Benefits of Weight Training for Female Baby Boomers
If you're one of the many female baby boomers who have been neglecting their weight training routine during recent years, now it's time to reconsider. The benefits are potentially huge!
In this blog we'll outline some of the reasons why weight training should be a cornerstone of your fitness program for women in their 50s on up. In the end, you won't regret pumping some iron!
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Reasons Why Weight Training Should Be Part of Your Fitness Routine
For many of our female readers, exercising is simply something they do to burn calories and lose weight, and not necessarily for its health benefits. However, we find it's often the case that as you get older, your fitness levels can drop off and results are diminished unless there is an underlying (and possibly contributing) cause. The appearance of extra fat around the waistline or even just the "something to wear a little looser" could be a sign that you're not doing everything you need to in order to maximize results from your workouts.
And as it turns out, being physically fit and active can help you look and feel better in a number of ways. If you're still active at any age, the benefits are many:
You'll have more energy and confidence
You'll have less chance of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer or depression, especially when combined withhealthy eating habits like Soul Food eating. This is because exercise promotes good cholesterol (HDL) and lowers "bad" cholesterol (LDL). Exercise also helps fight aging by increasing muscle tone; this helps to slow the effects of aging on your body as well as slowing down the production of free radicals that come from an active lifestyle.
You can enjoy your life more. Some of the most active women we've spoken to are those who have discovered the benefits that exercise brings to their lives. They tell us they just feel better about themselves and have forgotten about trying to fit into a certain dress size or fitting into a restaurant booth. They have rediscovered the "woman" in "females" and let go of any self-imposed limitations of weight or age, and they've had to get rid of those big-girl sweat pants!
In fact, with exercise, many women find that they can finally get rid of that pair of sweat pants they "had to wear a couple years back. They have more energy, more confidence, and are able to get their kids or grandkids to do things with them that they couldn't before. These are all great gifts from exercise!
You'll live a more active life. If you're not active in your life, then what is the purpose of being in this wonderful world? We think there are two main concerns people have about being inactive: "I just don't feel like it," or "I'm too old!" Well, here's something many of our readers can tell you: being physically active doesn't mean that you have to do so at the expense of your health or activities with your family. You'll get more out of your life if you can do more!
We know that some of our female readers are already active, and we certainly don't want to discourage anyone from staying fit and healthy in their 50s, 60s or even 70s. However, as a fitness professional who has trained thousands of women over the last few decades, we've seen that taking an extra step with weight training can really help you feel better about yourself. It'll give you more energy and perhaps make you feel younger -- not like all those other "fifty" women who are so damn sedentary!
We're not saying it's impossible to be too old to work out, mind you. But if you're in your 40s or 50s and still have active hobbies like sports or a family lifestyle that keeps you busy, then consider increasing your exercise time. What it all comes down to is keeping moving! A good rule of thumb is that it takes at least 30 minutes -- but no more than 45 minutes -- of moderate to high intensity exercise every day to reap the benefits (as well as reduce risk of cardiovascular disease).
Back in the day, many women didn't work out because they couldn't come up with a workout that they could do in their spare time. Today, however, there are so many great weight training programs available to women from which they can choose.
You'll improve your health and overall well-being. We're always talking about how much better Soul Food Eating is for your health, and we certainly don't want to stop now! In our opinion, the best way to take control of your health is by becoming more physically active. So now that you've decided to exercise more, we're sure you'll agree there are many reasons why weight training should be a cornerstone of your fitness program for women in their 50s on up. The benefits are potentially huge!
We all know that muscle weighs more than fat, so if you gain muscle through weight training or activity you will lose inches. If you don't want to lose inches, you must be prepared to gain weight. Therefore, if you go to the gym and work on gaining muscle by lifting weights, you will be adding lean muscle mass to your body. This in turn will help you burn more calories and fat throughout the day. This is because your metabolism remains elevated for up to 48 hours after a strength training workout.
It's a simple fact that adding lean muscle tissue to your body will add weight. This is why you don't want to just work out for the sake of working out -- you want to work out for the health benefits and results that come from strength training. Training with weights (rather than just Cardio) not only offers the best possible results in the number of calories burned, but it also creates a sound aerobic base for activity; this reduces your risk of injury when doing more intense cardiovascular exercise like running, because your muscles are stronger and can support you better.
Cardio burns fat! That's right, cardio is great for burning fat, but it can also make you lose muscle.
Conclusion
The benefits of exercise (especially weight training) for women in their 50s on up are many. We have seen that resistance training, combined with healthy eating, helps improve not only a person's appearance but also her overall sense of well-being. This combination can also help a woman continue to live an active lifestyle, which makes her feel better about herself and increases her overall quality of life.