Why Everybody Should Strength Train

Do you even lift? If the answer is 'no', it's time to reconsider.

Looking after your body is of utmost importance, and virtually all forms of exercise are beneficial, provided you do them safely.

In this era of sedentary lifestyles, fast food, and rising metabolic and mental health disorders, I’m of the opinion that anything ethical that gets people out and moving should be encouraged.

With that said, there is a unique form of exercise that every person must do regularly to optimise their health, athleticism, and longevity. And that is strength training, also known as resistance training.

Strength training isn’t solely the purview of bodybuilders, powerlifters, and athletes. Strength training is for everybody; men and women, young and old.

Training your body to work against resistance has an enormous number of benefits. Whether you use free weights, fixed weights, machines, bodyweight, resistance bands, or some combination, you can reap the benefits of a stronger, healthier body.

Strength training doesn’t just increase the strength and size of your muscles. It improves your nervous system function, bone density, joint function, tendon strength, and ligament strength.

Regular strength training helps to increase your insulin sensitivity, which in turn reduces your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Strength training reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and even certain types of cancer, including kidney cancer and colon cancer.

It also improves body composition by helping you build and retain lean body mass. At the same time, the resulting metabolic improvements make it easier to lose excess body fat and keep it at bay.

There is simply no other form of exercise that boasts all the same benefits as resistance training. Cardiovascular training alone has many benefits, particularly when it comes to endurance, lung capacity, and heart health.

However, if you want to strengthen your entire body and slow down (or reverse) many of the negative effects of aging, such as loss of lean body mass and weakening of bones and joints, then strength training is vital.

Strength training has become more popular over the past few decades amongst both sexes; however, it’s still only practiced by a minority of the population.

Despite spikes in gym memberships and the growing popularity of online fitness content, there are still many misconceptions and myths surrounding this form of training. There remains a pervasive idea that the benefits of ‘lifting weights’ are merely superficial, aesthetic, and driven by vanity. This is not only incorrect but particularly foolish considering the deteriorating health of the general population.

Most economically developed countries also have aging populations. Despite that, it’s still not common knowledge that strength training reduces the risk of many age-related illnesses and conditions. Cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and metabolic illnesses are some of the most common causes of reduced quality of life and life expectancy. All of these can be at least partially mitigated through strength training. However, only a small minority of middle-aged and elderly people regularly set foot inside a gym – whether public, private, or at home.

There are obvious profit incentives to promote pharmaceutical drugs and costly medical interventions over simple lifestyle changes, but it’s unethical when done knowingly. In my opinion, drugs and surgeries should be reserved for specific medical conditions and extreme circumstances, rather than being the first resort for every health concern, as they so often are.

Can you imagine how much healthier, happier, and more productive our nations would be if everybody exercised regularly and incorporated resistance training as part of their regimen? The positive externalities would extend far beyond public health. However, such an outcome would be detrimental to many organisations and individuals whose profits are maximised by maintaining a chronic level of sickness and dependency among large swathes of the population.

Their propaganda has been so effective that many modern people outright reject the notion that they are accountable for most aspects of their health and wellbeing. Instead, they seek the next ‘miracle’ pill, therapy, or procedure before they think about what changes they can make to improve their health outcomes. Individual autonomy and personal responsibility are outsourced at every step.

It’s worth repeating that I am very much in favour of cardiovascular training. I am not telling anybody not to walk, run, cycle, or swim. I am not suggesting that you stop playing football, basketball, tennis, or whatever your preferred sport may be. What I am saying is that if you don’t already do some form of resistance training, then you should start. In fact, it will probably improve your performance in all other athletic endeavours.

Another problem is that when many people hear the words ‘strength training’ or ‘lifting weights’, their brains automatically conjure up images of massive, steroid-enhanced bodybuilders. Media programming over several decades has created and reinforced stereotypes about strength training and the people who engage in it. This is a primary source of the idea that people who lift weights are ‘meatheads’, ‘dumb jocks’, or otherwise deficient in intelligence or character.

I recall a young man once telling me, with a straight face, that he doesn’t lift weights because ‘he’d rather read books’. This is the type of statement that reveals a person is not as clever as he thinks he is.

To be painfully clear, you can engage in various forms of intellectual, physical, spiritual, social, vocational, and familial pursuits, and strength train as well. There is nothing mutually exclusive about these activities.

Incredibly, it’s possible to read books and lift weights. I’ve personally managed this feat for over two decades, and many have for even longer. Rest assured, there are no side effects from resistance training that impair your intelligence or ability to read. Conversely, the resulting improvement in focus, mental fortitude, and nervous system connection may enhance your overall cognition.

It’s smart to lift weights, and lifting weights makes you smarter.

Regarding the fear of ‘becoming too bulky’ or ‘getting too jacked’, you can sleep soundly knowing these outcomes don’t occur by accident. No mere mortal has ever stumbled into a gym, lifted a few weights, and accidentally walked out looking like Mr. Olympia.

This concern is akin to refusing to read books because you don’t want to become too smart, or being afraid of running because you might end up as fast as Usain Bolt. Not only is it silly and unrealistic, but it’s incredibly arrogant to believe you may accidentally become elite in a discipline that other people have dedicated their entire lives to mastering. The typical person who does strength training is not a hardcore bodybuilder, pro athlete, or strongman – they are your average gym-goer.

Finally, lifting your own bodyweight is still ‘lifting weights’. I say this because I occasionally hear people who prefer calisthenics boast about how they “don’t lift weights.” However, doing push-ups, pull-ups, and other forms of bodyweight exercises is still a form of strength training. You are still lifting weights, self-evidently… Your own bodyweight is the object of resistance.

The bottom line is that strength training is massively beneficial. I strongly recommend it for optimising your health, physique, and performance, regardless of your age. If you are an adult who cares about your health (and you should), then you should incorporate strength training into your lifestyle.

If you’re not sure where to start, you can check out my eBook Strong Advice: Zuby’s Guide To Fitness For Everybody. It’s helped thousands of people to build muscle, lose fat, and achieve their fitness goals. It can help you too.

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Zuby