Physical fitness is essential to lifelong health, wellness, and longevity. For a significant portion of the population, physical fitness means cardio, namely jogging. While any physical activity is better than no physical activity, only doing cardio is far from optimal as it neglects a crucial aspect of fitness -- muscle strength.
You see, while cardio is great for burning calories and strengthening your heart, lungs, and cardiovascular system, it really doesn’t do much to build muscle, increase bone density, or combat sarcopenia (age-related muscle loss).
This is why strength training (i.e. resistance-training or weight lifting) is essential to any workout regimen.
But, lifting weights isn’t just about building muscle (though that is an amazing benefit!). Researchers have unearthed a slew of mind and body benefits that come from stressing your muscles under tension.
Let’s begin with the most obvious…
Greater Strength & Fitness
Strength can be defined a few different ways. One way is “the ability to do things that need a lot of physical or mental effort.” Another way strength is defined is the amount of weight an individual can lift relative to their bodyweight. Yet another way to define strength is the absolute amount of weight you can lift (i.e. 1-RM).
However, you choose to define it, stressing your muscles under tension increases muscular strength as well as mental fortitude. In doing so, you’re not only fortifying your body against injury, you’re also building mental and emotional resolve to encounter and conquer the multitude of challenges that life inevitably throws your way.
Muscle Growth
Building muscle (aka hypertrophy) is synonymous with building strength, though the two are slightly different. Regardless, the bigger a muscle is, the greater capacity it has to generate force (i.e. strength).
While you may not have aspirations of being the next Mr. or Ms. Olympia, don’t degenerate the benefits of strength training. Plus, simply lifting weights isn’t enough to transform you into a professional bodybuilder. Those individuals dedicate their lives to getting bigger. Performing a few total body resistance training routines is a far cry from what professional physique athletes do day in and day out.
Building a base level of muscle helps boost metabolism (allowing you to eat more food during the day without gaining fat), improves insulin sensitivity, and helps you look better in and out of your clothes (something we all care about, whether we want to admit it or not).
Something else worth considering is that our bodies lose muscle as we age (between 3-5% per decade after age 30). Resistance training helps combat muscle loss, helping you age gracefully.
Maintain Weight Loss Results
Contrary to what you may hear, losing weight isn’t that difficult. In fact, millions of people make a pledge (and succeed!) with losing several pounds of unwanted body fat.
The difficulty men and women have is maintaining their weight loss and keeping those unwanted pounds off.
The good news is that consistent resistance training can help maintain your fat loss results, including those achieved during a transformation challenge!
One of the reasons that strength training helps keep excess weight off is that it not only helps burn calories during workouts, it also boosts metabolism for several hours afterward, meaning your body is still burning additional calories later in the day, even when you’re not working out!
And, building off of the previous point, the more lean muscle you have, the higher your resting metabolic rate (RMR) is!
Better Mood & Well-Being
Not only does lifting weights help build muscle and strength, it can also boost mood and overall well-being. Physical activity increases the release of mood-boosting catecholamines and neurotransmitters, including dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. Plus, there’s no better feeling than setting a new PR in your workouts whether it's a new 1-RM or number of reps completed!
Moreover, intense workouts, including resistance training and HIIT, also help to reduce stress and cortisol levels.
Stronger Bones
We mentioned this briefly at the outset of this article, but it bears repeating again. Cardio isn’t enough to build stronger muscles or bones. And just like muscles can deteriorate with time, so too can your bones. This is of particular concern for women as they are at a greater risk for osteoporosis.
Research demonstrates that resistance training is one of the best things you can do to increase bone density.[1] Other measures you can take to promote stronger bones are to fulfill your requirements for vitamin D and calcium, both of which are needed for healthy bones. This can be achieved from a combination of diet, lifestyle (i.e. sunlight exposure) and supplementation, such as Multi-Go Women or Multi-Go Men.
Enhanced Cognitive Function
As great as strength training is for your body, it’s equally as good for your brain. In addition to boosting mood, lifting weights also increases the production of several important proteins in the brain, including brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is responsible for the growth, development and maintenance of brain cells.
Research also indicates that resistance training can help memory, productivity, and executive function as well as preserve cognitive function across an individual’s lifespan.[1]
Supports Cardiovascular Health
Cardio isn’t the only thing that makes a stronger heart…resistance training can too!
In fact, resistance training is one of the best things you can do for your heart and cardiovascular system. Research finds that regularly engaging in strength training can[1]:
- Reduce resting blood pressure
- Decrease low-density lipoprotein (LDL or “bad”) cholesterol
- Lower triglycerides
- Increase high-density lipoprotein (HDL or “good”) cholesterol
These effects aren’t relegated to adults alone, they’re also applicable to kids and teenagers![2]
Immune Support
Strength training also supports a healthy functioning immune system, helping your body defend itself against nefarious microbes.[3] In addition to regular exercise, eating a healthy diet, getting enough sleep, managing stress & inflammation, and using the right supplements can support a healthy immune system. Some of our favorite products to use to make sure we’re getting in enough quality nutrients including our Greens & Reds Superfoods Plus and Kickstart.
Better Sleep
Sleep is absolutely vital to your health, let alone your physical fitness aspirations (building muscle, losing body fat, body recomposition, etc.). Staying physically active during the day, including resistance training and cardio, improves your ability to fall asleep at night and have more restful sleep throughout the night. Sleep is when your body does the majority of its repair, recovery and growth. Shortchanging your sleep effectively hinders your ability to perform at a high level whether it's in the gym, classroom, office, or at home.
So, if you’re looking to get better sleep each and every night, make sure to crush your workouts. And, if you need extra help unwinding at the end of the day, consider some lifestyle modifications including:
- Setting a bedtime (and sticking to it)
- Keeping your room cool and dark
- Wearing loose, comfortable clothing to bed
- Avoiding blue light at least 2 hours before bed
- Avoiding caffeine or alcohol before bed
- Taking a warm bath or shower
- Stretching or light yoga
- Meditating, journaling or praying
- Reading
Another option is to use a nighttime relaxation and recovery supplement such as Recharge PM or Beauty Dream PM which helps promote feelings of calm and reduce feelings of stress thereby enabling you to unwind and slip into a deep, restorative sleep (which also helps you feel more alert and train harder in your resistance training workouts!).
Takeaway
Resistance training is one of the best things you can do for your physical and mental well-being. It builds muscle, strength, and mental fortitude as well as supports cardiovascular health and a healthy body composition.
To help you make the most of your strength training workouts, make sure to fuel your body properly with a nutritious diet. For an added boost, consider adding the right supplements to your training plan, including 1UP Pre, Essential Amino Acids, and protein powder. These help you to maximize your performance and recovery no matter what your goals are!
References
- 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.
- Yu CC, McManus AM, So HK, Chook P, Au CT, Li AM, Kam JT, So RC, Lam CW, Chan IH, Sung RY. Effects of resistance training on cardiovascular health in non-obese active adolescents. World J Clin Pediatr. 2016 Aug 8;5(3):293-300. doi: 10.5409/wjcp.v5.i3.293. PMID: 27610345; PMCID: PMC4978622.
- Golestani, F., Eskandari, M., Hooshmand Moghadam, B. et al. Regular resistance training as a strategy to improve aging-related immune activation. Sport Sci Health 18, 751–758 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11332-021-00853-5
