Women’s fitness: New research shows benefits to resistance or strength training

CINCINNATI (WKRC) – A fitness program in Anderson Township is making a difference in helping women improve their health and their lives.

It’s an area of fitness not talked about as much for women, but new research showed that adding resistance or strength training to the usual cardio can make women stronger, leaner, and more energetic.

Joelle Tunning is down more than 80 pounds with the help of resistance training. But what’s up is her bone strength.

“Our bone density diminishes as we age. We lose as much as 5% per year of our bone density, and resistance training, particularly, is so good for building the bone density back,” said Tunning, who’s now an instructor at Coors Core Fitness.

That bone density is now linked to a longer lifespan, according to a recent study from the National Institutes of Health. It showed that people who don’t break bones live longer.

“I think women tend to shy away from resistance training because they think they are going to bulk up, but women don’t have enough testosterone in their bodies,” Tunning said. “Working out once or twice a week, you’re not going to get huge. You’re just going to build good muscle tone and bone density. All kinds of wonderful things are going to happen in the body.”

Tunning is now a fitness instructor for a group of women affectionately known as the “Circuit Sisters.” Each circuit stop builds, stretches, or pulls a part of the body. Jean Gregor said they get easier with time.

“I can get through all of them without really feeling badly,” said Gregor, a program participant.

In addition to bone building, resistance and strength training also promote greater flexibility and range of motion. As Donna Buckley knows, that translates into everyday health.

“Oh my gosh, all the time. Yeah, bending over to get something all the time. Just to be able to stay mobile, and that’s a focus for a lot of us,” said Buckley.

For more information about Coors Core Fitness, call (513)-233-2673 or click here.