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Will Weight Lifting Provide Any Health Benefits?
Those that lift weights can be divided into three different groups. There are some that do strength training merely to look better. They want to look good when they stand in front of a mirror and they want to get looks from the opposite sex when walking down the street. Others lift weights to increase their strength. They are not worried so much about looking good. They just want to feel a sense of pride at how much iron they can throw around. Then there is a final group who is simply are the health benefits that lifting weights can provide.
Today I want to consider those that are in the third camp. What are some of the health benefits that you might experience if you were to embark on a weight lifting program?
Fat Loss
The more you lift weights the more muscle you will add to your body. This will in turn raise your metabolic rate and help burn calories and fat at a faster rate. Muscle is a fat burning machine that we can all put to good use. Now some women are worried that they are going to get big and bulky if they lift weights. This is not going to happen since they lack testosterone in their bodies to enable them to build bulky muscles. Frankly, if it was that easy I would have looked like Mr. Universe long ago but this is not the case. However, it am not loaded up with fat.
Better Overall Health
If you were to incorporate a regular weight training program into your exercise routine then you can have a great impact on various measures of good health. Studies have shown that you can improve you blood pressure, and lower your risk of heart disease and diabetes. Now it is obvious that you would need to include a reasonable diet along with weight lifting in order to benefit as you should. You cannot eat a pizza every night for dinner and still see these benefits.
More Energy
As your muscle strength increases you will find that you have more energy then you used to have. It will be easier to go up stairs. You will find yourself less tired throughout the day. The very fact that you begin to look better and feel better adds a vitality to your life that you may not have experienced before. It helps improve your attitude and when that changes, it can affect so many areas of your life.
Fewer Injuries
If you do participate in athletic activities weight lifting should help keep you healthier and less prone to injury. Strength training will not only give you stronger muscle but also stronger tendons and ligaments. This will help you avoid injury.
These are just a few of the health benefits of lifting weights. If you have not begun to lift weights yet then you need to make it a priority to include it in your exercise program.
Muscle Building Exercises – 8 Tips to Re-Charge Your Energy
In todays hectic lifestyle it is sometimes hard to fit in everything we need to do. But whatever you do, don’t give up your regular exercising routines. Muscle building exercises are your own private, built in energy source. The time you take to do your regular exercise routine will be given back many times over with increased energy and reduced stress.
The following 8 tips will help you get the most out of your muscle building exercises:
Use Proper Techniques
Be sure your form isolates the muscles or parts of the body you want to target. Short periods of high intensity are needed to ensure maximum muscle building.
Use A Full Range Of Motion
Don’t restrict your movement without reason. For example free weights permit your back and legs to work while a weight machine restricts your movement. Stimulating and working your muscles will help to strengthen your joints.
Mix Up Your Cadence
Slow movements will force your muscles to contract over a longer period of time and give you the maximum benefit. In sports type training, mixing up your cadence with fast an slow cycles is the way to go.
Watch Your Angles
Isolate your target muscles using the best angles to maximize the muscle exercise while minimizing the risk of injury. We all know that we should lift with our legs and not our back but it is easy to forget when we are doing a muscle building workout.
Mix Up Your Routines
Try a dumbbell press lying on an exercise ball. You will be working your abs, chest and triceps in addition to your biceps. This type of exercise may challenge you until you get used to it nut then you will find an refreshing and rewarding break from your normal routines.
Add Some Cardio
Cardio done right will increase your heart rate and strengthen both your heart and lungs. When you get into the fat burning zone you will almost feel the fat melting away. Muscle building exercises that strengthen your heart and lungs together with burning the fat is a sure formula for charging up your energy supply.
Don’t Skip The Warmup
Always start slow and give your muscles time to warm up. Stretching and mild exercise will help get the blood flowing and loosen up your muscles. Working stiff, cold muscles and joints is a sure road to injury. You need that extra blood flow to help carry the nutrients to your muscles to supply the energy needed by your workout. Without the warmup your body won’t be ready to tackle the more vigorous routines.
Alternate Days
Don’t do the same muscle building routine two days in a row. An ideal schedule may be to work on the weights on Monday, Wednesday and Friday filling in with cardio on the off days. Saturdays are good for a run or for an extra day of rest.
Don’t fall into the trap of “being too busy” to get in your muscle building exercise. Even if muscle building isn’t your primary goal, you will get so many other benefits from your workout routine and have more energy to tackle all of those other items on your must do list. Muscle building exercises are really your personal energy battery. Use it and it will never be empty.
Muscle Gain
