STRENGTH TRAINING WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE! 10 Lessons I've Learned From 8 years of Strength Training

Welcome back Vita with Alita family! This week, we dive into the world of all things strength training! I share 10 lessons that I've learned over my years of training that you can use in and out of the gym. I am a strong advocate and believer that everyone should strength train (if you are able to!) because it can truly change your life. 

Let's get in touch! You can email any inquiries (or just say hello) at hello@vitawithalita.com

I am happy we can share this journey of levelling up, together. See you next week! 

- Alita <3 

Transcript

Hello, hello, beautiful people. How's it going? Welcome to another episode of Vita with Alita.

Thank you for tuning in. And this week, we're gonna be talking about something near and dear to my heart, strength training. You can call it weight lifting, bodybuilding, whatever you wanna call it.

We're just gonna talk about the gym, muscles, everything in between. I wanted to share 10 lessons that weight training has taught me, and how I can apply those lessons outside of the gym. Before I get into those 10 lessons, let's get into what is weight training.

I think we've all sort of heard of weight training. It's no secret. We kind of all know what it is.

But basically, you're lifting weights. You're strengthening those muscles. I am a giant advocate for weightlifting.

I am a very proud weightlifter, and I think everyone should do it. I've mentioned previously that I started seriously lifting back in 2018. It was actually a New Year's resolution of mine to get serious about my fitness journey and weight training and really get into it.

So it was a New Year's resolution back in 2018. But before that serious New Year's resolution, I was kind of dipping my toes in the water in the gym a little bit, where I would take advantage of like free membership for teens offered by my local gyms. Especially over the summer, I would just go and I didn't really have anything else to do, especially back in high school.

So in the summer, not much going on. I would go to the gym on those free memberships. And that's how I started dabbling, I guess you can say, with strength training.

And even before that, I started becoming active in other ways. So let's go back to childhood Alita. Like not that early.

Let's go to like teens, mid-teens Alita. I go to the doctors for my annual checkup. It was still a pediatrician at the time.

So I went to my pediatrician for my annual checkup. And I'm sitting there. It's all great.

It's all fun and dandy. And then she pulls up this like weight, height chart thing that I think we've all seen. And she looks at me and tells me I'm overweight.

And I distinctly remember my mom sitting beside me, and I looked at her, and I like, I literally said, mom, does this mean I'm fat? And my mom being my mom and wonderful, trying to comfort me, but like not wanting to lie to me smiles, puts her hand on my shoulder, and just says, yes, dear. And I have this vivid, vivid memory.

And up to this point, I don't think I was very aware of my body. You know, I didn't really care about it too much. I was a happy child growing up.

I ate, loved eating, but it wasn't anything like to be worried about, I guess. But my pediatrician did say that I should lose some weight. And the cherry on top.

I also had high cholesterol. So obviously as a teen, like that's not good. You know, you're so young.

High cholesterol should be the last thing you're worried about. So yeah, that was a little slap in the face for me. So yeah, I was overweight, had high cholesterol, and at this point started to become very aware of my body.

And this is where I think I started to exercise. In the simplest form, I just started by going on walks. So I would literally just walk everywhere, walk to the bus stop.

I used to get off the bus, like one stop before my actual stop, so I could just walk. So I would walk to the bus. And in the summer when I was going to the gym for those free memberships, I would walk to the nearest gym and stuff.

So I was, my main form of exercise at this point was walking. And obviously still being a mid-teen and living at home, like my mom was mainly cooking for me. And because she was aware, like my need to kind of lose a bit of weight, she was like cooking healthier alternatives, and she was being very cognizant of ingredients she was using, you know, swapping out ingredients and stuff to kind of help with this weight loss journey.

And another random memory I have during this time in my life is I remember sharing with my friend. She was my best friend back in grade 8. So I remember sharing with her that I had high cholesterol, and I was on this whole weight loss journey thing and whatever.

And one day, we were sitting in the cafeteria having lunch, and I pulled out a Ziploc bag with two cookies, and she looked at me and took the bag and goes, girl, you have high cholesterol, you don't need this cookie. And then she proceeded to put them in her lunchbox. And at the time, I was like, what are you doing?

But I am very grateful. We laughed it off. She was a very good friend of mine, and I know she meant it in a great way.

I'm just sharing this, because it's just the memory I have of that time. Anyway, the point is, I was not very athletic growing up, like at all. I was involved in everything but sports.

Then I had this sort of wake up call where I was overweight. My doctor recommended that I lose weight, and I had high cholesterol. So even it was not even just about weight or like aesthetic.

