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19 Science-Backed Benefits of Weightlifting
Weight lifting offers a lot more benefits than just improving your looks.
Building muscle through resistance training affects all parts of your physical and emotional health. The older you get, the more beneficial strength training becomes.
Once you hit 30, your muscle mass naturally decreases 3-8% per decade, and once you hit 50 and 60, the rate of muscle loss increases even more. This can create a lot of noticeable effects on your health, your weight, your ability to function, your self-esteem, and the quality of your life.
Simply adding strength training to your schedule 3 times a week provides a host of positive benefits, though. You can stop or even reverse these natural processes of aging just by picking up heavy things and putting them down again – as long as you do it consistently.
Here are 19 science-backed perks you can get when you add some weight lifting to your week:
1. Increases Metabolism
Strength training increases your amount of muscle mass, and more muscle translates to an increased metabolism and fat-burning in several ways:
- Muscle burns more calories at rest. Estimates say 1 lb of muscle burns 6 calories per day at rest while fat burns 2 calories per day at rest (3x as much). (Source)
- More muscle means you can work harder and longer, which burns more calories.
- Strength training increases EPOC – Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption, also known as the “afterburn” effect. One study showed metabolism stayed elevated by 4.2 percent 16 hours after their strength-training session ended.
2. Increases Bone Density
Osteoporosis affects 54 million Americans and can lead to falls, fractures, and other negative health effects. Resistance training increases both bone mass and bone density and can stave off the progression of osteoporosis. (Source 1, 2, 3)
3. Decreases Risk for Type 2 Diabetes
A study that included 4681 adults showed that moderate strength training led to a 32% decrease in the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes over 8 years. (Source)
Another study showed that strength training prevented prediabetes from developing into diabetes (Source)
4. May Decrease LDL and Total Cholesterol
A 2011 study found that those who lifted weights cleared LDL out of their bloodstream faster than those who didn’t lift. Another study showed that women ages 70-87 who lifted weights for 11 weeks had lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol than those who didn’t lift. (Source 3)
5. Increases Insulin Sensitivity
Insulin resistance can lead to diabetes, but it can also make it much harder to burn extra fat in the body, even when you’re not diabetic. When insulin levels are high, the body doesn’t break down fat (watch Dr. Jason Fung’s explanation). Insulin resistance means your body needs more insulin to get glucose into your cells. Better insulin sensitivity, then, results in lower insulin levels and a better ability to burn fat.
Studies show strength training increases insulin sensitivity and fights insulin resistance (Source 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).
6. Increases (Good) HDL Cholesterol
Lifting weights has been shown to increase levels of the “good” HDL cholesterol. One study found that men who lifted weights 3 times a week for 8 weeks raised their HDL levels from an average of 38.1 to 44.4. Another study found that resistance training raised HDL an average of 4.6% in both men and women of all ages.
7. Reduces Blood Pressure
Weight lifting can reduce arterial blood pressure. One study showed that lifting 3 
times a week for 8 weeks dropped systolic blood pressure by 9 points. Another study showed that lifting weights 2 times a week for 10 weeks led to an average 7.83-point drop in systolic blood pressure.
Another study found a 4.1 mm HG drop in systolic blood pressure, which may not seem like a very big drop, but experts indicate that even a 2 mm HG drop can reduce stroke mortality by 10% and heart disease mortality by 7% (Source).
8. Reduces Physical Injuries
Increased muscle mass gained from strength training can reduce the prevalence of injuries you might get while doing other activities. Injuries can happen just going about your daily life. For example, when you go to reach for something and you pull a side muscle. Or, when you run and get leg muscle injuries. Or you step outside, slip on some ice, and jerk your body to try to avoid falling.
Having developed muscles can prevent many of these injuries or reduce their impact. One study showed that 12 weeks of strength training helped prevent leg injuries among runners. Another study showed that 2-3 strength training sessions a week for 12 weeks reduced injuries in soccer players. You don’t have to be an athlete to get the injury-prevention benefits of strength-training, though. It can prevent overuse injuries in your everyday life.
9. Reduces Falls and Improves Balance and Stability
We usually think of falls as something that just happens to older people, but decreased muscle mass can cause falls and problems with balance and stability in younger people, too.
When you build up your core and leg muscles, you’re much more able to control yourself in all the different positions you might find yourself in as you walk,work in the garden, help your kids, and lots of other mundane daily activities.
In one study, resistance training 2 times a week led to a 57% decrease in fall risk in women with decreased bone mass. (Another source). Another study analyzed 4739 people and found that strength training reduced falls by 32% in healthy older adults.
