Strength Training is vital to your physical fitness and health as you age. Here are 5 reasons to get started today.
When asked about the benefits of cardiovascular exercise, most people can cite the benefits of heart health, increased endurance, and overall wellbeing.
Did you know that strength training is just as important when it comes to physical fitness and overall health?
Some may believe that strength training is just for young people, athletes, or those who want to compete in body-building competitions. However, this is far from the truth.
Here are some of the benefits of strength training at any age:
1. Reversal of Age-Related Muscle Loss
As we age, our bodies undergo an age-related decline in muscle mass. Before the age of 50, the loss of muscle is approximately 5 pounds per decade, doubling to 10 pounds per decade after the age of 50.
In addition to the loss of muscle, women may undergo a 1% to 3% decrease in bone mineral density per year, which can increase the risk of osteoporosis and fractures.
Westcott et al. (2013) performed a research study in which the average age of the participants was 59 years old. This study found that participating in a basic strength training program for ten weeks, combined with a moderate calorie nutrition plan, resulted in 3 pounds of lean muscle.
This means we can slow down or even prevent muscle loss as we age through strength training.
I view my strength training sessions as a way to give thanks, worship God, and be a good steward of the body God has given me.
2. Decrease in Body Fat
As we age, even if caloric intake remains the same, the loss of muscle combined with a decrease in resting metabolism results in an accumulation of fat, especially around the middle. The study referenced above showed that in addition to adding 3 pounds of lean muscle, the participants in the strength training program lost an average of 9 pounds of fat for a change in body composition of 12 pounds.
3. Increase in Metabolism
Our muscles play an important role in our resting metabolism. Each pound of untrained skeletal muscle uses 5-6 calories per day. When participating in resistance exercises, that same muscle uses 9 calories per day – a 50% increase. The 3 pounds of new muscle increases resting metabolism by 30 calories per day.
In addition, the rebuilding of muscle tissue, increases resting metabolism for approximately 72 hours following the strength training session.
4. Treating/Preventing Type 2 Diabetes
Worldwide, the number of people living with diabetes increased from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014 – that is a 390% increase! In addition, more than 1 in 3 American adults has prediabetes, and 9 out of 10 of those do not know they are prediabetic!
The American Diabetes Association recommends that adults with diabetes should incorporate 2 – 3 strength training sessions per week due to the increasing evidence that resistance exercise is beneficial in increasing insulin sensitivity and reducing blood sugar levels.
In addition, the increase in muscle mass and decrease in fat mass as a result of strength training plays an important role in not only managing type 2 diabetes but preventing prediabetes from becoming type 2 diabetes.
5. Improving Heart Health
Aerobic exercise is not the only form of exercise that is good for your heart. Strength training not only helps to increase cardiovascular fitness, but it has been shown to improve some of the cardiac risk factors which can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, heart attack, and stroke.
Research has shown that participating in a resistance training program can result in significant reductions in resting blood pressure – both systolic and diastolic.
Also, strength training has been shown to improve blood lipid levels by increasing HDL (good cholesterol), reducing LDL (bad cholesterol), and decreasing triglycerides.
Honor God with Your Body
In Romans 12:1, Paul tells us “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” God bought me with a price, and the Holy Spirit dwells inside of me (1 Corinthians 6:19).
Although I prefer cardio, especially riding a stationary bike, I view my strength training sessions as a way to give thanks, worship God, and be a good steward of the body God has given me.
How do you like to worship God as you exercise?
Sources
Anaerobic exercise and diabetes. (n.d.). Retrieved March 10, 2021, from https://www.diabetes.org/healthy-living/fitness/anaerobic-exercise-diabetes
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. National Diabetes Statistics Report, 2020. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services; 2020.
Westcott, W. L. (2016). Building strength and stamina. In Building strength and stamina (3rd ed., pp. 9- 15). Monterey, CA: Healthy Learning.
Westcott WL. Resistance training is medicine: effects of strength training on health. Curr Sports Med Rep. 2012 Jul-Aug;11(4):209-16. doi: 10.1249/JSR.0b013e31825dabb8. PMID: 22777332.
What is diabetes? (2020, June 11). Retrieved March 10, 2021, from https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/diabetes.html
Cherie Maguire is a Revelation Wellness Instructor from Platoon 25 and is certified in both Spinning® and Barre. She lives in Brockton, MA, with her husband, John- where they own a construction business. In her free time, she loves to encourage women to find joy, peace, self-worth, and inner strength through a combination of wellness, health, AND faith-based living. You can connect with her on Facebook and Instagram.
