As you set priorities in your life, don't forget to include your weight-training sessions. A healthy body and mind can make a huge difference in your life expectancy and satisfaction. Learn some keys to a healthy lifestyle and don't forget about your weight-training routine.

Why is it important to make weight lifting part of my lifestyle?

Many times when people start a diet or exercise program, they can't wait for it to end. They envision a goal, such as losing 20 pounds or lifting a certain amount. After that goal has been reached, they quickly return to their unhealthy eating habits and sedentary lifestyle. The good news is that you can beat the cycle! If you make weight training an enjoyable part of your life, then you'll be likelier to succeed in the long term, and you'll reap lifetime benefits.

What are the benefits of a weight-training lifestyle?

Are you exhausted after carrying groceries or luggage? While most people know that weight training strengthens and tones muscles, few consider the ways added strength makes daily life easier. You'd be surprised how much more you could do if you undertook a regular weight-training routine.

Consider how weight lifting affects the following aspects of your life:

• Self-esteem: For one, weight lifting improves your posture. Standing taller, you'll look and feel better. Feeling confident, you might find that you're more willing to take risks and to socialize more freely.

• Get-up-and-go: Weight lifting can help you walk faster and farther by strengthening your lower body and increasing your flexibility. It can also help you climb steps with greater ease. You won't have to wait for the elevator when you know your body can easily handle the stairs.

• Goal setting: No training routine is complete without goals. They're necessary to motivate you and to help you track your progress. Why not apply that goal-setting know-how to the rest of your life?

• General well-being: By increasing your muscle mass, endurance, flexibility and energy, weight training makes for a healthy body. Being in good shape promotes better overall health, lets you to sleep more soundly, and allows you to cope with stressful situations more effectively.

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends weight training for all people over 50. You don't have to be 50 to start reaping its benefits, however. You already know that lifting builds and tones muscles, but when you decide to make a lifting routine part of your healthy lifestyle, also consider the way it benefits your day-to-day living.

How can I make weight lifting part of my lifestyle?

Your life doesn't have to revolve around weight lifting to reap the benefits. However, if weight lifting becomes a habit, like brushing your teeth or feeding your dog, you'll be more likely to stick with it!

Use these techniques to make weight lifting a habit:

• Write training sessions in your calendar.
• Keep track of your progress in a training log.
• Visualize yourself getting out of bed and going to the gym.
• Have a partner.
• Reward yourself.

Once your training sessions become a habit, you won't want to give them up!

What else should I include in my healthy lifestyle?

Weight training is only part of the puzzle when it comes to a healthy body. Try to include the rest of these habits in your lifestyle.

• Healthy diet: It's important to realize that you're not on a diet, instead you're trying to live a healthy lifestyle. If you mess up one day and eat some fatty food, just start over tomorrow. Don't use it as an excuse to give up.

• Aerobic exercise: In addition to muscle training, your lungs and heart need a frequent workout. Aerobic exercise reduces your risk of heart attack, stroke and diabetes. Try to exercise at least three times a week for 30 minutes.

• Sleep: Sleep reinvigorates you physically, mentally and emotionally. Without the proper amount of sleep, you'll feel sluggish at work, at home and during your workout. Most people need eight hours of sleep.

It may seem like a lot of work to create a healthy lifestyle, but you'll have more energy to spend time with your family or pursue your hobbies. You'll also stay healthy for years to come!