10. Less Disability and Fewer Limitations Later in Life
Increasing muscle through strength training has been associated with less disability and fewer mobility limitations as we get older. Better muscle tone can improve your ability to walk, bend, reach, and balance. One study confirmed this when analyzing 651 people aged 65 and older. Another study in men found that weight lifting improved physical function and reduced limitations and disability.
11. Can Improve Knee Pain and Mobility
It’s estimated that frequent knee pain affects 25% of adults. It can limit mobility and make life miserable. However, strength training can curb knee pain by strengthening the muscles that support the knees. Muscle weakness in the quadriceps especially can lead to increased knee pain, more cartilage degradation, and more damage from shear forces.
A review study showed that strength training 2-3 days a week reduced knee pain by 42-43%. It also preserved strength and decreased narrowing of the joint space in people with osteoarthritis of the knee. They compared strength training with hydrotherapy, aerobic walking, and found resistance training had a better outcome.
Strength training was also shown to improve walking speed and distance, as well as a quicker time to get up from a chair or climb stairs.
12. Can Reduce Anxiety
Several studies have shown that strength training can lead to a modest decrease in anxiety symptoms.The researchers of this study proclaimed that “the evidence supports the conclusion that strength training alone consistently reduces anxiety symptoms among healthy adults”.
13. Can Reduce Low Back Pain
Several studies have demonstrated that strength training can reduce lower back pain. In one study, the researchers stated that “a quantitative review….found that strength training alone not only reduced pain to a moderate amount and to a magnitude that was equivalent to aerobic training but also was the best type of exercise for improving physical function among those with chronic back pain”.
14. Increases Self-Esteem and Confidence
Looking better and feeling stronger lead to an improved sense of confidence and self-esteem. One meta-analysis analyzed 7724 adults and found that strength training alone resulted in improvements in overall self-esteem. Strength training was also associated with a decrease in the incidence and severity of depression.
15. Improves Sleep
Lifting weights can improve the quality and duration of your sleep. One study found that 6 months of resistance training led to a 38% improvement in sleep quality. Another study of 55 men showed that resistance training improved sleep duration and quality and reduced the number of times the men woke up throughout the night. The same study showed a decrease in inflammatory markers for those who lifted weights.
16. Improves Cognition
There are many tests for various types of cognition, but strength training has been shown to improve several types of cognitive abilities.
One study found that strength training prevented or delayed cognitive decline associated with aging by reducing homocysteine and insulin like growth factor 1 (IGF1). A study of healthy adults who lifted weights twice a week for 12 weeks showed improved memory. Another study found that resistance training led to increase in working memory and processing speed.
17. Reduces Body Fat
Most people think aerobic exercise can help reduce the amount of body fat, but resistance exercise alone also reduces body fat. Studies have shown that you can lose body fat even without restricting calories in both men and women across all age groups (Source 1, 2, 3, 4, 5).
Strength training can lead to a decrease in dangerous adipose tissue (e.g., belly fat) even without a significant reduction in body weight.
18. Decreases Mitochondrial Deterioration
Mitochondria are often called the powerhouses of the cell. They convert food into energy we can use inside our cells. They also work to decide which old cells get destroyed and carried away. Recently, scientists have discovered a link between mitochondrial dysfunction and symptoms associated with aging. So keeping your mitochondria healthy and robust is important for several reasons.
Strength training has been shown to decrease mitochondrial deterioration and an increase in mitochondrial activity. One study found an increase in cellular oxidation as well as an increase in mitochondrial density after 10 weeks of strength training. While aging leads to a natural decline in mitochondrial content, strength training has shown to stop or slow it.
19. Reduces Inflammation
Inflammation has been implicated in a host of diseases, from diabetes to cancer and cardiovascular disease. Inflammation is often measured by analyzing the amount of C-reactive protein, cytokines, and TNF-alpha.
A study of women who lifted weights for 12 weeks (3 times/week) showed marked reductions in these levels of inflammation markers pre- and post-exercise. Their C-Reactive Protein decreased an average of 33% and TNF-alpha decreased 29%. Less inflammation does a body good!
Take Action
If you haven’t lifted weights before, consult your doctor to get the all-clear and then find a beginner’s regimen and get started! You’ll want to lift heavy (aim for 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps). You should struggle to lift those last reps. Here are some recommended resources:
- Bodybuilding.com has lots of great beginner regimens. You can start with Weightlifting for Women: Guide to Strength Training
- Thinner, Leaner, Stronger by Michael Matthews
- Strength Training Anatomy for Women by Frederic Delavier
Alternatively, if you prefer a gym, join one and use the machines. Machines are good for keeping your body in proper form, which is always important to prevent injury.
You can find support by joining an online group (think Facebook groups) with others who are into resistance training.
