Thursday, October 26, 2006

I Just Can't Stress Enough...

...the importance of strength training when needing to lose weight!

If you've heard me before, then you've heard this before: when it comes to losing weight, you MUST include strength training as a part of your exercise routine! You may have grown up hearing that you shouldn’t use weights or try to build muscle before losing weight or it will cause you to have bulk with the fat. That is simply not true!

Building muscle will actually do just the opposite. It will cause you to burn fat at a higher rate because as you increase muscle, you increase your metabolic rate which causes the body to burn more calories throughout the day. The results are a slimmer body with definition, not flab.

You can add strength training in several ways. Strength or resistance training can be done with weights, resistance bands or tubes, machines or calisthenics. The key is to increase the repetitions and/or weight as you go along. You should work to the point of fatigue to see results. You do not need to spend hours in the gym – a simple effective workout need only last about 30 minutes.

The benefits are numerous! Here are just a few…

Increase strength
Build bone density
Speed up metabolism
Build muscle
Burn more calories
Increase endurance
Strengthen core
Prevent injuries
Increase stability, balance and flexibility
Decrease risk of coronary diseases
Look and feel better overall

The list goes on and on but one thing I must include...

…I can’t stress enough the importance of strength training in reducing stress!! If you don’t already have a regular routine of strength training, I’d like to encourage you to give it a try. Add at least 3 days per week of a minimum of 30 minutes and see if you don’t feel and look better. Make the commitment now and you just may find that your goals come just a little bit quicker than you had thought!