Everyone has probably heard of strength training. Often people think of big muscular men like Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dwayne Douglas Johnson (The Rock). Don’t worry, strength training is not only for men and women who want to become very muscular.
Do you want to improve your health and muscle mass? Then strength training is definitely necessary. Whether you are a man or a woman, just starting with strength training or already a bit further. There are a lot of health benefits to strength training, which I will explain to you further.
What is strength training?
Strength training is a form of physical training in which you use resistance to increase your muscle strength, muscle mass and the endurance of your muscles. The resistance you can use can come from your own body weight, free weights, such as barbells, dumbbells, and kettlebells, but also from strength equipment such as a power station, chest press, leg press, or another single station.
The goal of strength training is often to improve your strength and the size of your muscles. Improving the strength and growth of your muscles is done by loading your muscles.
Health benefits of strength training
1) More strength & muscles
This is one of the most well-known benefits of strength training. By training your strength, you ensure that your muscles become stronger and bigger. By doing strength training, very small (microscopic) tears are created in the muscles that recover during rest, after your workout. So unfortunately for men, it takes some time to grow muscles and for women, don’t worry, you won’t look like a bodybuilder anytime soon.
2) Better overall health
By doing strength training, you not only ensure more strength and muscle mass, but also an improvement in your overall health.
A stronger heart and blood vessels
In order to function properly, your muscles need oxygen. This means that your heart has to work harder to pump the oxygen around, which can ensure that the pump function is improved. Due to the increasing demand for oxygen and nutrients from your muscles during training, your blood circulation will also improve. Improved blood circulation ensures a more efficient supply of oxygen and nutrients to, among other things, the other body cells.
If you regularly do strength training, this can also lower your blood pressure. Lower blood pressure means less stress on the heart muscles and blood vessels, which reduces the risk of heart disease.
It also ensures better insulin sensitivity of the muscles, which can help prevent or manage type 2 diabetes. By doing strength training, you will burn more calories by increasing your muscle mass. And by doing strength training, you ensure that you burn fat and increase your muscle mass, which is important for your overall cardiovascular health (in combination with the right nutrition of course).
Brain (mental health / cognitive functions)
In addition to a more muscular / better shaped body and an improvement of the cardiovascular system, strength training has another great advantage. By doing strength training, you also give your brain a positive boost. And, as briefly mentioned earlier, strength training ensures better blood circulation, including to the brain. This ensures a better supply of oxygen and nutrients to your brain cells, which in turn can improve the functioning of your brain. Think of functions such as your attention, memory and your executive functions.
Strength training also ensures a better mood. It increases your neurotransmitter levels such as endorphins, serotonin and dopamine (more on this later). A better mood is good for everyone, right?
Less chance of injuries and illness
Another major advantage is that strength training can reduce the chance of injuries and illnesses. We previously discussed a reduced chance of cardiovascular disease, better insulin sensitivity and the prevention / control of diabetes 2. But did you know that it also ensures that you are more resistant to external forces, which reduces the chance of injuries during your daily (sports) activities.
If you have a lot of sedentary work (for example in the office), strength training helps you prevent injuries. You strengthen your core, back, glutes and quads, among other things, which gives you better support for your head, back, neck, etc.
3) You get stronger bones (bone density)
In addition to a tighter and more muscular body, strength training also brings another advantage that you will benefit from for the rest of your life, strength training ensures stronger bones because your bone density is increased. As you get older, your muscle mass and bone density slowly decrease, which increases the chance of bone fractures (especially when you are older). You also reduce the chance of osteoporosis (a type of bone loss).
4) A better posture
Due to the increase in muscle mass, your posture will also improve. For a better posture, it is important to train your core (abdomen), back and legs well. Many people have a bad posture due to weaker muscles in the upper and lower back. By doing strength training, you strengthen these muscles, which will better support your spine, promote a straight posture and you will experience fewer to no complaints.
If you work a lot sitting down (e.g. office work), you may recognize it in yourself or others, sitting hunched over the screen. If you do this occasionally, there will be little to worry about, but if you sit in the wrong position for a longer period of time, complaints can (slowly) develop. Think of back and neck complaints or, in a worse case, a hernia. It is especially important to ensure a good balance between the different muscle groups so that you experience optimal support.
