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Resistance training or strength training is not just for those who want to compete in bodybuilding competitions.
For men and women, young and elderly this method of exercise can mean a strong, lean body, with perfect posture and heaps more energy. So, heave ho and away we go!
Resistance training means to push or pull against a resisting force. This force can take the form of gravity, your own body weight, dumbbells, barbells, dynobands, medicine balls, air currents, water, or the more traditional stacked machine weights with cables and pulleys.
The term 'weight training' really only implies the use of weights like the dumbbells, and machines that crunch and grind.
The term 'resistance training' not only sounds much less frightening; it encompasses a whole range of muscle stimulating resources. Visions of someone on the end of a cable and stack of rusty plates, while their veins pop out of their neck, grunting like a boar in pain are a thing of the past, thank goodness! You don't even have to go to the gym to do resistance training to tone up.
Let's first explore how your muscles work and how they respond to stimulus to make them grow.
Muscles are rich in protein and when an electrical signal goes from the brain to muscle cells, two special proteins in particular react.
One of these proteins is called 'actin'. The other one is called 'myosin'. Actin and myosin make the muscle cells contract by sliding into one another. Millions of small muscle cells called filaments all shortening together generate a pull on tendon, which in turn, pulls on a bone and voila - your arms or legs are moving! Contractions can be slow or fast; smooth or staggered; easy or powerful.
Muscles main source of fuel is carbohydrates.
The more powerful the muscle contraction, the more potential for growth and strength increases. The way a muscle grows and strengthens is both fascinating and a bit shocking.
When you exercise hard and place muscle filaments under a heavy load, powerful muscle contractions cause some muscle filaments to be crushed or snap and bleed. Have you ever noticed that after hard exercise, you wake up the next morning and feel sore? Most of the time, it is because of this! Go to bed the next night and something wonderful takes place while you are asleep. The filaments repair and rebuild.
The main part of the repair and re-build phase is that the muscle filaments get thicker and stronger. If you maintain regular resistance training, this cycle of crush, snap, bleed, repair and re-grow continues and you will see more muscle definition and be able to push and pull an even heavier load.
Sometimes this cycle happens without you even planning it or thinking about it. Consider, for example, the last time you had to walk up a lot of stairs with a heavy bag. I bet your hips and thighs were a little tender the next day!
After a day's rest, your hips and thighs felt fine again, because they had gone through this repair and re-build cycle.
To help your muscles feel better after resistance training, always stretch slowly, eat some quality protein during the next two days and drink plenty of water to help flush them out.
Some lesser known forms of resistance training include Pilates and Yoga classes, fitball classes, gymnastics, circuit training, some boxing activities and martial arts, aquarobics, body-pump classes and simple exercises like squats, crunches and push-ups where gravity is the opposing force.
If you are interested in resistance training, you will need to see a caring and qualified fitness instructor for an appropriate programme.
If you are brand new to resistance training, a mix of one or two classes like Pilates and body-pump, at least twice a week, are a good idea because you are being guided and motivated by a professional and there is nothing too technical about how to perform each activity.
Machine weights allow you to lift while maintaining reasonable technique, comfort and postural safety.
For the more experienced, aim to do resistance training at least three times a week and move onto a new set of exercises, per muscle group, every four to six weeks to induce more of a physical and mental challenge.
If you are less than 16-years-old, resistance training using machines, dumbbells and barbells should NEVER be attempted without professional advice. There are two reasons for this. The first one is because it could grossly interfere with bone growth plate function. Secondly, if lifting weights are performed incorrectly, it can damage the spine, posture and cause injuries.
If you are pregnant, the good news is resistance training can actually help you and the baby. It all depends on how active you were before you became pregnant. I've known one woman who literally did body-pump classes up until the week she gave birth. But get some advice from a pre-natal exercise professional.
Don't forget to warm up with very light weights or aerobic movement of major muscle groups through their full range of motion.
The way you will look and feel from regular resistance training is nothing short of wonderful. Who can resist that?
