How does this happen? As we age (yes, this includes you men too) we become less active, we lose muscle, and we gain fat weight. Since losing weight is a top goal, and Spring is upon us, here is one of my most popular tips to remind us all of the wonderful benefits of pumping iron and strength training. When we start a strength training program, we take a major step against the aging process and the battle of the bulge. And one recent study done on strength training on overweight female participants from ages 25 through 44 gained the less fat around the midsection after 2 years than a control group of women who exercised but did not strength train (scroll down for a link to more info). Lastly, let's not forget that it's natural, and healthy!

Regular strength training 2-3x per week has many different benefits from aerobic training (let's keep up that walking!). Today we focus on the anti-aging benefits of strength training to keep and or add muscle (this is what will give us the tone we love). While too many of us lead very busy lives, and we may feel we don't have the time to devote to strength training, I suggest that we need to make the time. Okay, here goes why!

strength training will

Give our muscles more shape and help us to reshape.

Keep our skin tighter (ever notice how weight loss without toning leads to a loss of skin elasticity?Ever see aerobic exercise lead to shapely arms?).

Help us to keep our functional strength for our daily activities and sports.

Help relieve arthritic symptoms by strengthening the supporting muscles which surround our joints.

Increase our bone density.

Improve our posture.

Prevent low back pain.

Help raise our metabolic rate (so we can eat a little more and maintain our weight a little easier).

Improve our circulation. Yes, strength training our lower body helps the blood to return to our hearts (strong leg muscles contract during movement which helps to push blood flow back to the heart).

Studies also suggest that strength training helps to lower blood pressure too, possibly by keeping our blood vessels more elastic.

These are just some of the important benefits to consistent strength training (aren't these enough?).

The American Institute for Cancer Research also recommends that we keep our weight gain during adulthood to under 11 pounds to lower cancer risk. This is why they too, have added strength training to their recommendations.

So, one of my motto's I try to live by on a regular basis is "I don't find the time, I make the time". Exercise, both cardiovascular and weight training are important lifestyle habits for our health and our anti-aging campaigns.

Have we pumped any iron recently?

June

www.junefit.com

Source for study, Dr. Kathryn H. Schmitz,and colleagues of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, reported at the American Heart Association's 46th annual conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention. Want to read more? Go to http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3037153

Want a few more tips to make strength training more effective by stretching afterward? Posted this week under my exercise page, "Effective Stretching"!

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June is Lifestyle Editor at www.healthnewsdigest.com/

© 2006 HealthNewsDigest.com