More and more people are adding resistance training to their workout regime, and for good reason. While aerobic exercise has many health benefits, resistance exercise has benefits of its own. Lifting weights, using therabands, or performing other resistance exercises regularly strengthens muscles, builds strong bones, positively alters body mass and improves glucose metabolism.
Improve Muscle Strength
Challenge your muscles. Applying resistance to your muscles causes the muscle cells to hypertrophy, or increase in size. Resistance exercises result in an increased efficiency of the nervous system in recruiting muscles, which also leads to an increase in strength. Stronger muscles not only make you more physically fit, but can decrease the risks of back and joint pain and protect your body from injuries.
Control Your Weight and Reshape Your Body
Resistance training adds leans mass to your body. By adding lean mass, your body can better maintain its basal metabolic rate, making you less likely to gain weight as easily. Regular resistance training also helps your body burn fat and calories. These changes help reshape your body to a firmer, more athletic physique.
Maintain Bone Mineral Density
Fight Osteoporosis. Muscles are attached to bones, so when you perform resistance exericses, your bones get a workout, too. The force your muscles exert on your bones helps increase your bone mineral density, making your bones stronger and more resistant to injury. This means a reduced risk of osteoporosis and fractures as you age.
Improved Glucose Metabolism
Manage your blood glucose levels. High glucose levels are a risk factor in both diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Resistance training not only improves your body's glucose metabolism via a decrease in body fat, but helps your body use glucose more efficiently without any underlying body mass changes.
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