Strength training is, by far, one of the most beneficial things we can do for ourselves.
Unless you have a medical condition or injury that strictly prevents you from practicing resistance training, you should do it, even if that means a 30-minute workout every other day.
Now, strength training offers dozens of benefits – some physical, some mental. Today, we’ll go over four of the biggest ones.
It Makes Us More Capable
Perhaps the most liberating, exciting, and fulfilling benefit of strength training is that it makes us more physically capable, and better able to contribute to life.
And this doesn’t just mean strength. Don’t get me wrong; being strong is great. But resistance training makes us more capable overall. We become more endurant, more confident, more able to move, better able to handle stress, and, of course, stronger.
In other words, strength training is one of the few activities that allow us to transform into better versions of ourselves – not just physically, but mentally, as well.
It Builds Muscle and Improves Our Posture
Most people will benefit greatly from a few extra pounds of muscle, and here are five solid reasons why:
- Muscle, being a metabolically-active tissue, raises our metabolic rate, and allows us to eat more food without gaining fat.
- Muscle mass increases our athletic capacity. For example, a bigger muscle isn’t necessarily a stronger one, but it has a greater potential.
- Muscle mass improves insulin sensitivity. Meaning, more of the food you consume goes into feeding that tissue, rather than getting stored as fat.
- Developing your musculature, particularly your upper back, neck, and shoulder area also improves your posture – a remarkable benefit which helps prevent aches and injuries down the road, and makes us more confident.
- Muscle contributes to the athletic look. Sure, this benefit is a bit more superficial, but it’s a great one nonetheless.
It Makes Us Mentally Tougher
I know you might scoff at this idea, but hear me out.
Getting under a heavy barbell, going down, and squatting up is a perfect analogy of how life works:
It’s about overcoming the weight that is trying to bring you down and standing back up, despite the difficulty.
Indeed, strength training is much more than just physical, as it reveals what you’re made of mentally, and, more importantly, helps you become mentally tougher.
Strength Training Solidifies Your Belief in Yourself
There is no other feeling quite like that of working to develop your own body – after all, how much more personal can you get?
Having the confidence that you can move freely, overcome the difficulty, and transform your body through strength training solidifies your belief in yourself.
The benefits of strength training and the achievements in the weight room aren’t isolated there alone. If you set a new personal record in the weight room, you can bet that you’ll be more confident and happier when you leave the gym.
If you can add twenty pounds of muscle on your frame, you’ll believe in yourself more and know that, so long as you apply yourself, you can make a real and lasting change.
