Seven Health Benefits of Gaining Muscle Mass
Not everyone has the same reaction to adding new muscles to their body. Some people like it: “Great, I got kicked!” Some are disappointed: “Oh no, I’m getting bulky.” But everyone should know that building muscle mass has its benefits beyond and despite appearances.
Here are seven reasons why your newfound muscles will be a big plus for both your health and your fitness goals.
Strength and muscle size go hand in hand
We’ve all met people who are stronger than they appear and vice versa. This has led to the myth that there are different “kinds” of muscle and strength, as if bodybuilders’ muscles are full of water or fat rather than contractile tissue. (I’m not entirely sure where this myth comes from, but it’s absolutely not true. Muscles are muscles.)
Think of it this way: the larger a muscle, the stronger it can contract. But what you do with that muscle is a matter of skill. Gymnasts are strong, but not every strong person can do a backflip. Boxers are strong, but not every strong person can deliver a knockout blow.
If you train to build muscle mass, you will eventually increase your strength. And if you train to build strength, chances are you’ll end up increasing muscle size. This doesn’t mean you have to get huge if you don’t want to; Your diet is the main thing that will determine whether you will look “bulky” or not. But it’s reasonable to expect at least a small gain in muscle mass every time you challenge your body to become stronger and more resilient.
Muscles burn more calories
The effect muscles have on our metabolism is one of the most frequently cited benefits of gaining muscle mass, and frankly, I think it’s one of the least important. But let’s dive deeper, because I know you’re wondering this.
Yes, the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn even at rest. Muscle is a metabolically expensive tissue that uses most of your food as fuel, meaning you can eat more food and thus get more vitamins, protein, fiber and other beneficial nutrients. The more you burn, the better you can eat .
Every pound of muscle you gain will burn about 10 additional calories every day —so if you gain 10 pounds of muscle over several years of strength training, you’ll burn an additional 100 calories every day. It may not contribute much to your daily calorie burn, but it’s something. What’s least appreciated is that the more muscle you have, the more likely you are to do harder workouts, thereby burning even more calories.
I now burn about 500 more calories a day than I did years ago when I was sedentary, and I certainly haven’t gained 50 pounds of muscle mass. But the more muscle you have, the more work you can do, and it snowballs. Remember that exercise is good for your health , so the more your body can handle it, the healthier your heart and your metabolism can become.
Muscle benefits your health even if you don’t lose weight
It is often said that losing weight benefits our health, especially for people with diabetes, other diseases and/or a high BMI. However, losing weight can be difficult, and gaining muscle mass can help with the same health results whether you end up losing weight or not.
For example, this study found that having more muscle mass is associated with lower mortality rates, less body fat, and a lower likelihood of developing diabetes. In this study, people with a high BMI and high muscle mass were healthier than people with the same high BMI but low muscle mass.
So, even if gaining muscle mass doesn’t come with losing body fat, it still helps you be healthier. Researchers also suggest that some of the health effects we associate with high body fat may actually have more to do with low muscle mass.
Muscles keep us in better shape as we age.
As you age, it is dangerous to be weak and fragile. Extreme loss of muscle mass is called sarcopenia, and it is a known factor in all things that should be avoided. The less muscle mass you have, the higher your risk of falls, fractures, inability to live independently, and generally poor health. Older people with less muscle are more likely to die if they have conditions such as kidney disease and heart failure, and may have a harder time tolerating treatments such as chemotherapy .
This isn’t just a problem for gray people: we lose 3-8% of muscle every decade, starting around age 30 , if we don’t exercise to maintain it. The rate of loss usually increases after age 60, but again, people who strength train tend to maintain their muscle. Perhaps you will even build more than you had in your youth.
Even if you’re under 30, think of yourself as storing muscle in a jar that you can use later. Someone who is strong at 25 is building the muscles (and training habits!) that will prevent him from becoming weak at 75.
Strength training improves bone density
In addition to sarcopenia, osteoporosis (loss of bone mineral density) also contributes to the risk of severe fractures and loss of independence, especially with age. Loss of muscle mass and bone density is called ” musculoskeletal aging ” and can be at least partially prevented through strength training.
Bone gets stronger when you put stress on it, so weight-bearing exercise is usually recommended for people at risk of osteoporosis. This does not apply specifically to strength training, but rather to activities in which you support your own body weight. Walking, running and jumping require exercise. Swimming – no.
But strength training also improves bone density. If you can’t walk or even jump on your hands (which, I should note, requires a lot of strength and muscle), a good way to get a healthy load on the bones of your upper body is to do a lot of weight training. . This may include training with barbells, dumbbells, weight machines or other tools.
Strong muscles can prevent injury
Injury prevention is a big, nebulous topic, so it’s difficult to pinpoint specific evidence that strength training generally reduces injuries. But ask any good coach or any good physical therapist and they will tell you that they encourage their players and patients to build strength to prevent and recover from injuries when they happen.
Strength training strengthens muscles, bones, and connective tissues such as tendons . In a sports context, stronger athletes appear to be more resistant to injury. And even in everyday life – say, a person who might slip and fall – being strong and agile makes it easier for him to avoid unexpected obstacles. You may also find it easier to catch yourself when you start to fall.
There is also evidence that exercise, including strength training, is a useful tool in treating back pain , arthritis and other conditions.
Muscles help you run better, do yoga, and do other activities.
You may be good about exercise, but still a little skeptical about the benefits of strength training specifically. You just want to go for a run on the trails, take a barre class, maybe do some yoga. Well, muscles help with this too.
If you’re a runner, for example, strength training helps prevent injuries (including overuse injuries such as shin sprains and knee pain). More muscles in your legs also means better ability to run up hills on these trails and dodge rocks and tree roots on the way down. Stronger runners tend to run better.
Or let’s say you’re more into yoga. More strength and muscle will help you perform more difficult poses, more confidently perform intermediate poses, and lift easier poses with true ease. Or to put it another way: No one ever thinks in the middle of a yoga class, “I wish I had less core strength.”
You get the idea. Climbing is more fun if you have more upper body muscles. Cycling is more fun when you have powerful legs. Even outside the formal sports world, muscles help you carry mulch in the garden, load a suitcase overhead without endangering other airplane passengers, help a friend get around without spending the next two days on the couch popping Advil. So when you notice your body gaining some muscle mass, just think about all the possibilities it opens up for you, not just how it looks.