It was just like literally my arteries were already facing trouble. So yeah, high cholesterol, overweight. I started dabbling with exercise, going mainly as walks and stuff, and taking advantage of free memberships at the gym for teens over the summer.

And then university started, and this is when I made a new year's resolution during the first year of my undergrad to actually take my fitness journey seriously and seriously weight train and exercising. So I started going to the gym on campus and taking my training seriously. I wanted to learn more about it, so I did what every teen does and I googled it.

Obviously, it took me to YouTube videos, and I remember distinctly the main YouTuber at the time that I was watching was AthleanX. Yup, so AthleanX is the OG. I was watching all his videos.

I was literally writing notes, making workout plans for myself. I had no idea what I was doing, I'm not going to lie. I think the first few months was just trial and error, just showing up and building that habit, but trying to see what's working, what's not working.

I'm pretty sure I started with the bro split, so very basically the bro split is you pick one body part, and you work it out like once a week. And I don't think I was doing much cardio other than walking around between classes and to the bus and stuff. But yeah, that's sort of how I started.

Luckily, and I am so thankful, the one thing I am most proud of in my life is sticking with weight training and the gym, and this fitness journey and fitness goal I set for myself. So luckily today, I am, I guess seasoned is the right word. I am a seasoned lifter.

I love it. It has taught me so many things. And that's what I kind of want to share with you today, but I wanted to give some background about how I started with weightlifting.

I wasn't raised to be a weightlifter, like, you know, my parents are not ultimate bodybuilders and got me into it. No, it was something I kind of did myself and for myself. And honestly, I loved this so much when I started in 2018, that I decided to double major in kinesiology.

So I was already a biomedical science major, and I just loved weight training so much and like going to the gym that I just wanted to learn more about it and not just through YouTube. So I became a kinesiology or double major, and then I continued to do my masters in kinesiology. So talk about, talk about, you know, whole 180 from childhood Alita over here, who never played a single sport in her life.

Now I'd like to say I'm pretty, I guess athletic is the right word. I feel more confident taking on athletic endeavors. That's where we're at today.

Now besides my personal sort of journey towards weight lifting, I want to talk about weight lifting or strength training or muscle building muscle, like body building as a whole, because it's one of the best things that you can do for yourself. I don't want to undermine here the importance of cardio. There's probably going to be a whole other episode about cardio, dreaded cardio.

It shouldn't be dreaded, okay? Cardio is super important. But now I'm talking about muscle health specifically, and why strength training can literally, literally, literally, literally, literally change your life.

So if you're looking to change your life, this is the place to start. So in Canada, which is where I currently reside, the recommendations for like muscle training, they say that you should train your major muscle groups at least twice a week. That's a good place to start.

I know people have life and priorities and stuff, so at least, at least, at least, you can go by the recommendation. Twice a week for your major muscle groups. Now, muscle or strength training or building muscle is not all about aesthetics.

That's just like the added bonus, you know? Like forget all the other benefits. Aesthetics is literally just the cherry on top.

But under all that, there are so many other benefits, and this includes things like you have improved metabolism, stronger bones, better balance, reduced risk of chronic diseases, you have enhanced quality of life, it can help maintain your independence, especially as you age and you get older, it can increase your self-confidence, it's good for your mental health. And do I need to say more? If all of that did not convince you, then I'm sorry, I don't know what else will.

All of this just from the simple act of strength training. I didn't know all this before I started strength training. I started in 2018, my new resolution.

I think back then, it was purely an aesthetic thing. I just wanted to look better. And my walking body just wasn't it for me.

So, but now, especially after going through my degree and stuff, I've gained such an appreciation for all forms of exercise, yes, but especially first for building muscle, for strength training, and all that aside, other than the actual benefits for your body and for your brain, there are 10 lessons that I've learned from weightlifting that I would like to share today that I think can be applied in like every aspect of your life, so to not just enhance your body but literally to enhance your whole life. Like I said, weight training will change your life, so here's how. Okay, let's get into the 10 lessons.

Lesson number one. If you don't use it, you'll lose it. Pretty simple, you know, if you don't use something, you'll lose it.

Here, in the context of weight training and muscles, yes, if you don't use your muscles, you will lose them. They will shrink, especially as you age and become weaker. And that's that's never good.

You don't, you know, you need your muscles for literally every single function in your daily life. So that's not good. But you can think of this in the context of like everything.

Even your mind, if you don't use it, if you don't stimulate it, you just become dumber. Even the knowledge you learn, if you're not applying it and using it, you forget it. It's important to make an effort to maintain the things in your life that are important to you.

