Signs That Training Is Working (Not About Losing Weight)

Hasta hace bien poco si decías que hacías deporte de forma regular, la mayoría entendía que era para perder peso. O, al menos, para no ganarlo. Por suerte, hoy entrenar se asocia a lo que siempre fue: una necesidad física para mantener la salud o mejorar nuestra forma física. Se entrena para mantener a punto la masa muscular, tener más coordinación, mejorar la flexibilidad, y sobre todo, aumentar la sensación de bienestar. Hay quienes incluso añaden el factor social: al gimnasio se va a hacer amigos, a verlos o a ligar. Basta con echar un vistazo a la cantidad de parejas que surgen en los famosos clubs de running o de los boxes de crossfit, convertidos en el nuevo punto de encuentro de solteros. En el plano físico, los expertos señalan seis factores que indican si el entrenamiento funciona. 

Diego Montufar, coach de Commando, centro fitness boutique llegado de Méjico que combina bici, fuerza y bootcamp apunta que el deporte bien hecho nos aporta hasta seis beneficios. 

It Recharges Your Batteries

Da igual si eres debutante o entrenas a nivel profesional. «When you train well, your vitality levels and sense of energy increase,» says Montúfar. Paradoxically, although exercising can be tiring at the moment of exertion, the long-term feeling is that fatigue disappears, as corroborated by the study The Effect of Chronic Exercise on Energy and Fatigue States, by Carly Wender and Mika Manninen among others. That same study adds that this recharge of energy is directly related to the (the longer the duration, the better the results), the intensity (moderate exercise is best) and the modality (which depends on each person, their fitness level, age, etc.). 

You’re in a Better Mood

«When you train, your body releases endorphins and you feel more motivated throughout the day», notes Diego Montúfar. In fact, there is a wealth of scientific evidence linking exercising with being more positive and a reduction in depressive symptoms.

Endorphins trigger a positive sensation in the body (similar to the one produced by morphine, note) by interacting with brain receptors. In the case of runners, the famous ‘runner’s high,’ the euphoria that occurs after finishing a race or a particularly hard workout, is due to endocannabinoids. These are chemical compounds similar to THC in marijuana that humans produce naturally and help reduce inflammation and improve immune response. 

Improvements in Clothing Size

The Body Mass Index (BMI) is not a good indicator of health. «It is a relic of a weight-centric society in which being thin is mistakenly equated with being healthy», said nutritionist Gabriela Uriarte at WeLife Tour 2025 Bilbao. Lean mass, on the other hand, tells us much more about our physical fitness. And that body composition improves with training. «Even if the scale doesn’t change, clothes fit differently and the body looks firmer», adds the trainer.

It’s important to note that «weight doesn’t always reflect real progress. When you train for strength, you can gain muscle and lose fat at the same time. In that case, the weight may stay the same, or it may even go up because muscle weighs more than fat, though it takes up less space. The important thing is body composition, not total weight». If the goal is weight loss, what really makes you lose fat is a caloric deficit. We can achieve this with both cardiovascular exercise and strength training. «Cardio burns calories directly, while strength training speeds up the metabolism by increasing muscle mass. Undoubtedly, the ideal is to combine both».

You Notice the Effort

That physical activity fills our energy stores and that we feel euphoric right after doesn’t mean that we’ll be wiped out the next day. We’re not talking about DOMS, which depends on many factors (lack of training, overexertion, etc.), but it’s perfectly normal to notice sore muscles, some fatigue and, in general, the feeling of having worked.

You Have Less Pain

It’s often said that exercise is a poly-pill with beneficial effects on multiple physical ailments. At first, exercise reduces pain, both chronic and acute. The study ‘Effects of a Single Exercise Session on Pain Intensity in Adults with Chronic Pain’ found that even a single session of exercise can reduce pain intensity in adults with chronic pain. Many women report that this analgesic effect is easily noticeable when training in the days leading up to their period. 

You Sleep Like a Log

When we train well, we sleep better. Exercise improves sleep quality because the body already takes care of telling us that it needs rest to perform its repair tasks (growth hormone is secreted, precisely, during the deep sleep stages). However, exercising late in the day has the opposite effects, since that post-exercise arousal raises heart rate, increases body temperature and makes it harder to achieve normal sleep onset.