“Weight Training Makes You Big and Bulky” — Debunking the Myth

It’s a lot harder to build massive muscles than you think. “Most everyone who lifts weights consistently benefits from it,” says Joseph Quatrochi, Ph.D, associate professor of human performance, sports, and leisure studies at the Metropolitan State College of Denver. “However, not all men respond the same way. Because of genetic differences, it’s possible that some won’t get significantly bigger, even if they train for strength and muscle mass.” As difficult as it is for men to build mass, it’s even harder for women. Read More

Peter McCollough for The Wall Street Journal. Greg Berman works out with the TRX Suspension Trainer at his San Francisco home.

Every week, Greg Berman squeezes in a total-body workout at home. He doesn’t lift barbells and there’s no room in his 1,000-square foot condo for a treadmill. Read More

Photo by Steve Johnson for The New York Times: Participants in a University of Florida study use ankle weights to increase strength and balance. Researchers say muscle deterioration is a major reason some of the elderly lose mobility and cannot live independently. By ANDREW POLLACK Published: August 30, 2010. Bears emerge from months of hibernation with their muscles largely intact. Not so for people, who, if bedridden that long, would lose so much muscle they would have trouble standing. Why muscles wither with age is captivating a growing number of scientists, drug and food companies, Read More

I have long known (though I’ve yet to give up trying) that it is almost impossible to motivate smokers to quit for good by regaling them with the health hazards of tobacco. And now I’ve been told by readers of last week’s column, “Even More Reasons to Get a Move On,” that repeated sermons on the health benefits of physical activity may get some folks started but are unlikely to keep them at it.

Eric Risberg/Associated Press

And it’s true that for many people, future health benefits may just be too abstract and speculative to overcome inertia and take up walking, running, swimming, cycling or working out in the gym. So here is a little secret. What really keeps us devoted exercisers going, even in the face of myriad obstacles, is much more tangible…Continue