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 On Site Personal Training
What are the benefits of strength training?
Strength training is essential because research studies show that bone density improves with a regular strength training routine. This is especially helpful for older adults who naturally lose bone density and muscle mass as they age. A regular and healthy strength training routine would include 30 - 50 minutes of training up to 3 days a week, depending on a person's age and fitness level.
A frequent concern of women is that strength training will make them bulk up. This is not true. A person's size depends upon the amount of calories they consume and the level of hormones (testosterone) naturally occurring in their body. Obesity and other weight issues can be caused by high levels of cortisol, a result of adrenal gland overload. Inflammation from food allergies can also be a cause of weight gain. Muscle hypertrophy or what most people refer to as "the definition or cuts" in a muscle's appearance have to do with specific routines and periodization that you can learn with the help of a qualified trainer. Strength training is needed to compliment any regular cardio workout ( 30-50 minutes a day up to 6 days a week) because the more lean muscle mass you have, the more calories your body can burn at rest. Cardiovascular conditioning is needed to lower your resting heart rate and help release stress hormones. It will also raise your metabolism when done as instructed by your trainer.
What is flexibility training and why is it important?
Flexibility is one of the most overlooked and most needed modalities in the health industry. Flexibility is the ability of a muscle to go through its full range of motion without restrictions. Without proper flexibility, a muscle will not function properly. This is how most people injure themselves while weight training. If a person has poor flexibility a trainer should first prescribe corrective exercises and flexibility training before progressing a client to weight bearing exercises. The reason for this is because a muscle that has limited or no range of motion, will recruit secondary muscles to do its primary function. This causes misalignment which causes pain. Pain is a warning that something isn’t right. If a person strength trains improperly, this will result in further injury.
To summarize the point of this balance, I think of building a healthily structured body as like building a house. The flexibility training and corrective exercises are the foundation. Cardiovascular training is the walls, and finally, the building of lean, good looking muscle is the pretty pictures and knick knacks. You don’t put up the pictures and the knick knacks before you have the foundation and the walls!
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