Do you think weightlifting only benefits those who want shirt-ripping arms? Think again.
Whatever your exercises goals are, the benefits of resistance training will help you to achieve this.
Listed below are just some of the most important benefits.
1) When put head-to-head against cardiovascular exercise, resistance training comes out on top in the battle to burn body fat. The advantage to weight training is your body’s ability to burn fat during and after exercise. The more muscle contractions you experience during a day, the more calories you’ll burn. If you have more lean muscle mass, you’ll have more muscle contractions and thus burn more calories.
3) Strength training greatly improves sleep quality, aiding in your ability to fall asleep faster, sleep deeper, and wake less often during the night. A study published in the International SportMed Journal suggests that morning resistance training or high intensity training greatly affects the quality of sleep and lengthens the time of sleep the night after training.
3) Want to feel more energised at work and at home? A study published by the National Institute of Health suggests that the chronic increase in energy expenditure, even after a minimal resistance training session, will favourably affect energy balance and fat oxidation. So rather than reaching for that early afternoon cup of coffee – grab a barbell instead.
4) You will gain this strength without an increase in size – being stronger is better, but many women believe that increased strength will mean an increase in size. Put simply it’s just not true, the female body just does not have the abundance of muscle growing hormones that men do.
5) You will decrease your risk of diabetes by increasing your muscle mass. The cells of the body that regulate blood sugar levels are found within your muscles – more muscles = better regulation of blood sugar
6) You will improve your sporting performance – Resistance training will increase muscle mass but also improve nerve response in the muscle, better proprioception leads to better sporting/exercise performance which can help you get more out your training and reduce your risk of injury
So what are you “weighting” for?