Just Lift. It’s Good For You.
Everyone is out there trying to find the fastest and most convenient way to lose weight, but there is no ONE correct way to do that. In order to live a healthier lifestyle by improving your body composition and decreasing your percentage of body fat, you have to incorporate a combination of weight lifting, cardio training and aerobics.
What is Strength Training
Strength training exercises are movements that provide resistance to the muscle, forcing it to create small tears in the muscle fibers. Once those tears are created, the muscle goes through a series of micro-trauma repair and remodeling to heal and grow. Some of the exercises that fall under weight lifting are movements like; Back Squats, Deadlifts, Shoulder Press, Bicep Curls, and Tricep Extensions, just to name a few. There are so many movements, for almost every muscle group in the body, that you can add weight/ resistance to to incorporate strength training into your fitness regime.
We know that cardio training, like running or biking, is great for getting your heart pumping and improving your cardio-respiratory system. But weight lifting comes with its own set of health benefits like, improving tendon and ligament strength surrounding your joints, increasing bone density, increasing your resting metabolic rate, and so much more. Incorporating weight lifting into your fitness regime can even decrease your cholesterol, reduce both systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and improve your overall body composition which reduces the risk of Cardiovascular Disease and type 2 Diabetes. It has even been reported that lifting weights can lower your risk of colon cancer and has a possible trending effect of lowering your risk of kidney cancer (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30920488/).
Weight Lifting and Sleep Improvement
Weight lifting has also been said to reduce sleep latency and the need for sleep aid medication, helping you fall asleep faster, and naturally(https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22884182/). Weight lifting has even been reported to reduce depression in men and women. Just like when you do a cardio or aerobic workout, your body releases endorphins to relieve the physical stress we are putting our on body. It also increases your serotonin levels which provides that sense of wellbeing and happiness that helps keep depression at bay. Plus, that feeling of strength and pride after accomplishing that last heavy set is a nice added bonus!
Benefits of weight lifting for Women
Because of its effect on bone density, women, in particular, should focus on incorporating weight lifting into their fitness regime. As women get older, their bones start to become more fragile and they are more prone to developing osteoporosis or arthritis. Lifting weights can not only reduce the risk of osteoporosis, but it can also decrease any pain from existing conditions of osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis, and even improve bone health in breast cancer patients (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30340503/).
Myths and Misconceptions
It is so important for everyone to lift weights but many women continue to overlook it because of the misconceptions of weight lifting. One big problem that holds women back from lifting weights is this myth that they will become bulky and build muscles that are “too big”. That is simply not true. Most women don’t have the capacity to build “big bulky muscles” because of our genetics. Generally, women have less muscle mass and lower testosterone levels, which make it almost impossible for them to develop an unusually large, muscular physique, or “bulk”.
Overall Benefits of Weightlifting
Weight lifting helps increase your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR). Weight training increases muscle mass in the body. “The micro-trauma-repair and muscle remodeling processes require increased energy for at least 72 hours following challenging strength-training session” (Wescott, 329). During the initial stages of weight lifting, about the first 10 weeks, people who incorporate at least 2-3 weight lifting days a week can improve their resting metabolic rate by about 8-9% and increase their lean muscle mass by about 3 pounds. This helps your body burn more calories during and in between workout sessions, helping you lose weight.
If you are considering adding weight lifting into your fitness routine, it’s best to start with two-three days a week. Allowing your body that time to rest is crucial when weight lifting because of the time it takes for your body to repair and remodel the muscle. If you are someone that wants to become more serious about weight lifting, you could work a certain muscle group every third day. For example, if you train your pulling muscle groups (biceps and back) on Monday, you wouldn’t train them again until Thursday; your pushing muscle groups (triceps and chest) would be Tuesday and Friday, and legs and glutes would be Wednesday and Saturday. Another thing to consider when performing weight lifting movements is to incorporate at least 30-120 seconds of rest in between each set, depending on the weight and quantity of the set. If you are trying to achieve greater muscular endurance, you would perform two-three sets of twelve-fifteen reps and no more than 30 seconds of rest in between each set. If you are trying to gain more muscular strength, you would perform anywhere from two-four sets of no more than eight reps with at least two minutes of rest in between each set.
Everyone can and should incorporate weight lifting into their workout routines. People who are overweight or suffering from obesity, should also incorporate weight lifting into their cardio and aerobics program. And always consult with your doctor before you start weight lifting especially if you have any existing health problems or injuries. The only ill-effect of weight lifting is improper form and adding too much weight too soon.
In closing…
Before you start any new movement, practice the movement without any added weight. Make sure that you can safely and properly perform the movement with your own body weight first, before adding even an extra five pounds. In order to make sure you have proper form and technique for weight bearing movements, it’s important to warm up and cool down with some good stretching movements before and after your workout.
Wescott, Wayne. “Resistance Training: Programming and Progressions”, American Council on Exercise Personal Trainer Manual, 2014, pp. 326-383. (Used as main reference)
1. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30920488/
2. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22884182/