Improve Your Quality Of Life - The Many Health Benefits Of Strength Training

With all the information out there about the benefits of exercising, it always surprises me when someone tells me how they just heard/read that exercise can ___________ (fill in the blank). One of my boot campers recently recited a bunch of exercise benefits that she just learned while listening to NPR.

I was surprised that she was surprised.

I have to remind myself that not everyone is in this field so they wouldn't necessarily pay attention to that type of information and lots of people hate exercise so they probably tune it out even if they do come across it.


That being said, this is your health, well being and quality of life, people, so you should be paying more attention.

I've posted this before but it obviously merits another mention.

Besides improving body composition, lowering body fat and boosting metabolism, below are some of the many benefits of regular strength training:

* Increases bone density (helps prevent osteoporosis)
* Lowers blood pressure
* Improves glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity (reducing your risk for type 2 diabetes)
* Elevates mood (reducing the risk of depression)
* Increases muscle strength (without resistance training, adults lose about one-half pound of muscle per year)
* Reduces gastrointestinal transit time (helps you be more regular)
* Improves joint health (reducing arthritis pain and stiffness)
* Boosts your immune system (you'll get sick less often)
* Increases your blood level of HDL (good) cholesterol
* Improves sleep quality
* Lowers your resting heart rate (your heart doesn't have to work as hard)
* Improves flexibility
* Muscle strength is significantly associated with lower cancer mortality (add in cardiovascular fitness and mortality drops even lower)
* Increases tendon and ligament strength
* Improves posture
* Decreases your risk of injury
* Improves self-esteem, confidence and self-worth
* Increases energy
* Maintains or improves lower back strength
* Improves balance, mobility and stability (which helps prevent falls)
* Maintains or improves mental sharpness (helps prevent Alzheimer’s and dementia)

The bottom line is that strength training improves your quality of life. It reduces the risk of injury and assorted diseases. Stronger muscles make everyday chores easier and help you maintain your independence as you age.

So, if you don't already, start lifting weights. You'll feel better, you'll look better and you'll be healthier, whether or not you need to shed any weight.

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Ditch The "All Or Nothing" Mentality

Yesterday, I was boasting on Body & Soul's Facebook page about two members who came to the gym to do an abbreviated workout even though one was injured and the other had been called in to work early. They get it! Either one of them could have blown off the gym entirely but they didn't. I was trying to encourage others to follow in their footsteps and ditch the excuses. Unfortunately, I didn't go into as much detail as above and the post was misinterpreted by some people.  

It's baffling to me that anyone would think I'd disparage an injured member for not doing a full workout but that's life on the internet. I definitely want members and boot campers to challenge themselves during their workouts but I STRONGLY discourage people from trying to push through injury or illness.

My members and anyone else who regularly read my posts, emails, blog, or newsletter know that I am not an exercise fanatic. In fact, I spend a lot of time encouraging people to break out of the "all or nothing" exercise mentality. Between this blog and Facebook, I've posted lots of "quickie" workouts that can be done at home when people are time crunched.

My philosophy is, and has always been, that regular exercise should be a lifestyle because it will improve your quality of life. Not because you want to be a size 0 or as punishment because you pigged out but because it will improve your physical, mental, and emotional health. You'll have more energy, be less stressed, and less likely to get sick. Regular exercise improves mood so you're less likely to get depressed. It reduces arthritis pain and stiffness. Your muscles will get stronger, making everyday activities easier- playing with kids/grandkids, carrying groceries, shoveling snow, taking the stairs, raking leaves, moving furniture, etc.

The holidays, especially, are a time when people neglect their fitness and it's a time when it's most important. 

We often overeat and experience increased stress or emotional issues. We have little problem making and keeping commitments to others but no one has an unlimited gas tank.

Taking care of yourself will make you a better mom / dad / volunteer / friend / spouse / employee. So, make a commitment to your health, even if it's just 10 minutes a day.

The Fountain of Youth is Made of Iron by Joseph McCaffrey, MD, FACS

This article should be required reading for every doctor who only advises his/her patients to walk for exercise and for every person who thinks walking, running, biking, aerobic classes, and other cardio exercise is all they need to be healthy.

The Fountain of Youth is Made of Iron
By Joseph McCaffrey, MD, FACS

Aerobic exercise (walking, jogging, bike riding and such) has long been the darling of the wellness folks. For years, these people wouldn't consider lifting weights. They somehow thought they'd morph into a bodybuilding freak if they so much as touched a dumbbell.

As if…

They also didn't think that muscle mass and strength had much to do with health. More and more evidence shows the error in that way of thinking. A recent long-term study reported in the British Medical Journal adds to this body of evidence.1

In this study, researchers followed 8,762 men between the ages of 20 and 82 years of age for an average of 18.9 years (as I said, this was a long-term study).

When the men signed up for the study, their comprehensive evaluation included measuring upper and lower body strength as well as their performance on a treadmill.

Adjusting for age, the risk of death during the course of the study was highest in the weakest men and lowest in the strongest. This difference persisted even when other factors such as lifestyle, family history, and other medical conditions were allowed for.

The difference persisted even allowing for cardiovascular fitness. That is, the men who were both aerobically fit and strong did better than men who were equally fit aerobically but not as strong.

(Emphasis mine.)

As I said, this ties in with a lot of other evidence supporting the importance of strength training.

It used to be taught that losing muscle mass and strength was an inevitable part of aging. We now know this isn't the case at all.

Training with weights minimizes the strength loss that would otherwise occur. Studies show resistance training benefits even nursing home residents.

The image of an ideal exercise program has shifted dramatically in the last decade. Gone are the long hours of repetitive aerobic exercise sessions at 60-80% of maximal heart rate.

The new model rests on shorter, more intense, and highly varied exercise periods. It definitely includes resistance training.

Body weight exercises such as squats and pushups are a great beginning. And you'll find many good fitness programs recommended here on the pages of Total Health Breakthroughs. The main thing is to begin. The "use it or lose it" maxim definitely applies to muscle mass and strength.

Reference

1. BMJ. 2008; 337:a349.

[Ed. Note: Joseph F. McCaffrey, MD, FACS is a board-certified surgeon with extensive experience in alternative medicine, including certification as a HeartMath Trainer. His areas of expertise include mind-body interaction and cognitive restructuring. Dr. McCaffrey strives to help people attain their optimum level of vitality through attention to all aspects of wellness. For more information, click here.]

This article appears courtesy of Early to Rise's Total Health Breakthroughs, offering alternative solutions for mind, body and soul. For a complimentary subscription, visit www.totalhealthbreakthroughs.com

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