Some believe it's a common cause of many chronic diseases:

Poor metabolic health.

But what does this really mean?

The so-called ‘metabolic syndrome’ is a cluster of factors including:

• High blood sugar
• Abdominal obesity
• High blood pressure
• Low HDL cholesterol
• And high blood trigycerides

Improving these markers will boost your metabolic health—and reduce your risk of things like cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes in the process.

There’s little doubt exercise sits atop the list of strategies to keep your metabolic health in check.

And many believe aerobic-type exercise is essential for metabolic benefits.

But here’s what might surprise you:

Resistance training has multiple benefits for metabolic health—which rival those of aerobic training.

Here’s 4 ways resistance training can improve metabolic health:

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#1: Better blood sugar (glycaemic) control

Muscle (the ‘skeletal’ kind) isn’t just for movement - or good looks.

It’s also the biggest storage site for glucose (as glycogen) in the body.

Muscle contraction alone can draw glucose from your blood into your muscles.

So it makes sense resistance training—and growing more muscle—can improve glycaemic control.

Those who resistance train are 17% less likely to have type 2 diabetes.

Resistance training can reduce fasting glucose by 0.1-0.3 mmol/L in older adults and in those with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.

It can also reduce HbA1c (glycated haemoglobin)—a marker of glucose levels over the past 2-3 months—by 0.34% in those with type 2 diabetes, with greater strength gain associated with larger benefits.

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#2: Reduced body fat

The words ‘fat loss’ conjures images of endless cardio workouts for many.

But science says lifting weights can help lose body fat too.

In those who are overweight or obese, resistance training is linked to lower:

• Body fat percentage (-1.6%)
• And whole-body fat mass (-1.0%)

Compared to non-training controls.

And this fat loss isn't just the ‘under the skin’ (or subcutaneous) type, either.

Resistance training can also target visceral fat - the metabolically-active kind surrounding our organs.

This is good news since the health burden of visceral fat outweighs (parden the pun) that of subcutaneous fat.

The one-two combo of fat loss and muscle gain makes resistance training a no-brainer for improving body composition - and metabolic health in the process.

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#3: Lower resting blood pressure

It’s ironic that some believe lifting weights is bad for your blood pressure.

Because the opposite is true.

It’s also true blood pressure increases during resistance training - as per other forms of exercise.

But it what happens afterwards that counts.

Multiple studies now show resistance training actually lowers resting blood pressure.

These changes are smaller (about -1 mmHg) in healthy young adults with normal blood pressure.

But larger effects (-3 to 6 mmHg) are seen in middle-aged and older adults, particularly those with prehypertension or hypertension.

And here’s the kicker:

These benefits are similar to antihypertensive medications.

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#4: Improved blood lipid profile

Resistance training also has a positive effect on multiple blood lipid markers:

• Total cholesterol (-0.4 mmol/L)
• HDL cholesterol (+0.1 to 0.7 mmol/L)
• Triglycerides (-0.4 to 0.7 mmol/L)

But what about LDL cholesterol?

Resistance training has less clear impact on LDL cholesterol, although one meta-analysis of 172 trials found resistance training decreases LDL cholesterol (-0.7 mmol/L)—but only in those with elevated cardiometabolic risk.

An improved blood lipid profile is yet another way resistance training can boost metabolic health.

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Resistance training: a one-stop shop for metabolic benefits

Many of the these metabolic benefits are similar to what traditional ‘cardio’ can deliver.

So here’s the bottom line:

Lifting weights ain’t just about getting big and strong.

It’s a proven strategy to enhance multiple aspects of your metabolic health, too.

This shows we shouldn’t underestimate the positive impact of resistance training on overall health.

Because the type of exercise often matters less than you may think.

The key is to move and move often—in any way you can.

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Thanks for reading!

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Until next week,

Jackson

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Send me a quick message or email - I'll reply to every one!

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IMPORTANT:

The information contained herein is of general nature only and does not constitute personal advice. You should not act on any information without considering your personal needs, circumstances, and objectives. Any exercise program may result in injury. We recommend you obtain advice specific to your circumstances from an appropriate health professional before starting any exercise program.