3 Reasons Why You Should Be Weight Lifting

As a registered dietitian nutritionist and a personal trainer, the benefits of weight lifting are not lost on me. I myself weight lift most days of the week; I try to do a different muscle group every day with some cardio exercises mixed in such as running on the treadmill or walking.

U.S. exercise guidelines recommend that adults should perform strength training exercises for each of the major muscle groups at least twice a week; additionally, adults should get between 150 and 300 minutes of physical activity in per week depending on their overall goals. Weightlifting is one of those exercises which can be done for strength training in the form of traditional weight lifting or body-weight exercises.

The reasons to weight lift are numerous, but I’ll just list the ones I see as major benefits here for now.

•Lifting weights can and will help to build bone density and reduce your future risk of osteoporosis. In addition, lifting weights can increase balance and coordination which can aid in the prevention of falls and fractures in the elderly (get moving today for a better tomorrow)!
•Weight lifting can also lead to Improvement of cardiovascular risk factors such as blood pressure which can lead to lower risk of mortality from heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
•Lifting weights can also be an aid in weight loss or weight maintenance as muscle tissue burns more calories than fat tissue. The more lean muscle you have the more calories you burn and there is no better way to add lean muscle mass than to lift weights!

If you’re new to lifting weights you may feel intimidated- but remember, everyone has to start somewhere! Even using just 5 lb weights you can begin to build muscle mass. Before beginning your weight lifting journey, you may want to consider using a personal trainer to help you develop a weight training program geared to your abilities and goals.

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