Why Everyone Needs Strength Training
Strength training is an important component of any fitness program. It can help you to develop lean muscles, and also offers numerous health benefits. However, women often tend to shy away from strength training, based on the outdated misconception that incorporating it into their workout will result in bulky muscles. This couldn’t be further from the truth. (Check out our article on How Women Build Muscle to learn more.) Regardless of your fitness goals, incorporating strength training into your fitness routine will help you to maximize your results.
Regular strength training can help you to increase lean muscle mass, reduce body fat, and can help to increase your metabolism by up to 15%, making it a powerful tool for weight management. In addition, strength training can help to increase bone density, improve your quality of sleep and sense of well being.
There are several ways to incorporate strength training into your workout routine. A fitness professional can help you to develop a safe and effective program. Exercises such as push-ups, pull-ups, crunches and squats don’t require any equipment, but rather use your body weight to increase strength. Resistance tubes or bands are great for people of all fitness levels, and help you to stabilize your body by adding tension throughout each exercise. This helps to improve coordination and balance, and helps you to involve more muscle groups. Free weights will also help you to develop better balance, and offer versatility, allowing you to do a variety of exercises with a single set of dumbbells, while weight machines can help you to isolate a particular muscle or muscle group to work on, and may be easier for beginners by ensuring correct movements during lifts.
You’ll want to choose a weight or resistance level that is heavy enough to work your muscles to the point of fatigue after a single set of 8 to 12 repetitions. Once you can easily complete 12 repetitions, increase the weight or resistance level by 5-10% to continue to progress safely.
And here’s an encouraging bit of news: If you incorporate 30 minutes of strength training into your workout routine two to three times a week, you’ll likely begin to notice improvements in your strength, stamina, and appearance after only a few weeks.
Note: If you have any medical conditions, injuries or illnesses, consult your doctor before starting a strength training program.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed in this article or blog are strictly those of the author. The contents of this article or blog and any reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service whether by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply its endorsement or recommendation by ISI Brands and ISI Brands assumes no legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, product, service or process disclosed or referenced herein. All information is provided on an as-is basis and is provide for information purposes only. Always consult your physician before beginning any diet or exercise program.
