You don’t need to lift heavy weights to gain strength and live a Healthier, Longer Life.
It is common knowledge that cardio exercises, such as brisk walking or jogging, offer numerous benefits, including improving joint and cardiovascular health and mental well-being. But strength training is no less important. It is becoming increasingly common for doctors to recommend it.
Want to Live a Healthier, Longer Life? Start Strength Training
According to a British Journal of Sports Medicine study, people who engage in strength training live longer, healthier lives. Recently, the European Heart Journal published the results of a supervised exercise trial involving overweight or obese individuals. The study found that combining cardio with strength training could be as effective in preventing cardiovascular disease as cardio alone. However, not enough people are taking advantage of the potential benefits of strength exercises.
A recent National Center for Health Statistics report revealed that a staggering majority of adults, about 75.8%, failed to meet the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans for aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities. This means that only 24.2% of adults aged 18 and above were able to achieve the recommended physical activity levels.
These guidelines recommend doing at least 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise and muscle-strengthening activities of moderate or greater intensity targeting all major muscle groups at least twice a week.
Unfortunately, the reality is that not enough people are doing strength training if they’re exercising at all.
Strength training often conjures images of lifting heavy weights and bench presses, building strong muscles, and having visible veins. But it’s not so.
Many people, especially beginners, might find a strength workout intimidating. Learn here what strength training means, how to incorporate it into your routine, and the difference between building strength and muscle. This will help you start strength training and live a long, healthier life.
Some Common Misconceptions
According to Best Fitness Guru, there is a common misconception that building strength and building muscles are the same things, but actually, they are different. Additionally, many people believe that strength training requires a significant amount of time or lifting a lot of weight, which is not necessarily true.
But first, it’s crucial to understand what strength is. It’s “muscle’s ability to produce force,” Best Fitness Guru explains. “And you don’t want that ability to deplete as you age.” (We’ll discuss this more later.)
Read here about strength and aging.
Getting Started
Best Fitness Guru says that gaining strength cannot be hacked. Read on to find the most efficient way to achieve it based on your abilities and resources.
If you’re new to working out, fitness experts recommend concentrating on bodyweight exercises through tempo. This means varying the speed of exercises like squats and push-ups. It’s also helpful to focus on key movement patterns, such as pushing, pulling, squatting, walking, carrying, hinging, and rotating—all movements often seen in everyday life.
Bodyweight exercises that you can perform without any weight include squats, planks, lunges, rucking, and hip swivels. However, if you feel you can handle more resistance, you can use a durable, reusable bag filled with canned goods as an adjustable weight.
Note: Rucking is a form of physical exercise that involves walking or hiking with a loaded backpack or rucksack, typically over varying distances and terrains.
Keeping Things Balanced
A well-rounded, full-body strength-training program that targets the entire body doesn’t have to be complicated. According to Best Fitness Guru, a good rule of thumb is to aim to do pull-form exercises twice as much as you do push-type. Because it’s easy to develop a muscular upper body in the front, pulling movements can counteract the hunched positions we often adopt throughout the day, whether at work, in the car, or on the subway. However, if someone is starting their strength program, they won’t likely have this issue.
Besides targeting the major muscle groups, Best Fitness Guru advises doing “prehab” exercises for overlooked areas like the ankles and shoulders, which can help prevent injury. Joints and muscle mobility and flexibility exercises are also important—they are essential to ensure your strength is functional, meaning you can be strong and move optimally.
Read here about maintaining flexibility as we age
Mixing It Up
There are several ways to diversify your workouts without increasing the weight, which can increase the risk of injury, especially if your form is compromised. Instead, you can incorporate different techniques to challenge your body. For instance, if you’re doing push-ups, you can try to perform reps where you lower yourself as slowly as possible to increase the time you spend working against your weight and gravity. This will help you build strength and endurance. Additionally, you can try to “explode” out of the bottom of a squat, which means you should push up explosively to the standing position. Varying the tempos of your squats can also keep things interesting and help you avoid boredom in your routine. Adding these variations can help you stay motivated and achieve your fitness goals safely and effectively.
Best Fitness Guru recommends three simple ways to improve fitness on your own. The first method involves doing a few sets of activities a day to push yourself close to failure or doing high reps using just your body weight. The second method is to get used to moving slowly and with control through ranges of motion, which helps improve your overall strength and flexibility. Lastly, whenever you find yourself with just 15 minutes to spare, you can spend some time performing key movement patterns to keep your body functional, healthy, and strong. By following these methods, you can maintain a strong body without spending too much time in the gym, allowing you to enjoy your daily activities.
Read here how light weights can tone and build muscles
Consider the Exercise Snack
Best Fitness Guru is a living testament to the fact that one can still achieve a decent amount of exercise despite limited time and space. You don’t need a dedicated gym or a lot of time to get in shape. With just 15 minutes of training, and even in a small space like your apartment, you can still get a decent workout. It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner or an experienced fitness enthusiast; any amount of physical activity can help you build or maintain strength. Whether you choose to do some simple bodyweight exercises or resistance bands, incorporating some form of strength training into your daily routine can have significant health benefits. So, don’t let a busy schedule or a lack of equipment prevent you from achieving your fitness goals!
“The exercise snack mindset is about not wanting to lose the progress you’ve made. This is especially important if you’re already working on building your strength or trying to gradually improve your fitness level,” explains Best Fitness Guru. For example, you can use a weight lying around the house and choose five exercises to do each day. Do three sets of each exercise, with 10 to 12 reps each.
You can also perform bodyweight exercises until failure or use a relatively lightweight to perform reps until failure within a short time frame.
Read here about the two habits that can help you live healthy life
It’s Not About Vanity; it’s About Living Longer.
Strength training is not just about a vanity project; it’s about improving your overall well-being and quality of life.
Bodybuilding and strength training are two distinct forms of exercise. While bodybuilding is typically focused on achieving a specific physical appearance, strength training aims to improve overall physical health and longevity. Muscles are considered longevity organs that release different hormones crucial for healthy living. Strength training helps to increase muscle mass and strength, which in turn promotes better health and a lower risk of conditions such as sarcopenia. Sarcopenia is a medical condition characterized by the loss of muscle mass and strength as we age, which leads to frailty and an increased risk of mortality. By engaging in strength training now, you can add strength to your muscles, which can help you maintain a healthy and active lifestyle as you age.
Check this Best Resource on Exercises
About Author: Renu Bakshi, AKA Fitness Buffhq, is an ISSA Certified Elite Trainer. He
passed the Personal Fitness Trainer Course, Nutrition Health Coach course & Specialist Exercise Therapy course from ISSA, USA, obtaining + 97% marks. He shares his experience and knowledge about nutrition and effective workouts to get you in the best shape of your life, no matter how old you may be. The author says, “Age is just a number!”
IMPORTANT LEGAL INFO This article is general and for information only because it doesn’t consider your health requirements or existing medical conditions. That means it’s not personalized health advice and shouldn’t be relied upon as if it is. Before making a health-related decision, you should determine if the information is appropriate for your situation and get professional medical advice.
