Does Weightlifting Give You More Energy?

Most people, if they were asked, would say they would like to have more energy. Many people look to weightlifting as a means to the end of getting more energy.

And weightlifting can indeed give you more energy. However, it must be combined with a healthy diet and lifestyle. Energy makes us feel younger, get things done, and gives us the strength to deal with life’s daily challenges.

Can ‘Energy’ be Defined?

Why do some people have so much energy while others do not? More importantly, how can people who have less energy get more? Part of the answer to that perennial question lies in its very definition.

In our current context, energy is defined as the strength and vitality needed to sustain physical and mental activities.

Energy can be understood as the driving force behind longevity; how long a person can sustain a specific activity is mainly due to their energy levels.

As energy is such a crucial aspect of most areas of life from work to relationships and health, many people spend significant amounts of time trying to find ways to supplement their low energy stores.

Exercise and Energy

Most of us have heard the term “It takes money to make money.” It seems the same can be said of energy: it takes energy to make energy. People who have reported increasing their energy levels with exercise often say that the hardest part was getting started and breaking that cycle of lethargy.

After that first night of getting off the couch in favor of some physical activity, most find it gets more accessible and more comfortable as energy levels are steadily increasing alongside the physical activity levels.

Exercise Physiology

While many have experienced the effects of exercise-related energy, not everyone understands the physiology behind exercise and energy. Exercise elevates the heart rate and gets the blood pumping faster.

As the heart pumps faster, blood, oxygen, and nutrients are more quickly transported throughout the muscle tissues in the body. This gives the feeling of more energy as the body is better equipped to maintain mental and physical activity.

Weightlifting and Energy

When people are coming out of a period of lethargy or inactivity, they often consider some exercise forms and wonder which will produce the highest energy increases.

Some will ask the question, “Does weightlifting give you more energy”? The answer to that is the same as with virtually all forms of exercise: yes, it will give you more energy. Weightlifting, whether as moderate or vigorous exercise, gets the body moving and the muscle tissues working hard.

Weightlifting and Muscle Response

When we are talking about skeletal muscle, we are referring to the thread-like muscle fibers that stretch throughout the body. There are 650 skeletal muscles throughout the human body, and when motor neurons send them signals, the muscles know when to contract.

The more efficient a body gets at sending and receiving those signals, the more your muscles react, and the stronger your body becomes. The more a person lifts weights, the better that person’s body gets at sending and receiving those signals.

Weightlifting and Muscle Growth

After a weightlifting workout, the body begins its period of repair where it replaces damaged muscle fibers by fusing muscle fibers to form new muscles. These newly-formed muscle strands are stronger and thicker to facilitate new muscle growth.

As this crucial aspect of muscle growth takes place between, rather than during, workouts, it is essential to have those periods of rest between weightlifting workouts. Developing a regular workout routine with weightlifting has to include days of rest for the muscle strands to repair and regrow.

That is why people genuinely dedicated to physical fitness often have leg days, arm days, different exercise on different days so that muscles aren’t getting overworked.

Muscle Growth and Energy

How does an increased muscle mass make a person have more energy? The answer, again, ties back to the physical benefits of all forms of physical activity. First of all, weightlifting is an activity.

Although it is not instant cardio like running or skipping rope, depending upon the amount of weight you are lifting and how long you are doing it for, it can be considered vigorous exercise. Vigorous exercise is defined as a physical activity that produces a heavy sweat, elevated heart rate, and during which you cannot keep up the flow of conversation.

As a body’s muscles grow, so does the body’s ability to burn fat. An increase in protein will enable a body’s ability to build muscle, which turns fat into fuel for the body. When a body becomes stronger, it is less likely to be prone to injuries, and it is also more able to handle the stressors of day-to-day life.

Weightlifting, Energy, and Mood

Like all exercise, weightlifting also has huge emotional and mental benefits that equate to higher energy levels. The endorphins that are released from the brain during exercise are natural mood enhancers.

We’ve all seen the devastating effects of depression on energy levels, and most of us, whether we have personally experienced them or not, have seen how much energy have the people who regularly exercise.

People who are happier are less stressed, and people who are less stressed are releasing less of the stress hormone Cortisol, which is known to drain people’s energy levels.

Natural Energy Boosters

In addition to a healthy diet and exercise routine, there are some other exciting and natural ways to boost your energy level.

1) Drink More Water

This first one is pretty boring, but there is a reason you’ve heard over and over again how important it is to drink adequate amounts of water throughout the day.

It is recommended that a person drinks at least half of their body weight in water throughout their day to optimize body performance and energy levels.

Even if someone is just slightly dehydrated, the body instantly feels the effects and does not work as efficiently. This causes the body’s systems to work harder, draining energy levels and reserves.

2) Say Bye-Bye to Screens

Before you start to panic really, relax. You don’t have to say goodbye to screens permanently, but numerous studies have been done on melatonin production and screen exposure.

Screen exposure up to an hour before bedtime has vastly negative impacts on the body’s ability to produce and regulate melatonin levels (the sleep hormone). If a body is not getting adequate sleep, well, this one is just obvious; a body needs that sleep time to recharge.

3) Might be Time to Detox

Many people have been jumping on the detox bandwagon of late. There is a thought trend emerging in the health and wellness benefits of detoxing.

As toxins enter our bodies through the air we breathe, things we eat or drink, or anything we are exposed to, it can be a real benefit to rid the body of toxins periodically of starting fresh.

The best and most controllable way to minimize toxin ingestion is to avoid processed foods and drinks and try to eat and drink as cleanly as possible.

4) Eat

This seems like an easy one. People’s body’s need fuel to meet their energy demands, and the food is our primary source of energy.

Some people feel as if eating less is healthier and the only sure-fire way to lose weight; while this might be true in the short term, in the long run, not eating enough can be detrimental to your health and only drains your energy level as the body almost feeds on itself to keep going.

5) Cut Back on Red Meat

Red meat is not all bad. Iron, magnesium, and protein are all positives to be found in red meat, and when eaten in moderation, it can be a good source of energy. Red meat is, however, harder to digest.

Anything that makes a body system, like the gastrointestinal tract, work harder, is draining the body as it struggles to absorb and eliminate the food item from the body. So as is the case with most things, when it comes to red meat, think portion control.

Summary

So energy, energy, energy: we all want more of it! How amazing would it be to have an endless source? We could go from morning to night without stopping. Those ‘to-do’ lists could finally be changed to ‘done’ and ‘next’ lists.

As good as all that sounds, it is impossible to have endless amounts of energy all the time; it is, however, more than possible to engage in lifestyle choices that increase a body’s energy levels in natural and healthy ways.

Weightlifting and virtually any kind of exercise help the body function better by providing it with better circulation, nutrient, oxygen, and blood flow. It also has the bonus of making people happier.

People who have added exercise into their daily lives, whether in the form of weightlifting, walking, gardening, or jogging, experience the effects of endorphin-releasing activity that naturally regulates and elevates mood.

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