Weight training-what's in it for you?

Lately, weight training has been receiving more respect from researchers. While cardiovascular or aerobic exercise has been endorsed by fitness experts for a number of years, the recommendation to engage in weight training is a fairly recent one.

The reason for the weight training endorsement is because as one grows older, their muscle fibers shrink in number and in size. They also become less responsive to messages from the central nervous system. Together, these factors contribute to decreases in strength, balance and coordination. Generally, sedentary people can lose up to 10 percent of their lean muscle mass each decade after age 30. Weight training can slow and even reverse the declines in strength, bone density, and muscle mass that accompany aging.

Weight training, in addition to building muscle, can also stimulate and strengthen bones and help older people maintain their independence by keeping them strong enough to do routine tasks. It also helps with weight maintenance, as increased muscle burns more calories- both when exercising and at rest.

You don't have to live in the gym to see results from weight training

It's not necessary to go to the gym for two hours per day five days a week to see results. As a matter of fact, such a schedule is counterproductive for most people, as it will eventually induce what is called "overtraining", which can actually cause one to get weaker rather than stronger, in addition to a number of other undesirable symptoms. Actually, it's not necessary to go to the gym at all, as one can do a basic circuit of one set of six to twelve exercises two or three times a week at home using free weights or a home gym and get excellent results. Such a routine can be done in as little as twenty minutes.