Let’s be honest, while we know exercise improves our health, most of us also want to look good after exercising. You know – turn a few heads! Cardio workouts deliver improved mental and physical health, but don’t always address your body’s “problem areas”. That’s where strength training can be a perfect complement.
How do you stay fit? Is strength training a part of your workout routines? If so, good. If not, why not?
Many avoid weight lifting because they don’t want to “bulk up” or don’t have the equipment or they simply don’t like it. While these reasons may make sense in your situation, I’m going to encourage you to add a little “weight lifting” to your workout options.
Let’s discuss the avoidance reasons listed above.
- Bulk Up – Yes weight lifting with heavy weights and low reps can build significant muscle causing one to bulk up. While this may be the goal for some, it may not be for others.
By adjusting to lower weights and more reps you can strengthen your muscles while avoiding bulk. - No Equipment – Investing in a full set of weights and adding a bench can blow your budget.
However, there are alternatives to weights that can deliver strength training on any budget. - Don’t like lifting – It is understandable that some don’t like this as a workout option. Particularly because cardio does a great job of releasing endorphins and giving you that satisfaction after a workout.
Strength training delivers many benefits including better sleep, boosting metabolism, maintaining weight loss, increasing bone health and reducing the risk of injury.
Traditional weight lifting can help provide these benefits, but there are other options. Resistance bands , cable pulley exercises and body weight exercises can also deliver increased strength compared to cardio alone. And of course trim abs, toned legs and ripped biceps are nice images of health too!