2000 Volunteer Leader Training Guide
Stay Healthy by Staying Fit: The Benefits of Strength Training
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Introduction
• Objectives
• Target Audiences
• Major Teaching Points
• Health Benefits
• Reshaping Your Body
• How to Start
• Suggestions for Leader
• Handouts
• Additional Resources
Introduction
If you are looking for the fountain of youth, look no further
than strength training. Through strength training, you can halt much of the
deterioration that occurs with aging, especially aging and inactivity. Research
conducted over the last six to eight years indicates that physical activity is
one of the most important determinants of health and function as we age.
Objectives
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Participants will learn the health benefits of
strength training.
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Participants will learn how to perform suggested
strength training exercises.
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Participants will learn reliable sources of
information on strength training.
Target Audiences
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AEHC members
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Adults
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Older adults
Major Teaching Points
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A challenging, progressive strength-training
program can build muscles and increase strength in men and women
of all ages.
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Strength training is as important as aerobic
exercise.
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Strength training helps build strong muscles,
boosts metabolism and stamina while improving bone density,
balance, flexibility and posture. Also, it improves cardiac
capacity by having a positive influence on blood pressure and
heart rate.
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By spending 30 minutes two to three times weekly
doing strength training, you can reshape your body to have less
fat and more lean weight.
Health Benefits
Strength training is just as important as aerobic exercise. It
helps build strong muscles, reversing the effects of age-related muscle loss
(sarcopenia). Strength training boosts metabolism and stamina while improving
bone density, balance, flexibility and posture. It also improves cardiac
capacity by having a positive influence on blood pressure and heart rate.
Strength training can be beneficial at any age. People who have
never exercised before, but begin a modest walking and strength training program
have better postural stability, increased energy levels, better sleep and
improved muscle mass.
Reshaping Your Body
By spending 30 minutes two to three times weekly doing strength
training, you can reshape your body to have less fat and more lean weight. This
is important because as you age you lose five to seven pounds of lean weight
each decade. This shift means that as you age you’re likely to experience a
decrease in physical capacity and reduced basal metabolic rate (BMR) – the rate
at which food is used by your body.
In short, if you continue your sedentary lifestyle and consume
more calories than you use, you’ll gain weight. However, even if your weight
hasn’t changed, your body will be altered due to having more fat and less
muscle.
Strength training yields lasting results in basal metabolic
rate. It increases lean body mass which enables you to use the food you eat more
effectively, so it isn’t stored as fat.
How to Start
The basics of strength training involve resisting the force of
gravity by lifting progressively heavier weights for specific repetitions, which
over time build increased muscle mass, strength and endurance.
Before beginning a strength training program, you should
complete the Screening Questionnaire (Handout
2). If you answer yes to any of the questions, you should check with your
doctor before starting a strength training program.
When you begin a strength training program, you may start by
purchasing a set of commercial weights called free weights or hand weights for
upper body workouts. Use weight cuffs or ankle weights for lower body strength
training. Latex bands provide resistance and can be used instead of weights for
strength training. Generally, darker colored bands provide more resistance than
lighter colored bands.
The initial weights you select depend on your current strength.
Women may begin with one- to three-pound dumbbells for each arm and three- to
five-pound weights for each leg. Women will quickly advance to heavier weights.
Use weights that produce resistance in 8 to 12 repetitions using
good form without fatiguing the targeted muscle. The weight you use should
challenge your muscles.
Slow lifting and lowering motions are the most effective and
safest for your joints. Each lift should take about nine seconds: four seconds
to raise the weight, a second pause to take a breath and four seconds to lower
the weight. Then another two to three second pause before repeating the lift.
Allow one to two minutes between each set and another one to two minutes if
needed between each exercise.
Each strength training session should include:
Each complete move in strength training is called a lift. A
series of lifts is called repetitions or reps. A set is eight to twelve reps.
Suggestions for Leader
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Review the lesson guide and all handout
materials.
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Acquire enough copies of handouts for each
participant.
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Secure the needed equipment to demonstrate a few
of the strength training exercises.
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Invite a fitness trainer to conduct the lesson.
Handouts
Additional Resources
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Exercise: A Guide from the National Institute
on Aging
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National Institute on Aging
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Web of Life
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Strong Women Stay Young by Miriam E.
Nelson, Ph.D.
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Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter,
"Are You As Fit As You Should Be?" August 1999, Volume 17,
Number 6
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Biomarkers: The 10 Keys to Prolonging
Vitality
by William Evans, Ph.D., and Irwin Rosenberg, M.D.
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Fitness From 50 Forward, American
Dietetic Association
Charlotte Mills Fant, Extension Health Education Specialist
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