4 Reasons Why You Should Be Strength Training: Part 1

​Do you ever wonder why physical therapists almost always give strength exercises as part of your
exercise program instead of just giving massages and stretches? This blog post will help answer
those questions and help show why strength training is so important for people of ANY age.

​What is Strength Training? What Being Stronger Means.

 Otherwise known as resistance training, strength training is a mode of exercise with the goal of
improving the amount of force a person can exert on an external load (weight) or their own
bodyweight. In research, the amount of force being produced is measured by looking at each
joint/muscle group being used in an activity. A simple example of improved strength is just
being able to lift more weight on a particular exercise such as deadlifts.

Strength training does NOT have to include heavy barbell lifts like the barbell squat, bench, or
deadlift. It can be as simple as being able to sit up from the couch in 1 second versus 5 seconds.
Being strong enough is having the confidence and strength to complete your desired and required daily activities. These activities may be anything from having the strength to carry the dog food from the car to having the requisite strength to stop a defensive end from sacking the quarterback (very very strong by the way).
​
Moving on…strength training should be split up into main movement patterns to ensure
improvement throughout the whole body.
​
These patterns include:

• Squat
• Hinge
• Lunge
• Vertical push
• Vertical pull
• Horizontal push
• Horizontal pull
• *Carrying

Overall, being stronger will improve your life by: making daily activities easier, improving your body composition, reducing the risk of many diseases and health conditions, increasing energy levels, improving sleep, and enhancing recovery. 

This post will discuss how strength training will make daily activities easier and how it can
reduce the risk for many diseases and health conditions. If you’re interested in increasing the
quality of your life through strength training then make sure to book an appointment with us at
OrthosportHQ.

“Strength is never a weakness and weakness is never a strength”

#1: Strength training will make daily activities easier and allow you to move with confidence.
Imagine your capacity to complete daily activities is a 4 oz cup. Then imagine each drop of liquid
going in the cup are the stressors from your day/week/month/year. These stressors could
include work and family stress, exercise sessions, recreational activities, poor sleep, poor nutrition etc.
With only a 4 oz cup, your stressors will overfill the cup much faster. With using strength training, you can increase the size of the cup to 12 oz allowing you to complete much more activity before becoming fatigued, injured, or in pain.

Here's another example: imagine your work at a day-care and right now you can only deadlift 100 pounds safely. The kids you care for are on average 45 pounds. That is 45% of the MOST weight you can lift off the ground. Right now at the end of the day, your back is sore, you’re extremely tired and you're are worried you will have to stop working if you hurt your back.

Now, fast forward after 6 months of strength training and your deadlift has increased to 200
pounds. Now the kids you have to lift are only 22% of the most weight you can lift off the floor.
With this increased strength you will notice that your back is no longer sore at the end of the
day. You will notice that you no longer are apprehensive as you bend over to lift something
because you are now confident in your strength and are no longer afraid to injure your back.
You will wonder why you didn’t start strength training sooner.

“Being strong enough means having the confidence and ability to complete your desired daily activities.”

#2: Strength training will reduce the risk of many diseases and other health conditions.
Many people are familiar with the benefits of improving cardiorespiratory fitness and its ability
to decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease. People are typically not as familiar with the wide
range of benefits of strength training. In multiple studies, strength training has been
independently associated with a 20-50% decreased risk of heart disease, diabetes, all cancer, and
“all-cause mortality” or death risk from any cause.

Other studies have shown that strength training can decrease your risk for developing other
health conditions like osteoporosis or sarcopenia. Osteoporosis is a condition that decreases
your bone mineral density making your bones much weaker and more susceptible to fracture.
Sarcopenia is an age-related, involuntary loss of muscle mass and strength. Without introducing
strength training, one can expect to lose 50% of their muscle mass by the 8th decade of their
life. This loss of muscle and strength is how completing daily activities becomes much more
difficult as we age. Both sarcopenia and osteoporosis increases fall risk which in turn increases
your risk for fractures in the lower body.

However, the risk of osteoporosis and sarcopenia CAN BE REDUCED GREATLY by introducing
strength training into your weekly schedule. By including just 45-90 minutes of strength training
PER WEEK, you can reduce your risk for heart disease, diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis,
sarcopenia, and all-cause mortality. This can easily be achieved by having two-to-three 30-minute
strength training sessions per week.

​I hope this helps with understanding some of the important reasons why everyone should be in strength training. Make sure to come back to read part 2 of this blog to see how strength training can improve body composition, increase energy levels, and enhance recovery. Make sure to message us on Facebook or Instagram if you are interested in learning more about a particular topic. Maybe we can write an article about it!

For an Extensive Evaluation From Our Therapy Staff

Book Appointment Here

Written By: Kyle Ditzenberger PT, DPT