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Benefits of Strength Training : Metabolic Efficiency
By Chad Tackett
Metabolic Efficiency
That one-half pound of muscle loss every year after age 25 produces a one-half percent reduction in basal metabolic rate (BMR) every year. A reduction in BMR means that our bodies are less able to use the food we consume as energy--thus more gets stored as body fat. Everyone has an individual basal metabolic rate. "Basal metabolic rate" refers to the energy used by our body at rest to maintain normal body functions.
Our muscles have high energy requirements. Even when we are sleeping, our muscles use more than 25 percent of our energy (calories). When you implement the principles of effective strength-training, and if you are consistent in your program, you will achieve an increase in lean muscle mass throughout your body and increase your BMR. In other words, you can actually condition your metabolism to work better and more efficiently even when you are at rest. An increase in muscle tissue causes an increase in metabolic rate, and a decrease in muscle tissue causes a decrease in metabolic rate.
Once again: adults who are not on a safe, effective strength-training program will experience an annual half-pound loss of muscle and half-percent reduction in metabolic rate unless they begin some form of strength training. The gradual decrease in muscle and BMR is related to the increase in body fat that most people gain as they get older if they do not strength train. With a decrease in muscle, less energy is used for daily metabolic function, so calories previously necessary to perform the activities of daily living now end up stored as fat.
You can see that anyone interested in decreasing body fat percentage--and their risk of disease--as well as in increasing physical performance and appearance, should be strength training to help condition their metabolism (BMR).
One of the biggest mistakes people make when starting a weight-management program is not including a strength-training program with their cardiovascular exercise and low-fat eating regimen. This is unfortunate because when we cut calories without exercise, we can lose muscle as well as fat. Many do not choose to do strength training because 1) they mistakenly think they are going to make their body big and bulky, and 2) they do not realize how beneficial and important strength training is in a weight-management program. Whether it is strength, endurance, muscle size or muscle tone (or a combination) you desire, all are very realistic and obtainable.
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