What does the flight deck door and our muscles have in common?

The fight deck door and your muscles are more common than you think.

The flight deck door is built so no-one can easily break in. It's tough and you won't break in by knocking gently on the door. The crash axe on the other hand offers a much greater force and gives a better chance of breaking down the door...... it's all about the force! 

A similar scenario relates to our muscles, by gently "knocking on the door" (basically cardio exercise for long periods) we won't break down the muscle. We need force to break into our muscles, much like the crash axe (resistance training), to cause muscle breakdown and this leads to greater muscle growth.

Note:

Cardiovascular Exercise = low intensity exercise for a long period of time, for example, jogging.

Resistance Exercise = exercise that requires force from your muscle to move a resistant weight, for example, weights or bodyweight exercises.

The benefits of muscle muscle growth include:

1. Looking leaner
2. Feeling stronger
3. Having more "energy hungry" muscle to help us burn more fat

Lets look at these benefits in a little more detail:

1. Looking Leaner 

The worry about weight is over, muscle weighs MORE than fat! And we want more muscle!

Why? 

Because muscle is denser. For example, a kilo of bricks is the same weight as a kilo of feathers but they LOOK much different! The amount of bricks are smaller than the amount of feathers. The same as a kilo of muscle looks smaller than a kilo of fat. 

Building muscle defines our bodies. Muscle makes us look leaner, as it is denser and more compact than fat. 

Ladies are you worried about looking too "bulky" and muscular?

There is NO need to worry, as big muscle growth relies on hormones such as testosterone and growth hormones. You do not possess enough of these hormones naturally. Even the biggest of men take "steroids" (hormones) to allow the unnatural bulky muscle growth.

Resistance exercise will allow you to build more defined muscle and look leaner.

2. Feeling Stronger 

Through resistance training we can use enough weight/resistance that causes our muscle to produce a force intense enough to break the muscle fibres down. Through our recovery period, with the correct diet and rest, our muscle will  grow back stronger and bigger than before.

With more muscle, we will feel stronger. We are able to manage our bodies better in day to day movements such as walking up stairs, getting up from laying down and carrying our flight bag becomes easier.

3. Having more "energy hungry" muscle to help us burn more fat

Muscle is a living tissue and requires energy to survive. We need to feed our muscles. If we eat the real foods suggested throughout the flight crew health and fitness blog, it allows our body to burn body fat for energy. 

If we need more energy because of more muscle, we can burn more body fat, look leaner and feel stronger!

The flight deck door is always locked and so are your muscles, break them down with resistance exercises.

Check out this post on my top 5 hotel room exercises to find out what resistance exercises you can do today without going to the gym!