Perhaps your doctor has mentioned this to you: consider adding strength training to your weekly routine. And here’s the thing: Strength training gets even more important as we get older.

So in this episode, Dr. Andrew Miners, Medcan’s director of sports medicine and fitness, in conjunction with McMaster University kinesiology professor Dr. Stuart Phillips, provides a guide to optimal strength training for everyone—particularly those who are getting older, who can use their stronger muscles to stay active and vibrant longer than ever before.

Get tips on how to start properly, and learn about the latest research on the surprising ways strength training can change your body and your mind for the better.

RELEVANT LINKS:

For complete episode links and time-coded insights, visit the Eat Move Think episode 182 web page: https://www.eatmovethinkpodcast.com/podcast/ep182-strength-training-for-everyone
https://bit.ly/3Omi6uh

To learn more about Medcan’s fitness program, contact 416.350.5900 or email fitness@medcan.com.

Eat Move Think is produced by Ghost Bureau: https://www.ghostbureau.com

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Intro
02:44 Meet Dr. Stuart Phillips and hear about his research at McMaster University.
05:11 Adding resistance training to cardio workouts can reduce your risk of all-cause mortality.
06:50 Dr. Phillips’ recent publication is the largest analysis that’s ever been done on optimal strength training. What did his team investigate, and what did they find?
11:28 The study has changed our understanding of how much weight is ideal to lift for optimal hypertrophy (aka muscle mass growth).
12:25 How does Dr. Phillips’ research account for the neverending variables when it comes to how people engage with strength training? 15:30 What’s the amount of minimal exercise “dosage” that will yield the maximal health benefit?
19:12 What’s the difference between muscle strength and hypertrophy? 21:22 Why do people who are new to strength training see gains much faster than experienced weightlifters?
25:44 “‘I don't have time’ is actually more appropriately phrased, ‘I have time but I don't value what it is that you're asking me to do enough to make the time,’” says Dr. Phillips.
27:40 How can strength training improve your cardiovascular health? 28:53 You can treat depression and reshape your brain through resistance exercise.
29:52 Lifting weights and strength training is important in a healthy weight management strategy—which then reduces your risk of other chronic diseases.
32:03 Hear Dr. Stuart Phillips’ recommendations for anyone get started with a simple, easy strength training routine.
34:40 Why might a walk be a bad idea for some people looking to get moving?
36:05 Break your weekly physical activity into short bursts of exercise “snacks.”