Are you looking for a type of exercise that you can do without a gym membership? Or are you looking to incorporate a new kind of training into your exercise routine? Look no further for 7 science backed benefits of strength training!Look no further than strength training!

You may have heard people call it "resistance" or "weight training", yet all of them refer to physical movement as when you use equipment or your own body weight to build muscle mass, endurance, and strong bones. 

If an image of a big, bulky weight lifter comes to your mind when you think of strength training; it’s time to revamp that. Anyone can and everyone should try this foundational type of fitness that is very beneficial for overall health, no matter how strong or what age you are. 

First time weight lifting? Make it easy - start with soup cans from your cupboard! Nothing is wrong with a natural weight, although at some point you may decide to buy some dumbbells or resistance bands.  

Of course, if you do have a gym membership there will be lots of options for you to choose from!

Just like cardio exercise, strength training has its own unique benefits for your health. Let’s take a look at 7 science-backed benefits of strength training! 

Improves Muscle Growth and Strength 

Strength training is the greatest way to increase your muscle mass and strength. This may seem like an obvious benefit, but it’s an important one! 

Strengthening and growing your muscles allows you to do everyday things with more ease - doesn’t that sound great?

That means that your endurance ability during workouts can be increased and you can make serious progress on your fitness goals! 

While you may feel like there’s always time to build muscles; it’s important to remember that after 30 years of age, your body naturally loses about 3-5% of muscle mass per decade. 

So while you always have time to start training, it’s best to start sooner than later to keep up with the physical toll of aging! 

Using weights, such as kettlebells, dumbbells, barbells, or even those soup cans are great for helping you increase your muscle!

Pro tip: If you’re having trouble motivating yourself to do weight training, try putting on your favorite TV show or movie to watch while doing so! The time will pass much faster!

Aligns the Spine to Prevent Injury 

Not only does increased strength help you do physical activity with more ease, did you know that it also provides huge benefits for your spine?

Keeping your spine aligned can be difficult in light of society’s inclination to sit a lot during the work day and common lack of daily movement. Don't worry, strength training can help! 

Strengthening the muscles in your core and back that connect to your pelvis and spine can help make sure these bones don’t get out of alignment. 

Every part of your body is connected to your spine; and misalignment can cause many health concerns including chronic back pain, poor digestion, migraines, and more!

Strengthening these muscles keeps your spine strong but also reduces stress on your tendons. This also helps you increase flexibility, and lessen the likelihood of tweaking your back or other parts of your body during heavy physical activity. 

If a muscle is weak, the tendons attached to it are more susceptible to wear and tear. 

Bottom line: stronger muscles and aligned spine = less chance of injury! 

Aids Weight Management and Improved Body Composition

Cardio might be the classically used type of exercise for weight management, but strength training plays an important role as well!

Not only does strength training still burn calories, it boosts your metabolism and helps your body continue to burn more calories throughout the rest of your day! Read more about this study here. 

This is because your body’s resting energy expenditure is increased with bigger muscle mass. So the more fat you lose and the more muscle you gain, the more calories your body will naturally burn! 

Keeping your weight in balance helps your overall body composition goals. Whether you want to bulk up or tone down, strength training can help you get the physique that you’re looking for. 

Increases Bone Density

Not only does strength training build your muscles, it builds your bones.  

Putting stress on your bones through exercise causes the bones to increase in mass and density. 

This is incredibly important as we age and our bone mass begins to decline, leaving us more susceptible to fractures! 

Doing deadlifts can help keep your hip bones strong, which is a common area of injury in the elderly. 

So don’t work out just for your muscles, do it for your bones! 

Improves Your Mood

Do you ever feel really happy after a workout, despite feeling tired?

That’s because all types of exercise, including strength training, causes your brain to release feel-good endorphins that improve your mood. 

Not only does your mood benefit from the release of these precious chemicals, the feelings of accomplishment that come after a good workout can help motivate you to stay consistent with your exercise. In turn, this can lead to greater self confidence as you watch your body get stronger and healthier! 

As another added benefit; neurotransmitters like endorphins can aid in improving sleep quality, which is a huge culprit of our daily mood! 

If you’re feeling blue, try strength training and notice how it makes you feel after. 

Strengthens Your Immune System

Any kind of exercise strengthens your immune system, and it’s no different with strength training! Read more about improving your immune system here.

Strength training boosts your blood flow, allowing nutrients and oxygen to circulate quicker in your body and get to the cells where they’re needed, like to areas that need to fight infection.

Strength training can activate your immune response so you are less likely to fall prey to pesky colds or are able to fight them quicker. 

Stress reduction is a huge benefit of exercise, which is a very common cause of poor immune health and sickness. 

Improved Cardiovascular Health

Although cardio exercise usually gets the credit for improving heart health, it turns out that strength training also strengthens your heart muscles!  

It also helps you maintain a healthy weight, which is an important aspect of cardiovascular health. 

In fact, according to one recent study published in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise (MSSE), just 1 hour or less of resistance training per week was associated with a 40-70% decrease in cardiovascular disease risk! 

If strength training or exercise in general isn’t your favorite activity to do during the week, just know that it may only take one dedicated session to get incredible cardiovascular benefits! For a full panel of exercise ideas, you can use Vessel Health's daily activity plan! But first, take the sign up to get started!

Now that you know all the health benefits that strength training can provide, what are you waiting for?

Grab those soup cans, turn on your favorite show, and start doing some squats or curls at home!

Not sure what kind of movement to do? Check out Youtube for thousands of workout tutorials like Pop Sugar Fitness, or chat with your Vessel nutrition coach for support!