Benefits of Weight Training
Posted 11/15/2009
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Like many of you, I have an intense and ambivalent relationship with the gym. I get there almost every day, forcing myself out of bed at an alarmingly early (and now, dark) hour. I have been convinced that regular exercise may reduce recurrence risk, and it certainly helps tone my aging body and maintain my weight. I never, however, like it much. I used to be a regular runner and even ran a marathon in my 30s. I never experienced the lauded "runners' high" and pretty much forced myself through those miles with will power and stubborn determination. Those same traits keep me exercising now.
A new study from Kathryn Schmitz and her colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania has interesting and surprising conclusions about the benefits of weight training. Here is an excerpt and then the link if you want to read more:
In addition to building muscle, weightlifting is also a prescription for self-esteem among breast cancer survivors, according to new University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine research. Breast cancer
survivors who lift weights regularly feel better about bodies and their appearance and are more satisfied with their intimate relationships compared with survivors who do not lift weights, according to a new study published in the journal Breast Cancer Research and Treatment.
Survivors' self-perceptions improved with weight lifting regardless of how much strength they gained during the year-long study, or whether they suffered from lymphedema, an incurable and sometimes debilitating side effect of breast surgery.
http://tinyurl.com/yhpelux
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