Why weight?

Most people can be convinced to do cardio exercise.  It can be done without a lot of equipment or preparation, lends itself fairly well to hanging out with friends, and sometimes can even be done while watching television.  And, once the initial endurance gets built, it makes us all feel good.

Weights, on the other hand, are often a tougher sell.  Sure, we can listen to loud music, but we’re pretty much hanging out counting.  With heavy objects.  And a bunch of sweat.  And we feel sore afterwards.  That’s the down side.

The up side is considerable.  Weight training builds muscle mass, which improves both metabolism and body shape.  It also maintains strong bones, which is crucial for those of us who do not want to end our lives in a nursing home.  On a fuzzier level, weight training gives us a task at which we can see our progress in actual numbers very easily—not that many things we have to do in our lives are as clear as progressing from lifting five to ten pounds, or 105 to 110 pounds; it is a good feeling!

Go play!