Improving your strength is one of the best ways to regain control of your health as you age. Eating a nutritious, balanced diet and maintaining an exercise routine are important at every stage of life, but strength training can specifically help with many of the changes that come with aging.
One of the ways our bodies change as we age is the loss of muscle mass, and the gain of fat that usually replaces that lost muscle. There’s a lot of reasons why muscle strength is vital to your health, so preventing this muscle loss or regaining muscle mass becomes more and more important as time goes on.
For example, muscle strength impacts bone health, balance, and mobility. Doing weight training can have benefits including the prevention or control of diseases like high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and osteoporosis. There’s even research that shows that strength training can help improve cognitive function, so you can keep your mind as sharp as your body.
Luckily, it’s never too late to start strength training. It’s important not to neglect weighted exercises! And for those of you concerned about bulking up … weights won’t make you “bulky” or any less feminine – they’ll help improve metabolism, prevent disease, and overall make you stronger so you can live your best life. It may seem daunting at first but taking baby steps and sticking with it through the tough patches are what will help you make fitness into a routine and ultimately a lifestyle.