, physical functioning, daily living performance, athletic performance, and preserve older adults’ independence. However, some people dismiss resistance training as only for bodybuilders or gym goers, a perception health organizations are working to correct.
How weightlifting has changed your life?
Weight training has significantly transformed the individual’s self-perception, reducing feelings of self-hatred and comparison to others. They no longer envy other women’s bodies and are inspired by their commitment to health and fitness. The guilt associated with eating meals is eliminated, and lifting weights has made them feel empowered, positive, and energetic. The benefits of weight training extend beyond physical appearance, as it is an activity that can be done by anyone, regardless of age, skill, or fitness level. Consistency is key to achieving life-changing results, and the basics of weight training are simple and accessible to everyone.
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I used to be a power lifter so I was big, bulky and strong….and that’s about it. I got winded running 200m and my athletic ability was second to non. So about 3 years ago I change into a more sustainable and health approach, I change my diet and implemented running into my routine. I lost 65lbs and I’ve kept it of ever since and today I lift weights and run about 50/50, so and I can absolutely recommend running to both weight loss and health.
Great tips there girl, I thought I was too far gone, just lost our daughter to cancer after a 3 year battle, ballooned up to 16 St for a guy who used to box at 11st and my mental health was as you can imagine at an all time low. At 54, I didn’t think I could get in shape again as I have arthritis and floating cartilage in my right knee so cardio is harder, even walking the dog’s can be agony on some days but I managed to drop down to 13st and although I’m not as strong as in my 40s, I’m not far away from having my best ever physique, just need to clean the diet up. I’ve used my daughter’s strength to help me get through the worst of times and can understand how some people may go under after such events but I’m a spiritual person and I know spirit helped pull me out of the darkness. Gonna put some of your ideas into my workout today 👍💪 🙏💚🌍🙌
You hit the nail on the head for me! There was a point in time a few years back when I wanted to drop weight…I had an office that had a gym downstairs. I literally logged all my food for 30 days and worked out (all cardio) for 1.5 hrs a day (including 40 min during my lunch hour). I found I started getting hungrier, eating more and I justified it bc I was working out a lot…”well, I need more calories bc I’m not sedentary.” At the end of a grueling 30 days I lost 3 lbs! Three! 😫😫😫 I’ve now started doing weights and over the past 45 days I’ve seen a big change in my body composition. No major weight loss yet but I can see my body changing and becoming smaller.
There was a woman that lost like 200 lbs. She said she lost 70 lbs doing program that she bought after perusal an infomercial. But then she started lifting weights and that’s how she lost the rest. She said lifting weights changed her body for the best. And I get how that can happen. But what I find frustrating is how I almost always get hungry right before bed. It’s so irritating yet surprisingly consistent. 🤷🏾♀️
Just the advice that I needed Cori! Been recently diagnosed with osteo arthritis I have been forced to give up my favourite cardio sessions .. and my body is feeling it. As is my mind. This article has given me hope to refocus and redirect my goals and the path to get there. Thank you too for the “no-nonsense” articles 🙂
I had surgery in December 2022 for gallbladder removal that wasn’t a typical keyhole procedure. It became a bigger procedure that has left me with lasting tenderness in the Op site. I have been under the observation of my consultant, who has not wanted me to lift 😢 till now. I love weight training and at 53 I have lost so much strength, definition, and fitness through my recovery. Moving forward, despite my consultants advice, I feel so ready to get back to training. I did a spin class to test the water. Boy, oh boy, I really struggled but equally felt so good for getting back. I have booked in for a weights and plates class but am looking for advice on how to begin. I’m at square one, mild tenderness at Op site but otherwise fully recovered. Due to the sedentary nature of the last few months, I have gained weight, lost tone, and fitness level. Any advice appreciated. 😊
The one thing that people must do is consistancy no matter the method. And seen either way of what people do to lose fat fail. Whether its lifting weights or running. Its more mental fortitude than anything else. I have seen more fat bodies actually weight lift for a long time because of inability to control calorie count. Than those that actually stay on cardio. Like guys that are gym rats. Go hard on the iron for 6 years and still look the same. So the conversation should not be in what method physically could benifit you more on fat loss. Its mindset of consistancy to a proven method whether its pure cardio or weight lifting or in between with a proper diet. Those all work as long as its a calorie defecit. And those that dedicate themselves to running I have seen keep their fat off actually on edit… More so than those that go strict on weights so that is a very new fad statement for people that are lazy to cherry pick instead of working thier mindset to keep at it.
I’ve been swimming Laps for 28 years & started weights 5 yrs ago.I swim less now & if I don’t swim at all when I’d like to lose a bit of extra weight I can’t unless I incorporate swimming Laps as well. So cardio does help me lose weight.But I do mostly weights which definitely helps shape my body more than cardio & I eat only fresh produce
Great stuff as always Cori. At 230 lbs and semi active (no not an elite athlete) getting to a lean “ish” 220 has been brutal. I always here Calorie deficit. There is BMR & RMR and then your caloric estimate based on activity. What is too much, what is too lite, does it even matter? Then the advice of .8 – 1g of protein of per lb of LEAN Muscle mass. Lots of numbers but which one should I use. If I consider 220 to be lean for me. 220 grams of protein is a bunch. 65g of protein per meal. As an old dude I know muscle is SUPER important now more than ever. I don’t wanna be over fat nor under muscled. Ughhh am I making this too difficult?
Neither cardio nor strength training workouts ‘burn fat.’ Fat loss requires a calorie deficit. How you create that deficit is up to you. As a trainer, my suggestion would be through a combination of a MINOR calorie restriction (NOT super low), strength training (because more muscle means a faster metabolism), and cardio.
What do you all think about HIIT workouts? So lifting weights but at a higher intensity so it’s more like cardio if that makes sense? I find that if I lift very heavy I end up so hungry and overeat. But if I do cardio or HIIT style workouts it suppresses my appetite and so I end up mostly lifting moderate weights.
It’s sometimes difficult getting on weights in the gym at many times of the day, so I’ve got some weights and put them in the garden for working on arms, shoulders and chest. Getting enough protein always seems to be a challenge and it really irritates me. Sometimes I use low cal high protein drinsk to make up the shortfall. I prefer that fish, turkey, chicken and beef make up my protein if I can. My fat loss has slowed and I think it may be that my body adapted to such long intervals of cardio. How on earth did David Goggins lose 104 pounds in 3 months? I can’t work out how some people can do that
I was able to get 60%+ protein for 2 days and over 40% for another 2 days and my caloric intake was 50% lower on the days of high protein. I just did not feel hungry very much on those days. I have never had protein levels this high before. In general, I struggled to get to 40%. The main reasons are enough of a selection of high (60-100%) protein foods that are readily available, and that my wife doesn’t understand macros. So I have to say no to the food she makes during the day and that’s something that’s hard for me to do. I’ve been doing more cardio with the nicer weather because I enjoy running. Also playing tennis. And this leaves less time for weight training. I still do some at least every other day but overall volume is down. It is challenging to try to do everything, including the stuff that isn’t as much fun.