Proven Ways to Build Up Your Muscle Strength- No Need to Pump Iron!
Building up good muscle strength is about more than looking good. Sure, it doesn’t hurt to see how toned you look in your tshirts, but strong muscles are essential to good health. Since muscle needs calories to sustain itself, when you build muscle you essentially boost your metabolic rate since you can consume more calories without gaining weight. It also gives you the strength you need to carry out daily tasks, as well as work hard during your cardio workouts. However, pumping iron really isn’t for everyone. If you don’t fancy spending your free time in a sweaty gym full of shouting and grunting men, you’ll be pleased to know that there are other ways to reach your goals. Muscle isn’t all about getting as big and bulky as you can, and these exercises will sculpt and shape you, increasing your strength and improving your physique.
Tai Chi
According to TaiChi For Health Institute, practicing this sport allows you to build up your internal and external strength. So not only will you work out your muscles (improving balance, flexibility and posture) but you’ll also be more capable at handling whatever life throws at you. Some of the proven benefits of Tai Chi include preventing chronic conditions such as arthritis, heart disease and diabetes. It can also improve immunity, protecting you from disease and reduce stress. Stress of course comes along with its own set of health problems, and so anything that you can do to reduce this is no bad thing. Tai chi can improve both upper and lower body strength and when it’s practiced regularly, it can be comparable to resistance training.
Yoga
Many men disregard the idea of practicing yoga as they believe it’s feminine, however it’s something that can genuinely help everyone. According to BodyBuilding, yoga increases range of motion and can therefore prevent future tearing and straining injuries. It improves breathing and strengthens stabilisers giving you the benefit of better balance and posture. As with Tai Chi, yoga is linked with both physical and mental health benefits, and if you want to build muscle there are plenty of opportunities to do so. There are holds and positions that require an enormous amount of strength, and you’ll continue to build this every time you practice.
Swimming
Swimming is one of the most beneficial exercises you can do. Since the water supports your weight it’s low impact, so is something that even those with joint or back issues can usually enjoy. It works out just about every muscle in your body, and it’s fun too! Swimming tends to feel like much less of a slog than running on a treadmill and yet it burns a similar number of calories. It’s a great cardio workout, but the resistance of the water really helps to build muscle at the same time.