Strength Training 101, Part I: Why Get Stronger?

Strength Training 101 is 3-part series that gives you a basic understanding of strength-training: why we do it, where we can do it, and how to do it. Many of you already incorporate strength-training into your daily routine. You regularly lift weights, work with a medicine ball, or do core/yoga exercises with your own body weight. On the other hand, some of you may walk into a weight-room and feel completely intimidated that you immediately walk back out (or head straight to the cardio machines).
To begin, strength training is an easy concept: It means, building muscle to get stronger. Doing it, and doing it correctly, however, is not so easy. This first part will dive into the 5 major reasons for WHY we strength train: 1) every-day strength, 2) healthier bones, 3) injury prevention, 4) looking better, and 5) speedy metabolism. Enjoy!

Why Get Stronger? 
With the help of Fitness for Dummies (a book that I was given during a white-elephant gift exchange), I have identified 5 major reasons for why we should strength train:

Reason #1: Every-Day Strength

• If you don't use your muscles, you lose your muscles. Your muscles are much like your brain and your heart (or your puppy): they are very sensitive to boredom and neglect. Once they feel neglected and under-appreciated, they punish you by disappearing, little by little, until you can no longer lift an object heavier than ten pounds.  According to Fitness for Dummies, "People who don't exercise lose 30-40% of their strength by age 65". Here's a math problem for you: If you can lift 10 pounds at age 20, how much can you lift at age 65 if you never do a bicep curl ever again?

• More so, strength training enhances our ability to do the sports and activities that we already enjoy. For example,  I love to ride my bike uphill (crazy, I know). While this is an intense cardio workout, I'm also using all the muscles in my legs, gluteus maximus, lower back, arms, shoulders, and core. In fact, I'm probably using 90% of the muscles in my body to power me up the hill. What are sports that you enjoy doing that are enhanced by strength training? 

•  Lastly, I want you to think about how and when you use your muscles on a regular basis. Here are some examples:
  
  1. Hauling grocery bags into the car, or carrying them home if I'm walking. 
  2. Picking up toddlers while I'm babysitting.
  3. Carrying my snowboard in and out of the locker room. 
  4. Moving in/out of a new place (I've moved 5 times in the last year!!).
  5. Carrying my textbooks in my backpack.
  6. Moving furniture when I decide I don't like the current arrangement. 
  7. Putting my bike on the back of the car.
  8. . . . Your ideas here. . . . 
  
  
  "Strength training enhances our ability to do the sports and activities we already enjoy"

Reason #2: Stronger Bones

• Have you ever heard of osteoporosis? I hope so. If not, it is a slow-moving disease categorized by severe bone loss. 25 million Americans suffer from osteoporosis. These individuals (and elderly people too) are very susceptible to fractures and breaks, usually of the hip, back, or wrist. Their bones can break without any impact, causing them to fall and injure themselves more severely. The bottom line is this: our muscles and our bones are connected within a larger system. The more weight you can lift translates into more stress that your bones can handle (this stress actually strengthens your bones). I know it's hard to imagine now, but strength training now (and for life) will build strong bones, and decrease your chances of suffering from osteoporosis later on.

• Also important for bone health: calcium, vitamin D, and aerobic exercise.

"Our muscles and our bones are connected within a larger system"

Reason #3: Injury Prevention

• Building strength improves balance, coordination, and "sure-footedness." Your less likely to trip and fall over. Injury prevention is especially important if you are a hard-core athlete: your bones and muscles make the big bucks, so taking care of them through strength-training is essential.  

"You're less likely to trip and fall over"

Reason #4: You look Better!   

• Body sculpting (much like clay sculpting), can result in a sleeker, sexier body (or a nice, tall vase). Don't be fooled, however, by the "spot-reducing" myth- the myth that we can zap fat off of selected areas of our body. What you can do through weight-lifting and other forms of strength training is firm, shape, and lift areas of your body by building more muscle. You may not lose pounds per se, but you will feel "tighter" and more toned, and you may find it easier to fit into your skinny jeans. 

". . . Firm, shape, and lift areas of your body by building more muscle."

Reason #5: Speedy Metabolism

• How does this work? Thanks to Fitness for Dummies, I think I can explain it clearly: in order to increase your metabolism, you must first understand your "resting metabolism," aka your resting metabolic rate:

• Resting Metabolic Rate = The amount of energy your body burns performing it's basic functions (breathing, pooping, etc.)

• If you lived like a sloth (very cute creatures that mostly reside in Costa Rica), then your body would STILL BURN CALORIES, even if you only moved 5 inches a day. This is because our "fat-free mass" (bones, muscles, blood, organs, and tissues) works very hard just to keep us alive. Our "fat-free mass" burns energy whether we want it to or not.

• Since you can't increase the size of your organs or your blood density, you can't increase the amount of calories that they burn while "at rest". However, you can increase the size of your muscles, and as a result, increase your resting metabolic rate.

• Just how much can you increase your resting metabolic rate? Well, for every 1 POUND of muscle gained, your body burns an extra 30-50 calories per day. This may not seem like a lot (enough for 2 extra chocolate kisses), but overtime it adds up. Here's another math problem for you: If you burn an extra 50 calories per day, how many extra calories will you have burned in a year? If each pound = 3500 calories, how many pounds have you lost? How about in ten years? 20? I will work on this, and publish answers! I want you to do it too. :) Talented and Gifted students: Try this same problem, but instead of gaining 1 pound, you gained 3 pounds of muscle. 

The point is, muscle burns more than fat. If you increase your muscle, you body will burn more energy on a regular basis. How great is that?!

Hopefully this first part got you thinking about the importance of strength-training. If you already do it, great! Keep up your routine. If not, stay tuned for how to incorporate strength-training into your daily life.

COMING SOON: Part II: Strength Training Anytime, Anywhere!

Thanks for tuning in!
~Dana