Strength training important at any age, says health columnist

• Why do you need to strength train?
• Why would you want to waste your time?
• Buy higher chairs, that way you don't worry about those thigh/butt muscles getting you out of an average-height chair.
• Be sure you never fall, that way you won't worry about the lost upper body strength that is needed to push yourself off the floor.
• Cut your hair so you won't worry about holding up a blow dryer with your shoulder and tricep muscles.
• You probably don't want to hold little babies and puppies, so don't fret about those biceps that won't pick up anything.
• Most of us never worry about having a heart attack or stroke, so it won't matter that weight training helps keep the heart healthy.
• I am absolutely sure you do not mind eating less each day and each week and each month until you cannot eat hardly anything at all without gaining weight.
• Strength training is an essential part of everyone's workout.
• As we age, we lose muscle and bone, unless we do something to prevent this from occurring.
• That precious lean body mass is what gives us the strength to perform our activities of daily living mentioned above.
• It takes strong muscles and strong bones to keep our health complete.
• It is what uses fuel, in terms of food, to keep us going.
• Adipose tissue, or fat, does not require very many calories to stay on our bodies -- yes, if we are heavier, it does takes more calories to move, but who needs to burn those kind of calories?
• If you think you don't have time to add strength training to your routine, plan now for a challenging adventure in aging.