July 14th, 2017 in Fitness by Jasmine Green
Strength Training? Why is it so important? Well we all know that regular exercise helps prevents many of the common ailments and has a positive impact on our mental wellbeing but a variety of exercise methods are important to achieve this with strength training being at the top end of the list.
Focusing just on cardiovascular
exercise is selling yourself short and will prevent you gaining all of the
health benefits you should be receiving from your regular exercise routine. So
why is strength training overlooked by so many people? Well some woman are
reported as thinking they will bulk up and look manly “I don’t want Madonna arms!”, the elderly might worry about strength
training being too strenuous or unsafe, and parents might think that strength
training is too risky for their children why they are not fully developed into
their adult bodies.
The reality is that almost everyone,
regardless of their gender or age benefits from strength training. Working your
muscles with weight baring exercises will help boost your metabolism, improve
muscle condition and improve your all-round health and wellbeing. In addition
to this you will also achieve and maintain a healthier bone mass, lose excess
fat and prevent age-related muscle loss. Lets take a close look at three of the
key benefits here;
Boost Metabolism
As you increase
your muscle mass from strength training you boost your resting metabolism
which helps your body burn more calories throughout the day and night.
Improve Muscle Condition
As well as looking good, conditioned
muscles will help you reduce any risk of injury. Improved muscle condition across
your whole body will ensure you are less likely to experience joint or muscle
strains or tears while you exercise.
Improve All Round Health
Strength training
can be tough at times but the positive affects that stronger muscles and joints
will give you, plus that ‘I’m awesome!’ feeling as your strut out of the gym
will have an all round positive impact on your general health and well being!
So as you can see,
the benefits of strength training are broad and vast so try fitting in 2 to 3
strength training session a week at the gym as part of your overall exercise
routine.
by Jasmine Green