5 Top Reasons Baby Boomers Should Be Pumping Iron

5 Top Reasons Baby Boomers Should Be Pumping Iron.

If you're a baby boomer, chances are you're already working to take care of your health.

You're probably scarfing down those fresh salads and making an effort to walk everywhere you go.

These are great things to do, but if you are not lifting weights, you are missing one of the most important parts of your overall fitness program.

Whether you're a boomer male or female, weight training is an essential part of maintaining youthful vigor.

Here are five things you can expect to accomplish by lifting weights.

1. Go from flab to fab. Face it. Time and gravity cause our bodies to, well, sag in a few places. Areas that used to be taut and firm become soft and flabby. Weight training is one of the best forms of exercise for dealing with soft flesh.

The way it works is that lifting weights properly will increase your muscle mass in whatever part of your body you are working out. Muscle burns more calories even when at rest than fat does, so you burn fat while those muscles gain strength and definition.

2. Increase the density of your bones. This is of particular interest to women, who have a greater risk of osteoporosis in mid-life than men do. Studies have found that even elderly people could improve their bone density by following a simple but methodical program of weight lifting.

It doesn't take but about 15 minutes twice a week to see results. The trick is to use heavy enough weights to start, and then increase the weight as your strength increases.

3. Improve the quality of your sleep. Many boomers have problems with insomnia. Worries, depression, and hot flashes are just a few of the ailments that can keep you up at night.

Any appropriate exercise (i.e. exercise that does not injure your body) will improve your ability to get to sleep, stay asleep, and wake refreshed. Lifting weights is one such exercise.

4. Be safer on your feet, whatever you're doing. The older you get, the more you worry about taking a fall. Little kids fall and bounce right back up, but boomers go boom and stay there a while. Ouch. If you train with weights, though, your muscles, bones, and ligaments all get stronger. This means that your joints are more stable and don't give out on you. You will also have better balance and coordination, so that you can catch yourself.

5. Enjoy the health benefits of a new hobby. Weight training involves several things that produce the same benefits as taking on a hobby. For one thing, you will learn new terms, procedures, and concepts, so it's good for your mind.

The act of lifting causes you to focus on the action, which makes it a great temporary escape from the worries that normally cloud your mind. And if you go to a gym to work out, you're even likely to meet new like-minded people. All of these benefits have been found to be conducive to better health and vitality.

If you're a baby boomer who is serious about attaining and keeping youthful good health, you owe it to yourself to add weight training to your exercise regimen.

Remember to start small with any new habit.

Make sure you are using good form, and that the weight is the right amount to cause you to tire after 8 to 12 repetitions of a movement.

Usually the local Y will have a trainer on staff who can help you learn the ropes.