Written By Logan Sherwin, Certified Personal Trainer
Logan Sherwin is passionate about helping people take care of their bodies and be their best selves. He believes fitness is a primary piece of wellness, and that physical fitness extends across every area of your life. He helps people learn how to move correctly, what their bodies are capable of, and ultimately supports his clients in achieving their wellness goals.
Enhancing Energy Through Resistance Training
There are a couple misconceptions about weight training. The first misconception: getting older means your body will not develop muscle. The second: slow metabolism and bad genetics is keeping your from having energy throughout the day and/or contributing to weight gain. These statements could not be farther from the truth. The fact is at 60+ you can put on muscle, increase energy, and increase metabolism to lead a healthier life.
Resistance training is for everyone! The idea is to load the body properly and through the correct motions to increase longevity, daily energy, and reduce chronic pain. This can be done at any age; many clients are over 60 and still are gaining muscle and living healthier lives through weight training. The most crucial part is getting stronger in the correct movements. Many movements we perform such as bending over to pick up an item, walking, and sitting are done incorrectly. This causes stress on the knees, lower back, and hips to name a few places. By understanding proper loading patterns and strengthening our bodies in the correct way we can dramatically reduce chronic pain and avoid injury.
Muscle in the body needs calories daily to maintain and continue functioning properly. This daily calorie amount is known as your resting metabolic rate (rmr) and denotes how many calories you expend every day at rest. Increasing this number means you can burn more body fat while resting, not just when working out. The best part? You can eat more and have more energy through the day by adding muscle to the body. Cardio for weight loss is equivalent to working a job during the day, it has immediate affects on your body, but the body has to clock in everyday without a break. Overtime that schedule wears the body down. Muscle building is an investment, when the body is at rest and clocked out for the day it is still providing health benefits.
As you age, your body is still capable of putting on muscle, and low muscle mass and high body fat percentage is a large contribution to low energy. Resistance training with a professional is an advantageous exercise option – it will develop your muscles and help you move correctly. Resistance training increases metabolism and is an investment in long-term health.