This can even extend to things like relationships. If you're not putting in the effort and, you know, reaching out and putting in the actions and like using your time to spend with the people you love, you're going to break that relationship. You're going to lose that bond.

So lesson number one, if you don't use it, you're going to lose it. So get in the gym. Alright, lesson number dos.

The best things in life cannot be cheated. Oh, this is juicy. I feel very passionately about this one, especially, especially, especially, especially, when I see videos or influencers that share hacks, like how to get your beach body in 10 days, how to get abs in one week, how to lose 30 pounds in one month, how to, whatever, how to get rich overnight.

Listen, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is, okay? Cannot explain to you how much I hate those video hacks. Okay, because one, they're unachievable.

You will never achieve a dream body in 10 days. I promise you, if it took 10 days, everybody would look like a goddamned model. Okay?

Let's get that. Let's get, let's be clear on that. Secondly, if you want something very badly in your life, you have to be prepared to put in the work.

Things won't just come to those who are putting in 10 days of work, and that's it. You want something, you gotta be able to work for it, okay? You cannot cheat your way out of a good body.

You cannot cheat your way out of a good job. You cannot cheat your way out of a good life. You cannot cheat your way out of a good relationship.

All right? So let's be very clear here. Those videos promising you things in a short amount of time, do not listen to them, okay?

That girl in the fitness influencer who's making a video about how she drank lemon water all day and she has abs? No, okay? She actually put in the work to get those abs, but she's not being truthful with you about that, okay?

Because then you're not going to click on her video if she told you it took her five years to build those abs. All right? It's clickbait.

Get over it. You can not cheat the good things in life. And you know what?

It won't even be worth it. You won't even appreciate it if it does come overnight. Why do you think people who went to Laudry or her overnight success suddenly or are more likely to become more broke or to not appreciate the success that has come to them?

Because they didn't have to work for it. When you have to work for it, you appreciate it, okay? Not just in the gym and with the muscles and with your body, anything in life that you want to achieve, you need to put in the work.

And by putting in the work and showing up and being consistent and being in that mind and in the right headspace, you're more likely to say yes to opportunities. You're more likely to even see opportunities in front of you and take them and help you then reach your goals, okay? So the best things in life can't be cheated and do not believe anyone who tells you otherwise.

If somebody tells you otherwise, you better be exiting there real quick because it's just not possible. Think of anything good in your life, okay? There's no way it just was an overnight thing, a 10-day thing, a one-month thing, okay?

Yes, people can lose however, whatever weight in a short amount of time, but I promise you they rebound and they put on even more weight than before. So stop cheating the good thing. Do yourself a favor.

Progress is seen with the little steps every day that you put in and the effort that you put in. You owe it to yourself to put in that effort, okay? All right, like I said, I was passionate about that, but now that that's out of the way, let's go to our third little lesson.

You have to enjoy the journey. What do I mean by this? So you think that once you get your dream physique, that dream body, you've lifted X amount of weight, that you're going to be happy.

And in theory, yeah, sure, you might be happy for 10 seconds, but then guess what? You're going to start picking on all the things that you could be doing better, and then you're just going to set yourself the next goal. So today, I promise you that if 15 year old Alita saw where I was today, so 10 years ago, if 15 year old Alita saw where 25 year old Alita was, she'd be jumping up and down, celebrating like, girl, you go.

Like I promise you, you're probably so happy. Nothing's bothering you. You're on top of the world, right?

Well, wrong. Completely wrong. I still criticize and pick at things today, things that I could improve, that I would never have thought that I would pick at as a 15 year old.

Okay? So this is where I urge you to take a step back and enjoy the journey. Okay?

You're going to get to your end goal, but then you're just going to set another goal for yourself, and you're not going to be as happy as you thought you were achieving that goal, because you're just going to move on to the next one. Enjoy the journey. Enjoy the journey, and appreciate how far you've come.

Next. All right. I always see people say, how are you so motivated?

How are you motivated when the winter comes and it's cold outside? How are you motivated? Listen, motivation is literally ass.

Sorry for the term. I just do not have a better term for you, okay? Motivation is not going to get you anywhere.

Okay, if you wait for motivation, you're not going to get anything done. You think if I waited for motivation, I would have made a New Year's Resolution and got it up every day and catch the bus and go to the gym and pack my lunch to make sure I'm achieving my goals? No, no, you know what motivation wants to do?

Motivation wants to hit the snooze and stay in my cozy bed, especially in Canada, it's minus 20 outside. I don't want to go outside. I don't want to go to the gym.

