The Benefits of Strength Training: Build Your Foundation

Carrying groceries, climbing stairs, picking up your children, getting up from the floor—strength is something we use every day.

With our new Foundational Fitness class starting this week at Merkaba, we’re sharing why strength training deserves a place in your movement routine, especially if you’re just getting started.

What is strength training?

Strength training, also called resistance training, means asking your muscles to work against resistance. That resistance can come from dumbbells, bands, or your own body weight.

Movements like squats, wall push-ups, and lifting light dumbbells can all be starting points. As you grow stronger, gradually increasing the challenge helps you continue making progress.

Build strength for the life you want to live.

Support your bones as you age

Bone health is an important reason to include resistance training in your routine. Appropriately challenging strength exercises can help strengthen bones, making this practice a valuable part of caring for your body as you age. The resistance should grow with your abilities—starting small is the beginning, with room to build over time.

Build and maintain muscle

We naturally tend to lose muscle mass and strength as we get older. Regular resistance training can help preserve—and build—both.

That matters for everyday independence. Standing up from a chair, carrying a suitcase, and lifting something onto a shelf all require strength. Training gives us a way to keep practicing the physical abilities we want to maintain.

Practice balance and control

Strength is one part of moving well. Learning to control a movement, shift your weight, and stay steady matters, too.

A well-rounded routine that includes strength, balance, and aerobic activity can support physical function and help reduce fall risk as we age. In class, we’ll work on movement fundamentals that give you opportunities to practice strength and coordination together.

Build confidence through practice

If you’ve ever thought, “I want to exercise, but I don’t know where to start,” you’re exactly who we had in mind.

Learning how to perform a movement, choose an appropriate challenge, and recognize your progress can make exercise feel more approachable. Progress might look like better control, a few more repetitions, or feeling comfortable trying an exercise that once felt unfamiliar.

You don’t need to arrive feeling confident. Class is a place to start building that confidence.

Introducing Foundational Fitness at Merkaba

Our 45-minute, beginner-friendly class is designed to help you learn the fundamentals in a supportive environment. Using bodyweight exercises and optional light dumbbells, we’ll focus on movement patterns, strength, balance, and coordination.

Each class includes a warm-up, focused strength training, and a gentle stretch to close. Our 10-week program includes a progression in order to build strength over time. We start with one weekly class for the first 4 weeks, and then move to two weekly classes with different focuses for weeks 5-10:

• Upper Body: Arms, shoulders, chest, back, and core.

• Lower Body: Glutes, legs, and hips, with an emphasis on stability and control.

Whether you’re new to exercise or returning after time away, you’re welcome here.

Explore our schedule and join us for Foundational Fitness this week. Let’s build a foundation you can keep growing from.

You don’t have to be strong to start. Starting is how you build strength.

Small steps. Steady progress. A stronger foundation.