Is strength Training Important?

Recently, I took to this blog to talk about how much I’ve been loving getting into strength training lately. I used to be a cardio only type of girl because I thought it was the most effective way to burn calories, condition my body, and get in shape. Boy was I wrong! Recently, I’ve learned the importance of strength training, and along with changing up the mundane workout routine, how important it actually is for your body!

So today, I want to share with you guys some of the reasons you NEED to be hitting up those weights at least a couple times a week!

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What is Strength Training?

Strength, or resistance training, is a type of exercise that causes the muscles to contract against a resistant force exerted on them. Muscles are caused to slightly tear, and as they regenerate and repair they grow stronger. This muscle breakdown is called catabolism with the regrowth called anabolism. This exercising causes an increase in strength, tone, and mass within these muscles. Resistance training can vary between self-body weight, rubber exercise bands, or actual weights. Resistance training can vary from weight lifting to Pilates depending on what your preferences are.

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Why Resistance Train?

There are a lot of reasons to start resistance training, especially as you grow older. In fact, it is important to begin resistance training while you are young as we being to lose muscle mass around the age of 30. From there, we lose 3 to 8 percent of muscle mass every 10 years. So, building muscles at a younger age will help reduce this mass loss and help retain strength while aging. This also helps to preserve bone density, which also begins to decline during the mid-twenties.

Strength training is important for disease management and studies have linked strength training to management of conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease linked with obesity and heart disease. Strength training is also linked to decreased depression.

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Compared to Cardio

Cardio can also help manage weight and disease, so it’s easy to decide to opt for more cardio versus weight training. But, research also shows that strength training can jump-start your metabolism and help you burn more calories. Especially if you’re new to weight training, this can be extremely beneficial. As your body gets used to the same old routine, it is important to mix it up and add something new. This helps you avoid plateau and continue on your journey to health and wellness.

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How to get started

Getting started can be super intimidating, especially if you go to a gym with a lot of bulky guys who are always using the free weights. There are a lot of ways that you can start getting involved in more strength training.

• Take a class! If your gym offers pilates or strength classes, sign up for a class. There’s a huge chance you won’t be the only new person and it’s a great way to start to learn some basics.
• Find a friend. If you have a friend who does free weights often you can always ask them to show you some exercises and some moves and maybe even create some basic work out routines for you
• Use machines. While I personally am not a huge fan of the machines anymore, I do find them very useful when you want to get started in weight training but have no idea what to do. They tell you exactly what to do and how to position yourself and they’re usually always free. The only thing I don’t like is that it doesn’t help with me with how many reps or how to do a proper full body work out.
• Find a program online. I personally follow the Instagram page SISSfit and every Tuesday they post a new toning program that is easy to follow and really helpful in getting me started with weight training. They show you how to do each exercise and how many to do and the work out is easily accessible. And the great thing is, there are hundreds of Instagram accounts like that! You can find the perfect work out for you just by scrolling through your social media.

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Are you a fan of full-body circuits? How about pilates? Yoga? Let me know in the comments below what your favorite strength training is! I can’t wait to see how you guys incorporate it into your workouts. For me, I like to add circuits in between running sprints! Did you check out my recent post showing you guys an example? If not make sure to check it out!

Until next time,

Kat

 

Sources and further reading:

Michigan State University. The importance of strength training. https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/the_importance_of_strength_training

The Mayo Clinic Staff. Strength training: get stronger, leaner, healthier. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/in-depth/strength-training/art-20046670

Weil, R. Resistance training. Emedicine Health. https://www.emedicinehealth.com/strength_training/article_em.htm#facts_you_should_know_about_resistance_training