Whenever I talk about the importance of strength training, there's a response I hear reasonably often:

"But I'm already pretty active."

And you might be.

You walk regularly.

You run.

You cycle.

You play golf or another sport.

Maybe you do two or three I.C.E. sessions every week.

Your cardiovascular fitness might actually be very good.

So do you really need to strength train as well?

I'd say yes.

Because being fit and being strong aren't quite the same thing.

Your heart and your muscles have different jobs

Cardiovascular exercise challenges your heart, lungs and circulatory system.

It helps improve your fitness and endurance.

It allows you to walk further, climb that hill or get through an I.C.E. session without feeling completely exhausted.

That's incredibly important.

But resistance training provides a different stimulus.

It asks your muscles to produce force.

It challenges them to adapt.

It helps us maintain and build strength.

And that's something cardiovascular exercise alone doesn't necessarily provide.

Think engine AND chassis

Here's the analogy I like.

Cardio builds the engine.

You want a good engine. You want to be able to work hard, recover and keep going. But you also need a strong chassis.

Muscles. Bones. Tendons.

The physical structure that allows you to use that engine.

That's what structured resistance training helps us develop.

At Excite, that's why I.C.E. and F.I.R.E. have always been different programs.

I.C.E. develops your cardiovascular fitness and general conditioning.

F.I.R.E. gives us the opportunity to progressively work on your strength.

Neither needs to replace the other.

They complement each other.

"But I do some weights already"

Great. The next question I'd ask is:

Are you getting stronger?

Because there's a difference between doing some weights and following a structured resistance-training program.

If you're using exactly the same weights, doing exactly the same exercises and the same repetitions month after month, your body has very little reason to adapt.

That's why progression matters.

We want to gradually challenge the body.

More resistance.

Better technique.

More control.

And measurable improvement over time.

You don't need to become a powerlifter.

You don't need to spend two hours in a gym.

But you do need to give your muscles a reason to remain strong.

So what does a balanced week look like?

There's no single perfect formula for everybody.

But I want you to think about whether your week includes all of these:

Cardiovascular exercise.

Strength training.

Regular everyday movement.

Recovery.

And of course, good nutrition to support it all.

If you're already active, that's fantastic.

Don't stop.

But ask yourself one more question: Am I deliberately training my strength as well as my fitness?

Because I don't want you choosing between being fit and being strong as you get older.

I want you to be both.

Yours in health and fitness,

Chris

P.S. Our next 10 Week FIRE strength program starts Monday 5 October.

FIRE is our structured approach to resistance training, with progressive programming, coaching and tracking throughout the 10 weeks. You can do it at Excite, or online via the Excite App.

If you've been thinking you should be doing more strength training—or you're not sure where to start—just REPLY to this EMAIL with FIRE and I'll send you the information.