Sunday, March 01, 2009

Powerful Aging Tip #1

Strength Training is critical to the rest of your life because it increases your coordination as well as your ability to perform the functions of daily living.

Three pounds of lean muscle burns up to 10,000 calories a month just sitting on the couch. However, I don’t recommend being a couch potato!

Do strength training 2 times a week for 20-minutes using a slow motion, high intensity, and low impact method. Do it to full muscular fatigue and you’ll gain 50% more muscular strength than with traditional methods. Because muscle weighs more than fat, you may actually see your weight on a scale increase.

Don’t look at your weight, look at your “waist” measurement. If you carry fat mainly around your waist, you are more likely to develop health problems than if you carry fat mainly in your hips and thighs. Women with a waist measurement of more than 35 inches or men with a waist measurement of more than 40 inches may have a higher disease risk than people with smaller waist measurements because of where their fat lies.

It also:
  • Increases your basal metabolic rate (BMR).
  • Increases your body’s blood sugar tolerance and help prevent adult onset diabetes.
  • Increases your bone density.
  • Increases your body’s ability to regulate its’ internal temperature.
  • Decreases your percentage of body fat.
  • Lowers your cholesterol/HDL ratio.
And besides, it’s fun! It also creates endorphins which make you feel good, keeping depression at bay.

Try it, you’ll like it and, once you see and feel the results, you’ll love it.