Beaufort Fitness: Why Resistance Training Is Important

Resistance training is so much more than just working out your muscles and losing weight/Fat. Strength training is increasingly promoted for its many health-related benefits including a lower risk to all causes of mortality, fewer cardiovascular events (i.e., heart attack, stroke), improved body composition, better glucose metabolism and insulin sensitivity, and lower blood pressure in persons with pre-hypertension and hypertension.

Resistance training is linked to numerous mental health related items as well but is not limited to

• Improved memory
• Lessen depression, Linked to Anxiety and Self Esteem
• Much less chronic fatigue, Impressively studies on exercise and fatigue show that exercise is clinically beneficial and even more beneficial than drug or cognitive-behavioral interventions
• Improved quality of sleep, research indicates that physically active people usually have healthy sleep patterns and a lower risk to sleep apnea. Furthermore, the research shows that depressed persons with sleep disorders show a 30% improvement in sleep from a regular resistance training intervention. These results appear to become most effective after 8-10 weeks of consistent resistance training.
• Improved cognition, improved cognition from exercise is likely to be multi-factorial adaptations involving new nerve cell generation in the brain, an increase in neurotransmitters (chemical substances that transmits nerve impulses across a synapse, and new brain blood vessels for more efficient oxygen delivery and waste product removal.
• Less anxiety
• Improved self-esteem, High self-esteem is highly associated with positive physical and mental well-being. Let’s be real who doesn’t like to look good without clothes.

References:
Anderson-Hanley, C., Nimon, J.P., and Westen, S.C. (2010). Cognitive health benefits of strengthening exercise for community-dwelling older adults. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 32(9), 996-1001.

Colcombe, S. and Framer, A.F. (2003). Fitness effects on the cognitive function of older adults: A meta-analytic study. Psychological Science, 14(2), 125-130.

Garber, C.E., et al. 2011. Quantity and quality of exercise for developing and maintaining cardiorespiratory, musculoskeletal, and neuromotor fitness in apparently healthy adults: Guidance for prescribing exercise. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 43(7), 1334-1349.

van Prag, H. (2009). Exercise and the brain: something to chew on. Trends in Neuroscience, 32(5), 283-290.

Ian Hart is a Body-Mind Transformation expert, the creator of EarthFIT Training Systems, co-creator of BACK PAIN RELIEF4LIFE, and founder of BEAUFORTPERSONALTRAINING.COM and MYBACKPAINCOACH.COM. Ian and his team help people get into optimal shape in the safest, fastest and most effective way possible, using cutting edge science.