Lift Weights To Lose Weight

IN previous articles of this series, I’ve talked about how as women over 40 our hormone balance (or imbalance) affects our ability to burn fat and lose weight. In both the article about peri-menopause, and the article about stress, I highlighted the fact that resistance training is a way of exercising effectively to combat hormonal issues and also lose weight. Here’s some more information about why this is so true.

You do not have a penis and you do not have testicles, therefore, you will not build muscle like a man.

Regardless of age, many women fear lifting weights, preferring instead to stick to tried and tested cardio exercise to help them to keep fit and lose weight.  When asked why, the most common response is “because I don’t want to have big muscles”. 

You will NOT build muscle like a man

So before I go any further, let’s clear this issue up once and for all. You do not have a penis and you do not have testicles, therefore, you will not build muscle like a man. The muscle growth you see in men comes as a result of the hormone testosterone and we as women have between 10 and 30 times less of it than men, meaning we have nowhere near enough for significant muscle growth.  

Now we’ve got that out of the way, let’s look at why we women over 40 should lift weights as part of our exercise regime.  

Don't want big muscles? Neither does she.

1. Building muscle helps you to burn fat

Each extra pound of lean muscle tissue you build raises your resting metabolic rate (the amount of calories you burn just being alive) meaning you use more calories all day every day. Yes, you read that right, build muscle and you’ll burn calories whilst sat on your bum watching TV.

2. Your clothes will fit better

Don’t listen to anyone who tells you muscle weighs more than fat – it’s nonsense.  A pound of feathers weighs exactly the same as a pound of stones and the same is true of muscle and fat. The difference lies in the amount of area a pound of muscle and a pound of fat take up. Muscle is much denser than fat and so one pound of muscle only takes up around 4/5 of the space fat does. This means that you may still weigh the same but your clothes will fit better.

 3. You’ll look better without your clothes on

As well as having better fitting clothes, your body form will appear much firmer and toned as you build muscle density. Bingo wings and other assorted wobbly bits be gone.

Keep osteoporosis at bay4. Resistance training helps to keep osteoporosis at bay

After the age of 30, the cells that make bones (osteoblasts) significantly decline and bone destroying cells (osteoclasts) take over. This, coupled with the lower oestrogen levels post menopause, means that women are at a high risk of weak fragile bones and the onset of osteoporosis. Using resistance training can significantly improve your bone density and thus help stave off the onset. When we lift weights the muscles that we are using contract and relax. These muscles are joined to the bone by tendon and as the muscle contracts, the tendon pulls on the bone causing it stress and encouraging osteoblast (bone building) activity.

5. You’ll be better equipped for everyday tasks

Build lean muscle and you’ll build strength, meaning that lifting your children or grandchildren, carrying the shopping to the car or the casserole from the oven will all be easier as will walking or running for the bus and other aerobic activities.

6. You may reduce your risk of diabetes and heart disease

Research has shown that weight training can improve the body’s ability to process sugar by up to 25 per cent over six months, thus reducing the risk of adult onset (type 2) diabetes. And as for benefits to your heart, resistance training can be instrumental in lowering bad cholesterol, raising good cholesterol and lowering your blood pressure so a triple whammy of benefits there.

Build muscle, burn fat

Not got a gym membership? No weights at home? Fear not

If you are just starting out, your body weight alone can be used to perform resistance activities. Exercises such as squats and lunges work the large muscles of the lower body as well as recruiting the core muscles too. Planks are a great place to start for building strength in the core muscles and body weight rows and push ups help focus on upper body strength whilst challenging the core and lower body too.

So what are you waiting for? Want to lose weight? Lift weights.