What is your go to routine when you pick your weekly classes or plan your gym routine? Do you tend to stick with one style of class or maybe just love focusing on your cardio (because, hello, race season is coming!). Whatever your go to is – we want to challenge you this year to make strength training a priority, especially if you are a woman.
Why should women make a stand to make strength training a part of their fitness routine? As we age, our bodies change. particularly our bone density and muscle mass begins to slowly decrease over time. Strength training is a great way to stay ahead of the game and is a preventative tool to support living our best, most active lives, as long as possible.
When looking to build your bone density, it is important to keep strength training at the forefront of your fitness routine. Resistance training puts strain on our bones and over time this strain helps to improve our bone density. This makes strength training ideal as we age so we can keep our bones healthy and dense. Focus on increasing your weights over time and training with lower reps to build your muscle strength and bone density.
If you are new to strength training and feeling intimidated about jumping into a group class, we recommend seeking out a professional and hiring a personal trainer. Not only can they custom design a weight program for you, but they are there to offer you support and teach you the proper technique of each exercise so you feel confident and successful while executing each move. Knowledge is a powerful tool and fitness professionals want to help their clients reach their goals and feel great on their journey to a healthier lifestyle. Another option is a total body workout that you can do with no traditional gym equipment using everyday objects you can find in your surroundings such as stairs, a chair, a coffee table, or bench. These routines are especially great if you are traveling and can’t access a gym. Try our go to bodyweight exercise routine at the end of this blog post!
We often get asked, when is the best time to work out? Great news! There is no right or wrong time to work out. Just aim to get in 3 or more strength training workouts each week to continuously improve bone density and build muscle mass. When you are building your fitness routine, choose the time of day that works best in your schedule and when you enjoy working out the most. Set yourself up for success and enjoyment to love your training routine as much as possible, whether it means working out at 5 am to your favourite podcast or 7 pm to your guilty pleasure playlist!
It is important for women to strength train for so many reasons, especially as we age, ranging from physical to mental and emotional. As you continue to build muscle mass, your metabolic rate increases and your body will continue to burn increased amounts of fat, even after your work out is over. It also helps to regulate blood sugar and other hormones. Mentally, one of the greatest benefits is that it improves your mood. Elle Woods said it best in Legally Blonde “Exercise gives you endorphins, endorphins make you happy. Happy people don’t shoot their husbands. They just don’t.”. Strength training can also help to improve your relationships and your quality of sleep. So, not only do you look great, more importantly, you feel amazing!
We want to help you start incorporating strength training into your wellness routine, whether you are taking a “We’ll Show You Pump” class at your local oranj fitness or starting out in your home. If you are working out at home try our bodyweight workout. We recommend completing 4 sets of 15 reps, three times per week. If you are looking to add a challenge as you go, try incorporating some dumb bells into your squats and lunges!
- Squats
- Push Ups
- Walking Lunges
- Step Ups on a Bench
- Alternating Side Planks
- Stationary Lunge
- Tricep Dips off of a Chair
- Side Lunge
- Plank with Shoulder Tap
- Sumo Squat
- Tricep Push Up