Motivation is not getting you anywhere. Okay, motivation could be a good tool to maybe get the ball rolling, so maybe when you're super motivated, you do actually sit and make a workout plan and plan your day and how you're going to work out and all those things. That's what motivation can help you with, but to actually put in the work.

If we waited for motivation, I promise you nothing would have happened. You're not going to get anywhere. Motivation is not the key.

Discipline it. Motivation will get you up the first day, the second day, the third day, but when things get hard and it's cold outside and you want to stay in bed, motivation is not getting you anywhere. Motivation is complete bullshit for getting to your goals and getting things done.

And I would not have learned this if I didn't stick to strength training, because you think I felt like going to work out every day or whatever following my plan? No, but because I was disciplined to achieve my goals, I realized today, now looking back, that it was discipline that got me to my goals today. Okay, now motivation.

Another kind of subset in this is that motivation is not going to help you to adapt or to reshape your plan if needed. So the biggest example in my life was when COVID-19 hit, okay, and all the gyms closed. And I was at home, and I did not want to work out.

I just wanted to make bread and eat. So I couldn't rely on motivation to work out. I had to reshape my plan, rethink it, come at it from a different angle, and keep going.

So, so far, what have we discussed? If you don't use it, you'll lose it. You cannot cheat the best things in life, okay?

The best things in life cannot be cheated. You have to enjoy the journey, okay? Not just the end goal.

And motivation is complete ass. Lesson number five. There will always be someone better than you.

Alita, what kind of lesson? That sounds kind of depressing. Listen, I've learned, especially through weight training and being a regular gym goer, is that there's always gonna be someone that looks better than you, runs better than you, lifts more than you, I don't know, has better gym clothes than you.

In any sense, there will always be someone better than you. But in a way, this allows you to stay humble. It allows you to say, okay, I am not number one in the entire universe.

You never will be. But it also allows you to shift the focus to yourself. You can look at others for inspiration.

Yeah, but in the long term, the focus has to be on you. Are you lifting more than yesterday? Are you showing up for a week consistently when last week you weren't?

You are now becoming the one that you compare yourself to. So yeah, and not just in the gym and in terms of weight training, but in everything. So you start comparing yourself today to the you that you were yesterday.

And that's pretty much all that matters. And that's what matters for progress moving forward. So there will always be someone better, but it's okay.

Keeps you humble and lets you be introspective. All right, lesson number six. If you love your body, it will love you back.

Let's take a scenario here real quick, okay? Sleep for four hours. You have a granola bar for breakfast.

And then you drink seven cups of coffee to stay awake. And then you just abuse your body all day by either not eating or not drinking enough water. And then you don't give it the stimulation and love it needs by doing any sort of workout.

You just go home and sit and watch TV all night. And then you repeat. Why do you think you're feeling aches and pains and your body is just not functioning for you?

Well, you're not doing anything for it. If you love your body and you show it love and you give it the time and care that it needs, it will do the exact same thing back to you. I know it's a bit different because I am young.

So my body is giving me is able to perform the way it does. Yes. But I promise you, especially through strength training, you're able to keep that functionality and independence as you age.

There is the aspect of age and your body will slightly slow down, which is just a natural process of life. But if you love your body and give it the care it needs, I promise it will take care of you. It's not going to let you down.

Just love your body and it will love you back. It's a reciprocal relationship here, okay? You can't just take, take, take.

Your body is going to give out. Don't be selfish. Give your body love and care and muscle.

Number seven, balance is key. Balance in the gym is key. You don't want to overtrain where you can injure a muscle and you don't want to undertrain where you are not making any progress.

But this can be applied to every aspect. Too much of anything, even too much of a good thing can be bad, okay? Having even too much water can kill you, okay?

But water is supposed to be this amazing thing that we're all supposed to be drinking. Too much of anything is never good. So balance is key.

Find that sweet spot for you. And just understand that you still need to push yourself. I'm not saying don't push yourself, but you just need to find the sweet spot between pushing yourself to a point where you hurt yourself, or burn out, or injure yourself, and just not pushing yourself enough where you don't make progress, okay?

So balance in life is key. All right, next. This is something I've learned to appreciate.

Body awareness can be absolutely amazing. What do I mean by body awareness? I mean literally, like I don't have another way of saying, being aware of your body, being aware of how everything in your body feels, being aware just even when you eat, how do those certain foods make you feel?

Being aware when you move a certain way, how does it make you feel? Being aware of what's going on in your body. Now, I know that this could become extreme where people start over analyzing and overthinking things and thinking they're dying all the time.

That's not what I'm talking about. I'm just talking about, I know some people who are not even consciously aware of their body, like of your posture. Be conscious, be aware that your back is slouched.

