Strength Training Weight Loss: Building Muscle to Lose Fat

Posted by: lucas on October 17, 2011 Under: weight loss exercise|

When it comes to trimming down your tummy or burning inches from your butt and thighs, you probably think of treadmills, salads, and a persistent feeling of hunger. Strength training for weight loss could be the last thing on your mind: bench pressing a barbell or sweating it out with the big guys at the gym might seem like the last thing you’d want to include in your weight loss plans. However, strength training has benefits for weight loss that you might not realize, and many doctors are now recommending that we take up some form of strength training to get healthier. Yes, that includes women, too!

Strength Training Weight Loss: Not Just for Meatheads Anymore

Strength training has many benefits, including “unseen” ones like improved cardiovascular health and reduced blood pressure. You may think that jumping on a treadmill is the best way to improve your heart health, and that certainly does help, but pushing your body to the limit by performing some heavy weight training is also included in the equation. The variety of benefits afforded by strength training include building muscle and slowing muscle loss, improving joint and muscle strength for less pain when performing other physical activities, and reducing arthritis pain. It also helps prevent osteoporosis, an important consideration for aging women. Many doctors today recommend strength training as an essential part of a fitness regimen for middle-aged women, as they are at increased risk of osteoporosis.

Cardio isn’t the only exercise helpful to dieters: strength training also helps considerably with weight loss. The heavy exertion required in a strength training exercise will burn lots of calories in a short amount of time. The beauty of strength training is that it elevates the metabolism for an extended period of time, so you’re still burning calories at an increased rate several hours after your workout, when you’re simply watching T.V. or laying in bed! Strength training also helps build muscle, which increases the body’s resting metabolic rate—it takes more energy to maintain muscle than fat—and it prevents the loss of muscle due to reduced caloric intake. Many dieters end up looking flabby because they lose plenty of muscle along with their fat; avoid this mistake by incorporating strength training into your weight loss programs.

Strength Training Weight Loss: Don’t Hurt Yourself

Seeing the ripped guys and heavy weights at the gym can be intimidating. It can also be tempting to throw some weight on a barbell and attempt a few lifts without knowing your limits. As you might soon learn, proper form and technique is of utmost importance when performing strength training, especially if you’re using free weights like barbells or dumbbells. A qualified fitness trainer can instruct you on the proper form and can also recommend exercises tailored to your fitness level and requirements. Compound exercises like the bench press, deadlift, and squat can seem complicated and intimidating, but these basic lifts can be performed by just about anyone, and they offer a wide range of benefits, from increased muscle mass to improved balance and confidence.

Strength training for weight loss is a great idea for just about anybody. Though it is underutilized by many, it can offer great benefits that can’t be attained otherwise. Check with your physician before undergoing a strength training regimen and ask for recommendations on the exercises that would most benefit your weight loss plans.