Burn Calories, Protect Bones & Joints, Lose Body Fat, Tone Up & Boost Mental Health with Strength Training
When it comes to training, many women stick to cardio and yoga, believing that strength training leads to bulky muscle formation. In fact, strength training is crucial to help women become healthier, stronger and leaner. Here’s why.
Strength training is not just for gym junkies and body builders, in fact you don’t even need fancy equipment to enjoy all the benefits of strength training. Whether you’re using your own body weight, resistance bands, household items, or kettlebells and dumbbells, strength training makes a huge difference to mind, body and spirit.
Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why strength training is so important, especially for women.
1. Build Strong Bones & Combat Bone Density Loss
Strength training involves the use of increasingly heavier weights (or stronger resistance) and increased repetitions to progressively overload your muscles, stressing your bones and stimulating your body to repair and adapt to the load. This means your bones, joints and muscles get stronger as you follow the strength training program.
Women are susceptible to bone density loss and osteoporosis – particularly during and after menopause. Strength training has been shown to increase bone density and reduce the risk of osteoporosis.
2. Relieve Back Pain
During their lifetimes, women experience a number of changes, such as pregnancy, childbirth, hormonal imbalances, weight gain (especially in the abdomen) and menopause, which can cause back pain. This pain can be debilitating, and, when left unchecked, may become chronic, leading to isolation and depression, and robbing you of your quality of life.
When done safely, strength training builds muscle strength and bone density, providing support for the spine and helping women to prevent and overcome back pain. By relieving back pain and improving your ability to take part in activities you love, such as sports, running, swimming, or dancing, as well as everyday activities, strength training helps to improve your overall enjoyment of life.
3. Lose Body Fat – Particularly Belly Fat
Belly fat, especially in the form of visceral fat, has been linked to increased risk of chronic illnesses such as diabetes. Strength training increases your metabolism and builds muscle mass which helps you burn more calories – not just while you’re working out, but also in the hours after your workout. Known as the after-burn effect, this makes strength training a great way for you to shift belly fat and reduce the menopause weight gain suffered by many women.
Quick tip: Add a little extra protein to your diet while keeping up your strength training. This will help you build strength, lose weight and increase your energy levels.
4. Improve Posture & Balance
Stronger muscles and improved core stability that come from strength training, help to improve posture and balance. This helps to reduce the risk of falls, allowing women to maintain their independence and continue to take part in activities that they enjoy as they age.
5. Manage Chronic Conditions
In addition to improving physical strength, studies indicate that strength training also plays a role in reducing the signs and symptoms of chronic conditions that women experience in their lifetimes. These include arthritis, heart disease, depression and anxiety, and diabetes.
6. Improve Your Mental Health
Hormone changes during and after pregnancy, throughout the menstrual cycle and during menopause can have serious implications for women’s mental health. Resistance training two or more days per week has been shown to significantly reduce symptoms of mild to moderate depression. Regular strength training also helps to clear up brain fog and boost your mood.
Build a Strong & Resilient Body for Life
With all these benefits and more just waiting to be unlocked, why not give our friendly team a call and tee-up your initial assessment today?
We’ll help you select the best exercises and the right weights/resistance to suit your current abilities and your fitness goals. Get started with strength training today, so you can do the things you love for years to come.
