If you’ve been warned that your cholesterol is too high, your risk of heart attack or stroke increases. So you need to exercise more, along with other lifestyle changes.
Maybe you really hate running five nights a week but love lifting weights at the gym. Can weight training alone help you lower your cholesterol?
Over the years, there has been a lot of medical research into whether weight training and other forms of resistance training can lower your “bad” (LDL) cholesterol while raising your “good” (HDL) cholesterol.
And recently, that pendulum has swung toward weight training having a positive impact on cholesterol. But for best results, you should combine it with aerobic exercise like running, swimming, and cycling. And not all weight training is created equal when it comes to your cholesterol; intensity, style, and frequency all matter.
So if you’re counting on weight training to help lower your cholesterol, be realistic from the start. Be a fitness strategist.
Know that your total cholesterol is a combination of three types of cholesterol:
- LDL cholesterol, or low-density lipoprotein, is also known as “bad” cholesterol
- HDL cholesterol, or high-density lipoprotein, is often called “good” cholesterol
- Triglycerides, which are fats in the blood that come from food
Anyone over the age of 20 should have a cholesterol test (also called a lipid panel) at least every five years, regardless of overall health.
What does exercise do?
When it comes to weight training or any other form of exercise, ask yourself:
Will it help raise my HDL cholesterol, which absorbs LDL cholesterol and carries it to my liver to be eliminated from my body?
Will it help lower my LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, which can clog my arteries?
To maximize your cardiovascular health, you should get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise each week. Also, add at least two sessions of moderate-to-high-intensity weight training or resistance training each week.
Other exercises include:
- Resistance bands
- Medicine balls
- Exercises that don’t require weights, such as push-ups and crunches
- Weights
Medical research shows that aerobic exercise lowers triglycerides and raises HDL cholesterol. It can be difficult to cut LDL cholesterol at the same time unless you improve your diet and lose weight at the same time.
Some studies show that low to moderate intensity resistance training lowers total cholesterol. Other studies show that all types of weight training lower total cholesterol and LDL, but high intensity is needed to raise HDL cholesterol. The same review found that people who were exhausted from cardio could still lower their LDL cholesterol if they substituted weight training.
Get the Most Out of Your Strength Training
You should see some positive effects on your cholesterol from weight training, if you do it right.
Here are eight tips:
- Start slow: If you haven’t been to the gym in a while, take it slow. Start with short 15- to 20-minute workouts at a lower intensity until you feel comfortable doing more.
- Gradually increase as you feel read: Once you’re comfortable, increase gradually. If you’re trying to use strength training to control high cholesterol, you should aim for 75% to 85% of your maximum effort.
- High effort doesn’t always mean heavier weights: Doing more sets with more repetitions has a greater impact on your cholesterol than lifting heavier weights.
- Incorporate cardio: Circuit training is one way to get the most out of your gym workouts to lower your cholesterol. This workout involves lifting lighter weights for more reps and cutting your rest periods to no more than 1 minute to get both cardiovascular and endurance benefits.
- Mix up your workouts: Vary your routine to avoid boredom. Lift weights in one exercise and then move on to resistance-based moves like push-ups, lunges, squats, and wall sits. But keep the intensity of both exercises consistent. Or start with weight machines or free weights, then move on to full-body resistance exercises like pull-ups.
- Get your heart pumping: If you really enjoy spending time in the gym, spend that time doing aerobic exercises to lower cholesterol. The gym’s ellipticals, stationary bikes, and rowing machines will get your heart and lungs working if you push yourself hard.
- Warm up and cool down: Don’t forget to stretch before and after your weight training. Flexibility is important for maintaining both aerobic and weight training.
- Workout at home: Speaking of flexibility, if the weather is bad and you don’t want to drive to the gym, do resistance exercises in your living room.
