In honor of March being Women’s month, we here at CustomFitt want to share a little insight on something we think women often overlook… strength training.
Now wait, let’s take a second to explain. Oftentimes, when people think of strength training, they think of that big, buff, heavy-lifting, 20-something guy at the gym. But that is not what we are talking about here. When we talk about strength training for senior women, we mean light to medium weight repetition to tone muscles and keep your body moving independently for years to come.
So, how does strength training help women?
1. Reduces risk of heart disease, lowers LDL and raises HDL - You’ve heard it for years, lower your “bad’ cholesterol, raise the “good” cholesterol. But did you know that just cardio alone won’t do this? You must strengthen your muscles, along with cardio and resistance training, in order to really work on your cholesterol and reduce heart disease risk.
2. Builds stronger muscles and connective tissues to increase joint stability - This may seem obvious, but strength training strengthens your muscles! But that’s not the only thing you are building - you are also building up the connective tissues in your body to increase the stability in each and every joint. What does that mean? It means when you build up the muscles surrounding your knees, the knees become more stable. Even people with “bad” knees can benefit from strengthening the muscles around them to reduce pain and help with balance.
3. Improves the way the body processes sugar – Are you struggling with diabetes or pre-diabetes? You need strength training! Diabetes is the body’s inability to process glucose effectively, but when you are strength training, you are burning up that glucose and helping the body to process it.
4. Combats osteoporosis - Did you know? According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, of the estimated 10. Million Americans with osteoporosis, about 80 % are women. They go on to say that the chance of developing osteoporosis increases as women reach menopause, due to a decrease in estrogen. Strength training not only helps prevent bone loss, but in some cases can even help build new bone.
5. Reduces the rate of depression - A Harvard Study found that 1+ weeks of strength training reduced clinical depression. It increases the endorphins in the brain, which increases happiness. But why do we say this is so important for women? 8.7% of women have depression (as opposed to 5.3% of men.) Additionally, the peri-menopausal period is a time of increased risk for those with a history of major depression.
While traditionally, many people consider strength training to only be important for men, as you can see, it is imperative that women continue to strength train as we age.
Make sure you follow CustomFItt on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/customfittexasfor more information related to Women’s month. Interested in making a change in your fitness routine, but not sure where to start? Reach out to CustomFitt today!
