I know I was! Strength training changed everything for me.
Here’s why!
After 35 I felt a shift in how my body responded to workouts.
I was feeling run down more often and I definitely was not moving confidently towards my goals of reduced body fat and more muscle. (I wanted to be toned!) But I felt puffy and tired TBH!
Shifting my routine from mostly cardio to mostly strength training changed everything.
When I say strength training, I mean lifting weights with control for a certain amount of sets and reps, WITH REST PERIODS. NOT circuit training with weights. That is basically what I was doing at the time, and my body was not having it.
I had created a very EFFICIENT metabolism with all that cardio (and plenty of lower calorie diets too)
Imagine your body as a car engine. With a high cardio/low calorie lifestyle, it's like a car that's been running on low fuel for too long, making the engine very fuel-efficient, and in this case, thrifty, but that is not a good thing for your body!
You do not want a thrifty metabolism in everyday life. It can make weight gain feel way too easy, and make weight loss feel impossible.
Cardio is like driving that car at a constant speed for a long time. It's burning fuel (calories) during the drive, but it's not doing much to upgrade the engine itself. Over time your body burns less and less calories when you stick to the same cardio method, it’s getting better or more efficient at what you are giving it.
If you want to upgrade your engine to burn more fuel even when it's not driving (helllooooo increased metabolism). That's where strength training comes in. It's like giving the car a tune-up and adding more powerful parts!
Now you are not only burning calories during your workout but you are also burning calories when you are just sitting around when you have more muscle!
By incorporating basic good ole fashioned strength training with sets, reps, and rest periods, and getting stronger over time, we're essentially fine-tuning the engine to become a calorie-burning machine!
Helping your metabolism work more effectively in the long run. This makes losing body fat and keeping it off muchhhhh easier.
It's about building a stronger, more efficient you, not just chasing a calorie burn or a good sweat!
If you can relate it may be time to shift your cardio to strength ratio with fitness and give your body something new, because after 35 we have to protect our muscle mass and prioritize adding it to our body!
This will help us lose body fat, keep it off, stay strong, and keep our metabolism healthy!