Shawn Phillips, Well-Being - Written by Shawn Phillips on Monday, July 6, 2009 10:28 - 4 Comments

Why Train With Weights?

The 7 Wonders of Strength

1. Muscle Is the Engine of Youth
Biological aging and the loss of functional strength have less to do with your chronological age than they do with time spent training and engaging the body for physical growth and development.

Strength training is the most effective way to build muscle, thereby slowing down and even reversing the process of aging.

This does not mean you have to train with the goal of developing big, showy muscles. Rather, we need to look at muscle as lean body weight that keeps you active, fit and energized.

2. Strength Training Builds a Strong Foundation
Numerous studies show that adults who exercise have greater bone mineral density (BMD) than less active folks. Weight-bearing activities such as strength training produce greater BMD than non-impact or low-intensity activities such as swimming or yoga.

I’m a fan of swimming and yoga. But strength training is the best way to build strong bones, tendons, ligaments and muscle, which are all essential to your physical foundation.

3. Strength Training Is Good for Your Mind and Mood
Thomas Jefferson once remarked that “a strong body makes the mind strong.” If you’ve studied the life of the third U.S. president, you know he was a true Renaissance man and fitness enthusiast who lived to be 83, well beyond the lifespan of folks born in the middle of the 18th century. Clearly T.J. was on to something when he drew a connection between physical and mental strength.

4. Strength Training Shapes You Smaller
Many people, not exclusively women, resist strength training because they’re concerned it’s going to make them “look big” or muscle-bound.

Here’s the irony: Strength training actually shapes you smaller. That’s because a pound of muscle is much smaller and takes up less space than a pound of fat. A pound of fat is about the size of a cantaloupe. In contrast, a pound of lean muscle is about the size of a baseball. Imagine how amazing you would look and feel if you swap 20 pounds of fat (think 20 cantaloupes) for 5 pounds of lean shape-defining muscle (think 5 baseballs).

Not only that, these 5 lean pounds will be evenly dispersed around your body, not residing, as fat does, in a few problem areas. Five pounds is just enough to give you some shape. It’s not the sort of volume to add size.

5. Muscle Makes the Scale Irrelevant
For some the scale can become like a daily mood ring. The scale looks only at weight—it does not take into consideration the composition of that weight: whether it’s water, fat or precious lean muscle.

A loss of muscle reduces the metabolism and accelerates fat gain even more. That’s why dieting without strength training will never result in permanent weight loss. Not only have you not created additional lean muscle to burn calories, you’ve likely reduced a portion of that valuable resource. This is why most dieters who have lost some fat will gain it back faster.

Begin to see body weight in terms of body composition. A 150-pound woman who has only 25 pounds of fat will fit easily into a dress that a 135-pound woman with 50 pounds of fat cannot.

Use a mirror or be in tune with the way your clothes fit—and be kind. When you have a lean, strong body, the number on the scale is irrelevant.

6. Muscle Is “Money in the Bank”
Having muscle is like having money in the bank. For every pound of muscle you gain, you’re able to burn 35 to 50 calories more per day—with no added effort. That’s because lean muscle boosts metabolism, which in turn can burn fat. One pound of muscle consumes the caloric equivalent of 5 pounds of fat in just one year.

Let’s say you’ve added 10 pounds of lean muscle to your body. Just carrying those 10 pounds around for daily activities, not including exercise or training, can burn on average an additional 500 calories each day.

Does it take effort to add that lean muscle? Of course it does, much like the accumulation of financial assets takes time and effort. But by making a modest investment, as you’ll do in this program, you’ll be rewarded handsomely.

7. Muscle Enhances and Prolongs Life
The list of life-enhancing benefits from adding lean muscle is staggering.

Muscle not only makes you look good, it takes an active role in supporting your well-being. Success begets success, for those with lean muscle tend to get leaner and stronger. The more muscle you have, the faster and hotter your metabolism burns, and the easier it will be for you to swap fat for lean muscle.

When you have lean muscle, you’ve made a long-term investment in your quality and longevity of life.

Until Next Week,

Shawn

Hear My Latest Strength for Life Audio Interview:
Shawn Phillips Transition Radio Interview

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About Shawn Phillips

Shawn Phillips is an author, business leader and internationally respected expert in the area of health, fitness and human potential, he is passionate about helping people live stronger, fuller, more brilliant lives. For the past 2 decades he has helped athletes, celebrities and tens of thousands of people achieve vibrant healthy lives through his leading edge integrated approach to developing strength. Shawn’s commitment to intentional physical training as a foundation for integrated development and performance has contributed to an evolving approach to strength training. It is here, at this next-level incarnation of training where Shawn is currently focused.

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4 Responses to “Why Train With Weights?”

  1. Swimming. I incorporate swimming into my daily exercise and it helps a lot. Tennis is also a great way to exercise, but I think swimming is the way to go.

    [Reply]

  2. suechris says:

    I wanted to share this with anyone that is interested. I was complaining to my husband about trying to find 20 minutes of music for my cardio days that would be in 1 minute intervals. He created this for me it 20 minutes long and has really helped me concentrate on the intervals. He added verbal markers to let me know what level was coming up. It helped me and I would like to share it with you. It’s available here to listen to or download as an mp3.

    http://soundcloud.com/warrenwc/hit-workout

    Susan

    [Reply]

  3. suechris says:

    I haven’t made a comment for awhile but I have not stopped training. I just don’t see a place that everyone is consistently using to leave comments. Today I picked this spot to comment. The beginning of the week I was feeling that maybe I wasn’t going to complete this but then I trained anyway and felt great. I am making good progress this week. I feel so much stronger and felt so great about completing this week and have logged what I will be doing next week. I have been really enjoying doing my weights without music. I like feeling like I am totally in the moment really focusing on each movement. I had a really great week.

    Susan

    [Reply]

  4. Nat says:

    Am I missing something? Or am I like the the rest of the team? I have been away from the blogs and it appears I’m not the only one. This was written on July 6 and I don’t see any comments. Does this mean that others, like myself, had kinda slacked off? If you read my ’skirt fits’ comment on a previous blog, it is apparent to me that training w/weights is key. Of course the cardio and stretching are essential, too, but I so appreciate what I am learning about how great weight training is to our health, well being, and body shape. I’m here, Shawn, and I love this program. Since I’m not perfect, my program hasn’t been perfect, but I suspect you would say that the way it works. Progress, not perection. Thank you. Nat

    [Reply]

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