# Why don’t you lift weights? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Tags:** diet-weight-loss\ **Created:** [August 15, 2020, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144 "2020-08-15T01:48:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/1 "2020-08-15T01:48:15Z")
As an enthusiastic weightlifter, I understand that plenty of people dislike exercise. That gyms can be expensive or intimidating. That weightlifting takes time away from more important things - work, the kids, the spouse. That you might find other forms of exercise up your alley. That weightlifting makes you better at lifting weights, which is of limited use. But it has a lot of benefits, is great for keeping folks mobile into old age and helps fight stress. So, why don’t you lift weights? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/2 "2020-08-15T01:50:34Z")
The gym is closed and I have no place at home for weights. Right now, it’s bands and bodyweight work. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/3 "2020-08-15T02:11:56Z")
I do. I will be lifting a lot more soon. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/4 "2020-08-15T02:34:58Z")
I’d need to start with baby weights… I tried lifting “he-man” weights once and got myself in trouble. Thank God I had a partner, who rescued me from getting hurt… (For exercise, I much prefer hiking trails!) ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/5 "2020-08-15T02:47:28Z")
There’s obviously no question that exercise is better than no exercise. I used to do some, because I’m not naturally muscular. But if you don’t have time for both, you get more health benefit from cardio than from lifting weights. (Well, I suppose that’s ignoring the health benefit of being less likely to get beaten up by a bully if you’re big.) Having said that, I think I may well go back to doing some weight training when I get older, into the muscle atrophy and general weakening phase of life. There seems to be good evidence that resistance training is beneficial for older people. Plus, of course, that’s likely to coincide with a phase of my life where joint deterioration makes long runs or backpacking increasingly difficult. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/6 "2020-08-15T03:01:52Z")
I currently have a bad back. But even if I didn’t, of all the possible exercise regimes I could follow, lifting weights is somewhere below swimming the English Channel during a snowstorm. I don’t really look after myself very well, but I’m in okay shape medically and life-expectancy-wise anyway, mostly due to walking a lot and not eating very much. I’m fine with that. My policy is, if I needed upper-body fitness to get things done, it would happen organically by actually doing the thing. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/7 "2020-08-15T03:04:22Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > But if you don’t have time for both, you get more health benefit from cardio than from lifting weights. For just general health and fitness, three days of moderate weights and three days of moderate cardio are plenty. Obviously, if you have specific performance goals, you would alter the ratios but lifting will benefit even long runs and backpacking. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/8 "2020-08-15T03:05:39Z")
It bores me to death. I’m not against getting exercise while doing something fun, like learning martial arts, or needs to be done, like moving. But lifting things only to put them back down in the same spot over and over is like the worst job that you don’t get paid for. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/9 "2020-08-15T03:06:45Z")
Having spent a fair amount of time in various forms of manual labor, including landscaping, treework, and loading cars in a garden center, I don’t really think of lifting weights as a recreational activity. Though most of the construction I have done was for Habitat for Humanity, so I guess that doesn’t count as a job. That said, as I have gotten older, and my job more sedentary, other forms of exercise have become more enjoyable and useful. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/10 "2020-08-15T03:07:33Z")
Tendonitis in both shoulders, a bad meniscus in one knee and two herniated discs. Any other questions? ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/11 "2020-08-15T03:41:38Z")
It takes place in drab depressing rooms that smell of other people’s sweat, and I could do it for years without getting above the lowest-achieving half of my age-mates ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/12 "2020-08-15T04:02:37Z")
I’m lifting small hand weights as I write. I don’t enjoy lifting, so I have to bribe myself. ---
**Author:** ![filmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/7993a0/32.png) [@filmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filmore)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/13 "2020-08-15T04:13:02Z")
I used to do weightlifting, but I found it pretty boring and had to force myself to work out. I switched to group classes like BodyPump and kick boxing because they were fun. But I also found that I felt stronger even though my muscles were smaller. I think it was due to these classes being total body workouts which required all my muscles to work together. The enhanced core strength gave me more body rigidity when doing stuff like carrying bags of mulch or whatever. Even though my individual muscles were stronger when I did weightlifting, they didn’t all work together and weren’t as efficient. The non-weightlifting workouts actually provided more benefits in my day-to-day life. But I agree that people should do some kind of strength workout as they get older to combat age-related muscle loss. It doesn’t have to be weightlifting, but it should be some kind of workout which stresses your muscles and keeps them fit. Past 50 or 60, it’s going to be really challenging to build up muscle that has been lost. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/14 "2020-08-15T06:46:45Z")
I lift enough weight every time I get up off my ass. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/15 "2020-08-15T08:32:36Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > But it has a lot of benefits, is great for keeping folks mobile into old age and helps fight stress. > > So, why don’t you lift weights? I certainly have done that in the past, starting in high school. I have, though, encountered a lot of other women who refuse to lift weights because they don’t want “bulk up”, somehow thinking that a regimen of light weights with many reps is going to yield the same results as bench-pressing a small car while eating steroids like candy. > [@Riemann](#): > > Having said that, I think I may well go back to doing some weight training when I get older, into the muscle atrophy and general weakening phase of life. There seems to be good evidence that resistance training is beneficial for older people. Plus, of course, that’s likely to coincide with a phase of my life where joint deterioration makes long runs or backpacking increasingly difficult. Can’t hurt you to start now. Lifting weights doesn’t have to be huge weights, and you don’t want to start AFTER the deterioration sets in. Also, as someone who has long had joint issues and mild arthritis, that can complicate weight lifting just like it can complicate “long runs and backpacking”. On the upside, it can, if done properly, strengthen the muscles that support your joints. > [@snfaulkner](#): > > It bores me to death. I’m not against getting exercise while doing something fun, like learning martial arts, or needs to be done, like moving. But lifting things only to put them back down in the same spot over and over is like the worst job that you don’t get paid for. That’s why I do that sort of thing while watching TV. That way I can rot my brain and exercise my body at the same time. > [@filmore](#): > > But I agree that people should do some kind of strength workout as they get older to combat age-related muscle loss. It doesn’t have to be weightlifting, but it should be some kind of workout which stresses your muscles and keeps them fit. Past 50 or 60, it’s going to be really challenging to build up muscle that has been lost. This. And speaking as someone past 50, it can be challenging just to keep the muscle you already have. ---
**Author:** ![LegendsofClear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/77aa72/32.png) [@LegendsofClear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LegendsofClear)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/16 "2020-08-15T09:26:24Z")
I just really got into weightlifting this year and I really enjoy it. It’s actually quite addictive in a lot of ways and I’ve added over 100 pounds to my bench press in a few months. I just recently broke my PR again on several lifts, and I’ve actually done a lot of research into proper lifting techniques and it really does help a lot. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/17 "2020-08-15T11:56:09Z")
They’re heavy. There are easier ways to keep fit. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 12:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/18 "2020-08-15T12:23:01Z")
I lift weights and I don’t find it boring. To workout properly and effectively you need to concentrate on your form and your balance. It’s a fantastic way to shift stresses and other thoughts out of your mind. But I don’t have a very good level of body awareness so I really do have to focus to do things like deadlifts with correct form. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/19 "2020-08-15T12:25:13Z")
health issues ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144/20 "2020-08-15T12:27:29Z")
There are thousands of hobbies that I don’t engage in, and the same is true of you. Do you have a reason for each and every hobby why you don’t engage in it? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-don-t-you-lift-weights/918144.md?page=2)