Be aware that you have back pain. Be aware of your body, okay? And I honestly thought about this the other day, even in the sense of like I was getting under the bar to squat, and it was a little bit of a heavier weight, I was trying to go for a personal best.

And as I put my shoulders under that bar, I became aware of every single inch of my body, from my toes, to how they felt on the ground, to my hips, to the hair touching my back. Like, you become so aware of every part of your body, and I think it's really cool to just be... Take a second to embrace that awareness.

It'll help you to even better appreciate your body, so... And build a better relationship with your body, which kind of goes hand in hand with showing your body love, okay? So body awareness is pretty cool, and it's something that you do gain when you start strength training, paying attention to those lovely muscles of yours.

Number nine, this is something I live by. Look good, feel good. I know I said weight training was not all about aesthetics, but let's be real here.

If you can weight train and start looking good, I promise you, you're going to feel so good. You're going to want to walk around naked all the time, okay? And when you look good and when you feel good, you can apply that to almost anything in your life.

So if you're nervous for a presentation, if you're nervous for what somebody thinks about you, you just in the back of your mind, you just say, hey, listen, at least I look like a Greek god. So whatever this person thinks of me is not even relevant because I got this body. I know it sounds shallow.

I know people don't just weight train for esthetics. I know about all the benefits, but let's not lie to ourselves and kid ourselves, okay? There is a look good, feel good aspect to weight training that I think we can all benefit from, and I just want you to benefit from it, okay?

I'm not trying to lie to you. When you're in doubt, at least you look good, and you look good, you feel good, you do good. So get your ass in the gym.

All right. Number 10. If you are not giving yourself the time of day to go to the gym, to work on that body, to build those muscles, to eat right, why would anyone else give you the time of day or respect you?

The way that you show up in the world, and the way that you treat yourself is how other people will treat you. Strength training not only is a good for you, for your mental health, for your physical body, it helps to show people how you see yourself, how you prioritize yourself, how you are the most important thing in your life. So, they are just more likely to treat you with respect.

So, just something to think about. I know it's not about other people, and you're not weight training to gain respect. Like, that's not what I'm saying.

But I mean, when you don't prioritize your health, and your body, and yourself, why would anyone else, okay? You should be your own priority. If you're not prioritizing yourself, I'm not going to prioritize you either.

You just showed me by example how to treat you. So, it's just something to think about. So, a very quick recap here, all right?

You should weight train, okay? You should go, yeah, health benefits, yada yada, but 10 things that you can take and apply to other aspects of your life. If you don't use it, you'll lose it.

The best things in life cannot be cheated. Let's remember how passionate I am about this, okay? You should be passionate too.

Enjoy the journey. Motivation is complete bullshit. There will always be someone better than you, so stay humble, but learn to be better.

Love your body, and it will love you back. Balance is absolutely key. Body awareness can be amazing, and you should leverage it.

If you look good, you'll feel good, you'll do good. And if you don't respect yourself, why would anyone else? If there's one thing that you can take from this episode, is the best thing that you can do for yourself is strength training.

I don't care if you are a man, if you are a woman, if you are other, just get your ass in the gym. Start strength training. It's not just about building muscle and like trying to look aesthetically pleasing.

It's just about maintaining the muscle mass and functionality that you do have. The aesthetics, if you choose to go down that route, is just a bonus. So just get your ass in the gym, lift some weights.

Girls, you're not going to get bulky. I promise you, it takes so much time. Okay?

Like I said, if things did not take time, everyone would be looking like a Greek god out here. I promise you, that's not the case. So the best thing that you can do to change your life today is to go weight train.

If you don't know where to start, start on YouTube. Do your research. Be diligent in the resources that you trust.

Please seek out professional help. Don't just rely on fitness influencers to tell you all your information, okay? Do your due diligence.

Get educated. But start somewhere, and if it's with a YouTube video, it's with a YouTube video, all right? That's where I started, and I am grateful that we have those type of free resources for us to use.

“So anyway, do it. Get your ass in the gym. Do something for yourself, because nobody's coming to save you, and you should not cheat yourself out of a good life, out of a healthy life, out of a strong body, okay?

That's all for this week. I hope you enjoyed. I hope you took a little something away from this episode.

Thank you for listening to another episode of Vita with Alita. Take care. See you next week.

Automatically transcribed on Apple Podcasts.

From Vita with Alita: STRENGTH TRAINING WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE! 10 Lessons I've Learned From 8 years of Strength Training, Mar 28, 2025
https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/vita-with-alita/id1799200065?i=1000701229884&r=1815
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