5) Reducing stress
Stress is a reaction of your body that responds to changes. It is a normal part of life and can arise from any situation or thought that someone experiences as threatening or harmful. Stress does not necessarily have to be harmful. If you end up in an acute stress situation (often short-lived, fight or flight response), stress hormones such as adrenaline, cortisol and noradrenaline are produced. If you experience stress for a long time, stress is not good for you (chronic stress). How this manifests itself can differ per person. For example, you may suffer from headaches, stomach aches, back and neck complaints, experience high blood pressure or, for example, sleep poorly, have difficulty concentrating or be forgetful.
To reduce stress, you can do strength training. Strength training can reduce your stress, anxiety and depression. Through strength training, your body produces endorphins (the happiness hormone), it lowers your stress hormone cortisol, but strength training also ensures that you have better energy levels and it also provides a nice distraction.
6) You get a better night’s sleep
After an intensive workout, your body also needs the necessary rest to be able to recover properly. So you make your body physically more tired. Some people who do strength training experience a deeper and better sleep as a result. In addition, because your cortisol level (stress) decreases, you can also relax faster and fall asleep more easily.
7) Lose weight through a better metabolism / faster metabolism
During your workouts you burn calories, at the time itself this is more with cardio compared to strength training (assuming a comparable intensity and duration). But with a good strength training session you still burn quite a few calories. Because you build more muscle mass with strength training, more and more energy is needed to maintain it. This ensures that more energy is burned even after your workouts.
After your workout, muscle tissue remains “active”, this is also called the “After-burn” effect or “excess post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC)”. The body needs extra oxygen to recover and return to its resting state. This means that the body still burns calories at a higher rate after your workout.
8) You get more self-confidence
It gives your self-confidence a nice boost! After a few weeks of strength training you can often see a difference in your body. You get a nicer / tighter figure, have a lower fat percentage and a better posture. If you stand in front of the mirror every now and then and you see your body change, there is a good chance that it gives you a proud and satisfied feeling.
In addition, you can continue to challenge yourself by increasing your training weight a little, which also provides a boost of self-confidence.
9) Feeling more energetic
You may recognize it, you actually don’t feel like doing your workout or going to the gym, but once you’ve started you don’t want to stop. Strength training gives you an energetic and pleasant feeling.
During your strength training, various substances are produced that influence your feelings, such as:
Dopamine: this neurotransmitter is most associated with the feeling of happiness and motivation. Dopamine is also known as the “reward hormone” which plays an important role in motivation, reward and pleasure. If you do strength training, the release of dopamine can increase, which gives you a feeling of satisfaction and energy. As a result, many people often feel more energetic and motivated after strength training.
Endorphin: when you exercise, endorphins are also produced, also called the “happiness hormone”. Endorphins work as a natural painkiller. They not only help us to deal with pain and stress, but they also enhance the positive effects of enjoyable activities and physical exertion. Serotonin: this is a 3rd neurotransmitter that has an effect on you. Serotonin, like endorphin, is known as the “happiness hormone” and has a major influence on your mood. After a (tough) workout, you can experience a nice feeling of satisfaction. Serotonin also has an effect on other functions such as your sleep, appetite, pain perception, and body temperature.
10) Improving general daily activities and movement
By working on your strength and muscles, you also ensure that you can perform daily activities more easily. The movements you make during a workout also translate into daily tasks such as lifting objects, sitting and (more stable) standing and your flexibility.
11) Maintain your muscle strength, strength and muscle mass decrease as you get older
Did you know that your muscle mass decreases by approximately 1% per year from the age of 30? And around the age of 70, this even increases to 3-5% per year? The decrease in your muscle mass and strength over the years is also called sarcopenia. Over the years, you may be less physically active, causing your muscle mass to slowly decrease. In order to maintain or even increase your muscle mass (even when you are older), it is important to do strength training regularly, at least twice a week.
12) Increases independence in old age
Another major advantage of strength training, especially in old age, is that you can better maintain your independence. As mentioned, you maintain your muscle mass and strength better. But it also increases your bone density, which reduces the chance of possible bone fractures and you have better stability because the built-up muscles support you better.
In addition, you can also better maintain and improve your functional strength with strength training. Think of lifting groceries, climbing stairs or getting up from a chair. Of course, you also benefit from all the previously discussed points of strength training.
To enjoy these health benefits of strength training we must stop thinking and start taking action. A healthy life is waiting for us and by strength training we can achieve this goal and look beautiful and presentable like a star.
