In an ever-evolving fitness landscape, one exercise routine stands out for its profound effects on bone health - strength training. Bones form the bedrock of our physical structure, providing essential support and protection. Maintaining robust bone health becomes increasingly vital for an active and independent lifestyle as we age.
Encouragingly, scientific research has unveiled the hidden benefits of strength training, extending beyond muscle development to fortify our bones. This article explores the fascinating realm of bone health, revealing how strength training positively influences bone density, minimizes osteoporosis risk, and fosters overall physical well-being. With insights into bone remodeling and real-life success stories, let's uncover the pathway to stronger and more resilient bones, unlocking the potential of strength training.
Strength training can improve bone density and reduce the risk of osteoporosis, promoting stronger and more resilient bones.
What is Bone Health?
Our bones are strong, flexible structures that support our bodies and protect organs like our hearts and lungs. As we age, our bone strength gradually decreases, which can increase fracture risk, especially if there is a family history of osteoporosis or other chronic conditions.
Bone health depends on both genes and environmental factors. While genetic factors are important for determining bone mass, controllable lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise play an equally significant role in overall skeletal health. The skeleton requires the same nutritional elements as all other tissues, but it needs large amounts of calcium and phosphorus.
A well-rounded diet is essential for bone health. Still, it is even more critical to consume sufficient quantities of nutrients that are known to support optimal bone density and reduce the risk of osteoporosis: calcium, vitamin D, protein, phosphorous, magnesium, and potassium. Eating a variety of whole foods, including fish, dairy products (like yogurt and cheese), leafy vegetables, nuts, and seeds, will help you get these essential nutrients.
In addition to dietary factors, regular weight-bearing exercises, also called resistance training, can promote bone health. Walking, jogging, jumping, skipping, and other high-impact activities are particularly effective for bone health, but moderate-intensity resistance training is also good. Non-weight-bearing exercises, such as yoga and tai chi, can provide flexibility and balance training which are also crucial for bone health. The best way to maintain a healthy skeleton is to participate in weight-bearing activities at least 30 minutes daily, four or more days per week.
How Strength Training Affects Bone Health
Almost 20% of women and 5% of men over age 50 have osteoporosis, a disease that makes bones weak and more likely to break. While bone loss is natural with aging, many studies show that exercise (particularly weight-bearing and strength training) helps slow that decline and even build bone. That's important because fractures from osteoporosis can cause pain, reduce mobility and, in extreme cases, lead to death.
Performing resistance exercises -- including pushups -- and weight-bearing aerobic activity on most days of the week is recommended by many health organizations to keep bones strong. It's best to mix things up and include a variety of movements, directions, and speeds, such as walking to jogging or jumping from star jumps. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate impact, which includes the type of jogging that increases your heart rate and places additional force on your bones.
While any weight-bearing exercise can help your bones, researchers have found that resistance and impact training specifically helps to reduce the risk of fractures in hips, spine, and wrists, which are most common among people with osteoporosis. Resistance training also improves balance and connective tissue strength, which can decrease the chance of falls, another common cause of fractures in older adults.
To get the greatest bone-strengthening benefit from resistance training, find a program that allows you to perform 2-3 sets of 8-12 repetitions with good form and gradually increase the amount of weight or resistance over time. You can use everything from bodyweight exercises (such as sit-ups and pushups) to free weights or resistance bands. Talk with your healthcare provider or fitness professional about a safe and appropriate resistance program.
Benefits of Strength Training for Bone
Increases Bone Density
The tugging and pushing on bones that occurs with weight bearing and strength training exercise stimulates bone-forming cells to start building stronger, denser bones. Several studies show that it also slows or reverses age-related bone density loss.
These bone-building benefits can be obtained with moderate-impact activities such as walking, jogging, or jumping rope. Adding resistance to these movements - like using hand weights, free weights, or elastic bands - increases the bone-building effect of your workout. The higher the resistance used, the more your skeleton will benefit. However, it's important to note that the more you move and the more variety you add to your resistance training routine, the better your results will be.
In addition to bone-building strength training, you should include at least 30 minutes of weight-bearing exercise four or more days each week. Suppose you are experiencing a musculoskeletal condition (like arthritis) or can't do any impact exercise. In that case, non-weight-bearing exercises such as swimming and cycling offer significant muscle and balance training benefits.
For those who can do impact exercise, try to incorporate various exercises that vary in movement, direction, and speed. This will help to avoid overuse injuries and increase bone density and muscle strength gains.
Prevents Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis is when bones become weak and brittle, increasing the risk of fractures in any body bone, most commonly the spine, hips, and wrists. Fractures can lead to severe pain and reduced mobility. They may also increase the fall risk, which can further reduce mobility and cause a loss of independence. Studies have shown that strengthening muscles through exercise, such as weight training, can help prevent osteoporosis and the resulting fractures.
