The Workout That Will Change Your Life (Seriously)
The benefits of strength training go far beyond a hard body. (Photo: Mike Raabe/Corbis)
By Holly Perkins, as told to Amy Rushlow
Fitness, in many ways, is the ultimate metaphor for life. When you start strength training, you feel stronger not only physically, but also emotionally and spiritually.
But this powerful transformation, which I’ve seen hundreds of times during my 30-year career as a fitness trainer and women’s strength expert, cannot be explained by metaphors alone. There are several aspects unique to strength training that make it an extremely powerful force of change — for your body, soul, and mind.
What to Expect When You Start Strength Training
For women especially, strength training can be an eye-opening experience. Physiologically, women are predisposed to be not as strong as men. That’s a result of low levels of the muscle-building hormone testosterone and high levels of estrogen. It doesn’t have to do anything with spiritual or mental strength. But biologically, it’s just a fact that we are made differently.
So when you take a woman of any age who has lived most of her life not feeling physically strong, and she experiences what it’s like to feel strong for the first time, it opens up a whole new world. That’s when the switch flips. In that moment of lifting weights and experiencing physical strength, you understand that you’re capable of more than you ever imagined.
Related: 3 Strength Moves That Will Make You Feel Invincible
Feel like the weight of the world is on your shoulders? Start strength training. (Photo: Blend Images/Corbis)
Strength Training Boosts Confidence
A sense of accomplishment comes from when you’ve worked through a moment that is difficult for you, and you get through it. When that happens, all of a sudden the spirit feels a sense of achievement, and that feeling cannot be substituted.
You’ve probably felt this before when you received a well-deserved promotion, aced a difficult test, or successfully assembled a piece of Ikea furniture. In the case of strength training, that sense of accomplishment is physical, and it happens right away.
Say, for example, that your training plan calls for a challenging set of leg presses. You don’t think you’ll be able to finish every rep of the final set, but you give it a try — and you do it! In that moment, there’s an immediate change in how you feel about yourself and what you believe you can do.
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Immediate Results = Major Motivation
Many people are focused on weight loss, which is a long and often mysterious process. We have all known a friend who has been trying to lose weight for so long, but still the scale won’t budge. Or she’s been dieting and doing her cardio for weeks and weeks, yet nothing has changed. How frustrating is that?
With strength training, however, progress comes almost immediately. Within seven to 10 days after beginning a strength-training plan, you’ll start to notice changes. You might be able to lift more weight, the exercises may start to feel easier, or perhaps you feel less sore after workouts.
This is what makes strength training so unique: The results are tangible, obvious, and immediate. It’s hard to find a weight-loss plan where people consistently see results seven to 10 days later. But with strength training, that’s not the case. Strength training is a positive, clear, specific formula that produces results very quickly.
Smile, you did it! (Photo: BUCK Studio/Corbis)
How are such quick results possible? It’s because the initial adaptations happen in your nervous system, which is very responsive to strength training. Even though your muscles themselves are not stronger (that takes at least six week, research shows), your neurons begin to fire more efficiently, resulting in rapid strength gains.
When It’s You vs. Yourself, You Always Win
Comparisons can kill your fitness mojo. When you’re in barre class staring in the mirror at a line of svelte ex-ballerinas, it’s hard not to think about your body insecurities. Same with running (“How is everyone passing me?”) and plenty of other fitness pursuits. Competition is just a given in a lot of sports.
But that’s simply not the case with strength training. When you’re sitting on a lat pulldown machine and adjusting the pin on the weight stack, or doing a set of lunges, you’re not competing against anyone. No one is looking over your shoulder, trying to lift more weight than you on their next set. It’s you against you, and that’s it.
Strength training builds focus, discipline, and confidence. (Photo: Ben Welsh/Corbis)
In addition, every person is built differently, which makes a big impact on your strengths and weaknesses in the weight room. Someone who is short, for example, will be stronger (relative to his or her body size) simply because of physics. Therefore, there’s absolutely no reason to compare yourself to anyone else, especially when it comes to strength.
In the weight room, it’s you against your own demons. It’s you against your own strengths and weaknesses. It’s about personal discipline and goal setting. Again, fitness is the ultimate analogy to life — and competition and comparison are usually futile, both in the gym and out in the world.
Related: Body Peace Challenge: Write Down 5 Things You Truly Love About Yourself
The Benefits of Strength Goals
Some people think that working out in order to look good is “vain” or “shallow. Some women have even told me they feel guilty because they supposedly “shouldn’t” be so concerned about their appearance.
There are many benefits of strength-based goals, but that’s not to say you can’t have an appearance goal, too. If you want to change how your body looks, embrace it! There is nothing wrong with wanting to look good. However, know that appearance goals alone are most likely not going to be enough of a motivator for you.
Weight loss also takes time, and the path isn’t clear for everyone. Some people respond better to certain diets, for example. But everyone becomes stronger with strength training!
By having a goal to improve strength, you’re putting yourself three or four steps ahead. It’s easier to find success in strength improvements than it is to find success in weight loss. With strength training, you’re setting yourself up for success — and a better life.
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Body-Peace Resolution is Yahoo Health’s January initiative to motivate you to pursue wellness goals that are not vanity-driven, but that strive for more meaningful outcomes. We’re talking strength, mental fitness, self-acceptance — true and total body peace. Our big hope: This month of resolutions will inspire a body-peace revolution. Want to join us? Start by sharing your own body-positive moments on social media using the hashtag #bodypeaceresolution
