Benefits of Strength Training

What is strength training and what are the benefits of strength training?

Strength training is a kind of training and exercise using resistance of muscle contractions to improve strength, increase endurance, as well as build muscle, bone and ligaments. Weight training, resistance training and isometric training all combined to form the strength training routines.

There are many different methods used. The exercises involve gravity, hydraulic, or elastic forces, weights and resistance training.

It is not the same things as body building. While it is building up tissues, they aren't turned into the kind of muscles you see in power lifting and other kinds of sports like these.

Usually, strength training is used together with other exercises, like aerobics, and can also be used to target specific groups of muscles. When women do strength training, it involves small weights, five pounds or less. It is not meant to give women the kind of "guy muscles", but just to strengthen them.

Here is a short list of the kinds of strength training exercises designed for women.

1. One of them is the side shoulder raise, for the outer areas of the shoulder. You would start with your arms hanging down in front of your thighs, with your elbows bent slightly, and palms facing each other. Then raise both arms, with elbow still bent, to your shoulder height, and then back down, repeating this process in reps of 5 to 10 times.
   
   
   
2. Then you have the front shoulder raise, which starts out the same, but alternates between arms, raising the weights straight out in front of you.
   
   
   
3. There is also the upright row, which starts out the same, but you have your weights close together, with your palms facing your thighs instead. You raise your arms up to your chin, with your elbows bent at head level, and then down, repeating the process.
   
   
   
4. The Bicep Curl starts with your arms at your sides, palms outwards, elbows close to the sides, and then curls the weights up to your shoulders. There are many other exercise techniques as well, many more than can be taken up in this article.

Now, here are the benefits of doing these exercises.

One of the biggest fears women have as they age is osteoporosis, which is losing bone density. And one of the benefits of strength training is it helps build bone density, and fights this debilitating disease. It increases your stamina and endurance as well. Another important benefit from strength training is that it will increase your overall metabolic rate, which is the real secret to losing weight. It causes you to burn more calories on a regular basis, and increases your chances to lose body fat.

While some women might be afraid that they will develop unsightly muscles, in fact this is not true, because women simply do not have enough testosterone. It will however build lean muscle mass instead, and cut down on your overall fat content. Doing these exercises strengthens your muscles and ligaments, cutting down on your injury risks, which is a worry as women get older.

These are just a few of the many benefits of strength training exercises especially for women. You can find out much more information, as well as tips on what ones you need, online. Make sure that you speak to your healthcare provider before you start any kind of strength training routine.

Back to Benefits of Exercise

Return from Benefits of Strength Training to the iBenefits home