Friday night, when most couples are going out to the movies and dinner or dancing, we took the family to the gym---and had a great time! We could all do our own thing, couple up and do stuff together and then all come together to swim in the end! What a better way to spend quality time with your kids? Dad walked the track with the 2 younger ones while the teenager and I worked up a sweat in the cardio room. Then the younger girls went swimming by themselves and Dad joined us for some lessons on strength training. This looks like it will be our Friday night ritual!
Did you hear me say strength training? Yes you did! My husband, who has spent the last year and a half losing over 100lbs and learning about how to become fit and healthy, taught me the importance of adding strength training to your work out. I know, how annoying is that you ask....he stops drinking Coke and eating cheeseburgers! But, truth be told he has really developed his will power and started working out and being active. Who knew that was really the secret? LOL He did remind me of something I had long forgotten since that weight training class I took back in college (remember that Sarah?). Strong muscles help you lose weight. And it's not just the exercise involved to become strong that matters. Muscle tissue burns as much as 15 times more calories per day than does fat tissue -- even when at rest! Nothing stokes your metabolism better than muscle! Stronger muscles help your heart perform better with less oxygen---meaning you can increase your stamina on the cardio machines! It also helps protect your joints and your back from excessive strain when exerting or lifting. This aids in treating and preventing arthritis. Have I convinced you yet??? I'm adding this to my 5 day cardio plan at least 2 times per week, maybe 3 times. It's best to give your muscles a day of rest in between strength training especially when starting out. Also, ask for help on the machines from someone who works at the gym and take their advice about how many reps and how best to tell if you are really pushing yourself. My husband said if you get to the 5th or 6th one and you start feeling the burn and really have to push yourself to get to 8 or 10 depending on how many reps you are doing, then that's a good starting out weight. The other night I did my cardio first then did the weights, but next time I will try doing the strength training first on fresh legs to really see what I can do. I can tell you that I did the ab and lower back machines last night and definitely feel it this morning! But my husband told me that after a few months of using these machines and improving his back muscle strength, he no longer has any lower back pain doing normal every day activities---as I do now! So I'll let you know what happens....
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