So the weather outside is frightful and your body is looking less than delightful — you aren’t alone. Research has recently revealed that humans, not just bears, are doomed by our bodies to gain weight in the winter. The cold causes us to eat more because the sudden boost in metabolism can trick us into feeling warmer. Additionally, the lack of sunlight during the winter can lead to lower metabolic rates and, in more extreme cases, seasonal depression. Exercise can counter many of the negative effects that winter has on both the body and the mind.
Classes are picking up again and suddenly we’re faced with working too hard in the day to work out and going through too many six packs at night to even think about cranking out some sit-ups.
But here is a tip aimed at cardio rats that are having trouble finding an open machine at the Rec center after class and study bums alike — it may be time to hit the weight room.
Lifting weights increases the amount of mitochondria in your muscles. This means that your body will use up more calories than while doing your regular workout, reading Jane Austen or even playing robot unicorn. Lifting should be incorporated into your workout at least twice a week to increase lean body mass and decrease body fat.
Ideally, you should be doing eight to 10 different exercises and up to three sets of three to 20 repetitions of each. Lifting can help increase both slow twitch and fast twitch muscle fibers, which are essential for many daily activities.
An interesting, slightly cannibalistic fact: slow twitch muscle fibers make up our “dark meat” while fast twitch muscle fibers make up our “white meat”. . . yum.
And girls, contrary to popular belief, you really don’t have to worry about “bulking up.” Muscle bulk is a product of testosterone and chances are you just don’t have enough to reach the Arnold Schwarzenegger level of muscle without getting hopped up on some serious steroids.
That said I know it can be hard to know where to start. Honestly, if you are unfamiliar with weights or just plain terrified of the noises emanating from the weight room, it’s probably easiest to start on the machines in the cardio room. Start with a low weight and a small amount of reps until you feel comfortable with the machine. And if you have a question about how something works, ask.
Get your friends to accompany you — make it a group activity where you can encourage each other or quiz each other on biology terms while you lift.
If you feel particularly ambitious, you can always venture to the weight room in search of a more terrifying machine.
Once again, if you aren’t sure of what you are doing, ask. When it comes to heavy lifting, I think it goes without saying that safety should always be the primary concern. Make sure you have a spotter and that you have stretched properly.
Don’t worry about lifting the heaviest, most impressive weights. We all have our genetic limits to how much weight we will ultimately be able to lift; just because you aren’t benching twice your body weight doesn’t mean you are wasting your time. Lifting something is better than nothing.
In general, you should wait 48 hours before training the same set of muscles. Lifting weights creates small tears in your muscle fibers and it is when they heal that they grow stronger. This is also what causes some of the soreness the day after lifting.
Overall, weight training is not just beneficial for attracting members of the opposite sex; it can help reduce cardiovascular disease and prevent type 2 diabetes. It lowers resting blood pressure and decreases depression.
As people age, they lose a shocking amount of muscle. If an active effort is put into training muscles this effect can be reversed, which is incredibly important for women who may be prone to osteoporosis.
Adding something new to your workout may be exactly what your body needs to keep off the extra weight. It is also a way to shake up your workout if you are bored of staring out the window in the cardio room, praying for them to put a new sculpture in the garden while running on the treadmill. Weight training is not nearly as intimidating or scary as it seems. I dare you to prove me wrong.
