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Many do not know this but there is actually a way to burn fat, increase muscle mass, strengthen bones and joints, and eventually get stronger all at the same time. This isn’t technically a “secret,” but have you ever heard of strength training? Sure, you’ve heard about powerlifting or weightlifting, but come to think of it, have you ever wondered what is crucial for lifting weights? It’s STRENGTH.
Strength training builds muscle endurance and helps you get stronger. I know, very obvious reasons, right? But strength training can make our lives a lot more convenient.
Lifting groceries, carrying children, moving furniture around, all may seem like a cliché part of everyday life. But imagine doing this so easily? Life is so much easier when you’re strong! And those are only the short-term benefits of strength training, care to know more about the long-term benefits?
Your lean muscle mass will naturally start to diminish over time. Our body fat percentage will eventually increase if we won’t do anything to replace the lean muscle mass that we lose as we age.
How could strength training benefit you as you age?
- Develop and strengthen bones. Again, pretty obvious I know. But strength training works by stressing the bones which results in an increase in bone density, which reduces the risk of osteoporosis and puts a stop to or even reverses sarcopenia (a condition where our skeletal muscles deteriorate as we age).
- Enhance your quality of life. Strength training improves your ability to do daily activities! Ranging from protecting your joints from injury, and sharpening thinking skills, to building better balance to reduce risks of accidental slips or falls, strength training allows us to take care of our bodies to promote independence as we age.
- Prevents degenerative conditions. Heart disease, the leading chronic disease that causes death among both men and women, can be prevented through strength training. Strength training also helps in correcting issues related to cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, obesity, arthritis, back pain, diabetes, and mental health.
Now, aside from investing in your future well-being, you can enjoy the benefits of strength training as early as now. You can enjoy a well-toned body, a fast metabolism rate, or in easier words, strength training will make you FEEL BETTER! Not only will you be more energized and confident, but strength training also helps in reducing stress and anxiety.
A great body figure, increased cognitive function, better overall mood, and reduce future health risks, strength training can offer all these benefits. Now, how do we start strength training?
For starters, strength training of any kind can be classified by the following:
- Movement of any weight (including your own body weight). Doing exercises that push your muscles outside of their comfort zone, forcing the muscles to rebuild stronger through resistance exercises
- Progressive overload. Exercises that allow you to excerpt more effort than your previous record (adding more weights or reps) consistently
Strength training can be done at home or at the gym, depending on one’s convenience. Common choices include body weight, free weights, and weight machines.
But if you would like to take it up a notch, you can take on weightlifting or powerlifting.
Weightlifting versus Powerlifting
Let’s start with weightlifting. Weightlifting is a type of strength training that uses weights for resistance. Similar to how aerobic conditioning strengthens the heart, weight training such as weightlifting stresses the muscles that cause them to adapt and eventually get stronger. Powerlifting, on the other hand, is more like the intense version of weightlifting. Powerlifting focuses on lifting as heavy weights as possible in a single range of motion. Powerlifting definitely outweighs weightlifting, but one cannot directly tackle powerlifting without undergoing proper strength training.
However, strength training is not all about pushing your muscles and body to their extent. Proper nutrition is also essential, particularly sports nutrition.
Sports Nutrition
deals with the consumption of nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, supplements, and organic substances that include carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. However, sports nutrition differs from normal nutrition as athletes require different amounts of nutrients compared to non-athletes. Nutrition is important, not only for athletes but also for regular people to provide the necessary energy required to actively and efficiently perform activities. Sports nutrition focuses on three key principles: a. Stay hydrated; b. Provide fuel for your muscles; c. Promote recovery between exercises.
A well-balanced diet with proper training and exercise programs cannot be achieved by taking supplements or shortcuts. For optimal performance, an athlete’s body needs to be trained and fueled appropriately.
Tanya Wilson
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