Health: FIT FOR LIFE: Balance Out Your Training

QI do a lot of sport but have never done weights. In your columns you are always saying it is good to do weights as well as cardiovascular exercise, but I don’t understand why as long as I am keeping fit.

AThere are many ways to improve your fitness levels, all of which vary depending upon your personal goals and training methods.

When training for fitness most people perform long cardiovascular exercises, such as a run or bike ride. This is excellent for training your body to cope with the demands of challenging exercises.

However, purely performing this form of training can quickly degenerate the muscles that give your body its form.

Cardiovascular exercise is excellent for increasing your lung capacity and the strength of your heart muscle to enable it to pump the required oxygen around the body. Basically, this form of exercise works towards a strong heart and also burns calories and body fat. The more endurance exercise you do, the more body fat you burn off as part of the training process, which means that you will eventually end up burning off muscle rather than fat if this is your sole form of training.

The idea behind weights training is that it will help to develop muscle and maintain your strength, rather than allowing your muscle strength and mass to degenerate. It is not necessary to lift heavy weights to achieve this, but carrying out some form of strength training will ensure that you are strong enough to take part in a long run.

To adapt your training, try adding some leg weight exercises, doing about 15 repetitions at a weight that feels challenging. Repeat this exercise four to five times with a 30 second gap between each set.

This will help your body to maintain strength without the muscles wasting away through pure cardiovascular exercise.

Weight training can also be used to aid weight loss, as any form of heat produced in the body will help to burn off calories. Performing weights exercises increases the body temperature, particularly around the muscle being trained, which will help to increase muscle tone and decrease body fat, leading to a healthy, lean body.

Dave Roberts is manager of L A Fitness in Temple Row, Birmingham city centre