It's essential to exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week. This exercise should include aerobic exercises, such as walking, jogging, and jumping, as well as muscle-strengthening exercises. Aerobic exercise involves moving your body weight while strength-training exercises use free weights or resistance bands. It's recommended to consult a physical therapist or personal trainer to develop an appropriate exercise program. A therapist or trainer can teach you how to perform exercises correctly and safely, especially if you have a health condition such as osteoporosis.
Getting adequate exercise can improve balance and coordination, reducing the risk of falls that could cause a fracture. Strengthening muscles can also help prevent osteoporosis by slowing bone loss and promoting new bone growth. In one study, postmenopausal women who participated in a strength-training program for a year showed increases in bone density in the spine and hips, areas most affected by osteoporosis.
While osteoporosis is the most common disease in postmenopausal women, it affects men and women of all ages. Getting enough calcium and vitamin D in your diet is important to keep your bones strong.
If you have a family history of osteoporosis or other health conditions, being active is especially important to prevent the disease. Talk to your doctor before starting a new exercise program, especially impact or weight-bearing exercises such as running, jumping, stair climbing, and dancing. Talk to your doctor about the best ways to incorporate these types of exercise into your daily routine.
Strengthens Muscles
A well-rounded strength training program will help improve your balance and stability, which can reduce the risk of falls that lead to fractures. Exercise professionals can design a safe and effective strength program for you that involves all major muscle groups of your body. Start with low- to moderate weights, and slowly increase the amount of weight you use as your muscles get stronger. Be sure to rest a day or two between each workout.
Muscle-strengthening exercises also stimulate the bones to build up. These include exercises using weight machines, free weights, and exercises (such as pushups) that use your body weight. A trainer will guide you through your exercise regimen, helping you to develop a level of resistance that feels challenging but doable. Increasing your resistance level will also make your muscles work harder, which increases your metabolism and burns more calories even after your workout.
While all forms of exercise have bone-building benefits, there are a few things to keep in mind:
First, any form of physical activity can strengthen your bones, but higher-impact activities tend to have a more pronounced effect on the bones than lower-impact exercises. For example, running and jogging have more of a bone-building impact than walking or light-impact aerobics like swimming and dancing. The intensity and velocity of your exercise are also necessary; for the best bone-building results, your muscles should feel fatigued by the end of your session.
In addition, the strength-training exercise matters. Muscles are strengthened through resistance exercise, so it is essential to use a level of weight that challenges your muscles. A trainer can teach you how to calculate your one-rep max (1RM), the maximum weight you can lift for one repetition before fatigue sets in.
When you exercise with a high 1RM, the mechanical stress on your muscles and bones stimulates new bone growth. This stimulates the formation of new bone cells, known as osteoblasts, responsible for building and repairing your bones. In turn, your bones become stronger and are less prone to fractures.
Reduces the Risk of Fractures
Strong bones and better balance can lower your risk of fractures, especially as you age. Exercise involving your muscles and bones -- such as weight training -- helps reduce the rate of bone loss, increases your strength and endurance, and can help prevent falls, which often lead to hip and spine fractures.
Resistance training is the best exercise for building muscle and improving bone density, also called weight or weight-bearing exercises. These involve working a group of muscles against external resistance, such as a barbell in a dumbbell lift or your body weight during pushups.
Studies show that resistance training can improve muscle strength, balance, and coordination and increase bone density in both men and women. According to Harvard Health Publishing, it can even slow or reverse the loss of bone mass that occurs as you age.
Exercises that make your bones work harder than normal to support your body weight -- such as walking, running, climbing stairs, and playing tennis -- are called weight-bearing workouts. In addition to strengthening bones and slowing bone loss, these exercises can decrease your risk of osteoporosis fractures. But if you've already had a fracture or have osteoporosis, you may need to avoid these high-impact workouts.
The Bottom Line
Along with taking calcium and vitamin D, avoiding smoking, possibly not drinking alcohol, and addressing medical and hormonal factors that may predispose to osteopenia or osteoporosis, weight-bearing exercise and resistance training are among the best things you can do to strengthen your bones. These types of exercises increase bone density and improve muscle mass, balance, and connective tissue. These factors decrease the risk of falling and breaking something (which in older people often signifies the beginning of the end).
Weight-bearing exercises involve exercise while standing or sitting. The body's weight is applied to the legs and hips during the activity, which jolts the bones causing them to grow stronger. Walking is a great example of weight-bearing exercise. However, you can benefit similarly from aerobic activities like swimming and cycling.
Muscle-strengthening exercises, such as pushups or lunges, are another type of weight-bearing exercise. You can perform these exercises with weights like dumbbells or use your body weight. The most beneficial strength training occurs when you slowly increase the load. Start with a lightweight that allows you to complete a set of 8-12 repetitions with good form and work your way up to a heavier load that challenges you, such as 5 lb dumbbells.
In addition to weight-bearing and muscle-strengthening exercises, it is important to incorporate balance training into your weekly workouts. Activities such as tai chi, yoga, and brisk walking can all help improve balance, which in turn helps reduce falls that could lead to fractures.
