🦉 strength traiN 2 OR MORE times per week
Why is this important?
Strength training, also known as resistance training, has numerous benefits. It slows down the aging process and improves health. It will help you to grow and maintain muscle mass, increase your bone density, and improve your balance. It's good for your heart health and is an essential component in achieving and maintaining a healthy weight. Everyday activities such as picking up a box, and walking up a couple of flights of stairs will all become easier when you train regularly. Strength training is also good for your brain health: it increases your happiness, and when you overcome obstacles and do exercises you were not able to perform previously, your confidence increases. This boost in confidence will be visible in other areas of your life as well.
What is strength training?
Strength training is physical exercise that is designed to improve strength and physical performance. There are many different ways to do it. You don’t necessarily need equipment or weights. In fact, there are hundreds of effective bodyweight exercises that will make you stronger. Examples of strength training are:
- Lifting weights
- Body weight exercises or Calisthenics (lunges, squats, push ups, pull ups, planks etc.)
- Gymnastics
- Fitness classes that include muscle strengthening movements
There are also a number of things you can do that combine cardiovascular exercises with strength training. Examples include rowing (a full-body workout) and stair climbing.
How much strength training is recommended:
Doing two sessions of strength training per week, on non-consecutive days is the minimum recommended guideline. A good strength training session should take you 40-50 minutes. The latest research shows that doing 3 or more sessions a week provides additional health benefits. If you don’t have much experience doing strength training, please watch the two videos below. The first video contains 10 simple exercises to get you started. The second video shows you how to fit resistance training into your weekly routine.
Reference 1: ▶️ Video: 10 Strength training exercises (detailed instructions)
Reference 2: ▶️ Video: Easy steps for improving posture
6 steps on how to create a sustainable strength training routine:
Try to make strength training part of your weekly routine. The video below provides 6 steps you can take to make this happen.
You can also click on the link here for a more detailed written explanation.
Additional helpful resources:
The New Rules of Lifting, Lou Schuler, Alwyn Cosgrove and Cassandra Forsythe, PhD, R.D.
