Can seniors increase their metabolism by strength training?

When we were younger it didn’t seem to matter what we ate we always had a lot of energy and for most folks that meant our weight would be kept down also. But as we get older our bodies changes and the processes that we took for granted when we were younger don’t work as well. Such is the case for metabolism. Unfortunately metabolism has become an easy target over the years as something to blame weight gain on. But that really isn’t the case; we need metabolism especially when we are older. One way to increase it is through strength training.

Metabolism is the rate at which our bodies break down food and turn them into nutrients and energy. It also established how fast we burn calories. The BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the rate that determines how much energy we need to do important bodily functions such as breathing, circulation and digestion. This rate decreases as we age.

When we do strength training or resistance training we are forcing our muscles to lift a weight that helps to breakdown the makeup of the muscle which causes the metabolism to kick in. Your metabolism speeds up because it needs to rebuild and replenish the muscles. So the time that we rest between strength training sessions is as important as the lifting weights.

 For more information go to strength training for older people

1.       It is logical to assume that if the body is not burning as many calories you will put on weight. Strength training will increase your muscle mass and in turn burn fat for energy. This type of exercise increases your metabolism. But remember a slower metabolism isn’t the main culprit in weight gain, not balanced diet is mostly to blame.

2.       Those vital organs that need energy from metabolism will suffer.

3.       The flip side of weight gain is being unable to gain weight which can be a problem with many seniors. Strength training can help build muscles that will increase your metabolism. If you are having problems gaining weight make sure to contact your doctor first before any type of exercising.