Why is Strength Training so Important?
Strength training should be an integral part of any fitness program. The benefits far outweigh the few risks of incorporating a strength training regimen. While there is a large community of fitness professionals whose job it is to be fit, most people just want to lose weight, get “toned”, and look good naked. Perhaps the most common reason I hear from people about not starting a strength training regiment is that they don’t want to get “bulky” or look like a bodybuilder. So before anything else, let’s just break down the “myth of the bulk” because I’ve literally heard this excuse thousands of times from countless people I’ve worked with. Let’s take a look.
The Myth of the Bulk
It’s true that many bodybuilders, powerlifters, and other fitness professionals mainly focus on strength training and hypertrophy (the building of lean muscle mass). While building large amounts of muscle may be their main goals, this doesn’t mean you have to make them your main goals. Nor should that keep you from implementing a critical factor of fitness. Simply put, lifting weights will not make you bulky and gain weight like that of a bodybuilder or powerlifter. I promise you, it’s simply a myth.
Bodybuilders and powerlifters have been training for years, if not decades, to reach where they’re at today. Most are highly focused on building strength, power, and muscle while incorporating many other facets of nutrition and fitness to reach their goals. Some fitness professionals seek to have a shredded musculature with low body fat for a physique competitor or fitness model. Others focus on competition powerlifting by building strength and not worrying too much about their body fat percentage. There is a science to the correlation between body fat, strength, and muscle, but we’ll get into that in a more detailed article later. The point is, you should not allow the “myth of the bulk” to sway you from incorporating strength training into your fitness routine. The reality is you will lose fat, get “toned”, and start helping your body in many other ways.
The Benefits of Strength Training
The American Cancer Society suggests that two to three 30 minute strength training workouts can have significant benefits regarding your health. Strength training results in the obvious increased lean muscle mass but also strengthens your bones, increases joint flexibility, helps with weight control, and helps with balance. One of the biggest benefits is that when you increase your lean muscle mass it directly correlates with loss of body fat and helps burn calories easier. Strengthened bone density and joints also help with reduction of bone breakage and offsets the effects of osteoporosis and arthritis.
These are just a few (among many) of the benefits of strength training. Really, the only downfall would be the risk of injury if you have poor technique or are using too much weight. I would say poor technique and working out with too much weight are by far the most common causes of injury for several factors.
Common Issues w/ Beginning a Program
Using too much weight
The first reason being that in a gym setting (where the majority of weight training occurs) people are intimidated by others that are lifting more weight for reps than they are. If you look at the history of gym bros and memes you will always find dumb-asses that say “I warm up with your max!” This is just dumb. Don’t let anyone influence how much weight you feel comfortable working out with. People that say dumb stuff like this are very insecure and incredibly immature. We all have to start somewhere so do it right and do it safe so you can build slowly and prevent injury.
If you use too much weight, at the very least, your body will compensate by using different muscles that the exercise is intended for. We call this called synergistic dominance. At the very worst, you could wind up dropping a weight on your face, head, neck, etc. and seriously injure yourself. You could also strain your tendons, ligaments, joints, or break your bones resulting in possible surgery and long recovery times. The point is, be patient. You have to start somewhere. So build up slowly and safely to a level you feel comfortable with over time.
Poor technique
The second reason people have problems with strength training would be poor technique from lack of knowledge. They’ve either never done the exercise before or they’ve learned the wrong way to do it from someone or something else in the past. Sometimes your technique can falter even if you know the right way to perform an exercise. Over time, your technique can deteriorate because no one is critiquing your form and you’re not videoing your workout to see for yourself.
The benefits of using a personal trainer
From beginners to professionals, this is why personal trainers are so beneficial. With a personal trainer you can have a professional show you the correct form to maximize your results. They can hold you accountable and provide assistance with a strength training regimen through knowledge, spotting, weight suggestions, and progression.
In the past, the traditional role of personal trainers would be one-on-one sessions working with clients in a gym setting for any given days of the week, month, or year. Now, with the advent of technology, personal trainers and coaches can work with clients in all aspects of their health and wellness journey. Through one-on-one sessions, calling, emails, video chats, Zoom, Skype, text, fitness apps, etc., a personal trainer and/or coach can guide you through some of the most difficult aspects of beginning, following through, and reaching your fitness goals. Now, with a simple internet connection or data service plan, you can even have access to the world’s top trainers regardless of where you’re located. This connection opens a brand new realm of support in the health and wellness world.
Don’t think about it, BE ABOUT IT!
So hopefully this sheds some light on some of the benefits and detriments of beginning and following through with a strength training program. You must figure out what you want for yourself and make the moves you need to make to get started. Remember, some people want to have huge muscles and some just want to get slim and toned, but the reality is, most people just want to look good naked. The point is, there’s a goal for everyone.
Stay tuned for more articles on different strength training workouts and info to help you reach your goals. If you have any questions or you’d like to sign up for personal training sessions and/or nutrition coaching sessions, you can follow the links HERE. Whatever you decide, we look forward to inspire, motivate, and work with you to become the best version of yourself possible! Here’s to the GAINZ!