Women and strength training. Not something a lot of females like to do. Even after all these years of research and articles, most women are paranoid about bulking up. There are so many health benefits to weight training that we need to bust this myth.
First of all we love those sleek arm and back muscles don’t we? With the beautiful defined shoulders. They look so good with a sundress or tank top. There’s no way to accomplish that without some resistance training. Resistance and strength training are one and the same. We just associate strength training with body building and huge muscle mass. There is no reason to have this fear of the weight room. We can train for the definition instead of the bulk.
There are definite health benefits to resistance training. First and foremost in most women’s minds should be bone density. As we strengthen our bones they will become less brittle as we age. Hopefully helping us steer clear of osteoporosis if we are taking in adequate amounts of calcium. We will burn more calories everyday with a larger lean mass (muscle mass). This means if you take some time for yourself ie.: bubble bath, you will be burning more calories that you did before you started training. As busy Momma’s, we are also carrying huge amounts of kids, groceries, or whatever is around the house to pick up. By building our muscle mass this won’t cause as much strain to our muscles when we do these everyday things.
Resistance training doesn’t have to be just lifting weights. There are bands, ball training and isometric to name a few. When you do use the dumbbells and machines, just use light weight and do 15-30 reps per set. This will build the muscle for endurance instead of brute strength. Make sure and work all the muscles in an area to get the complete definition. Don’t be afraid of the weight room. It is a major part of weight loss and shows results the quickest. If you need some weekly programs set up for you, please let me know. We can set one up specifically for you needs.
Well my girlfriend is doing some strength training but she is not overdoing it because i don’t like women with to much muscles
Make sure she’s not wasting her time. It takes a lot of work to have too much muscles. Body builders don’t just work out a 20 minutes in the weight room 3 days a week. If she’s doing sets of 12-15 of a weight, then she won’t bulk up. Remember this is for her health, not just for looks.
My wife refused to lift weight because she thought she would bulk up. After lifting for 3 months and finding out that she was not bulking, but looking more cut, she loved it! Great article…
I’m glad she stuck with it for long enough to see the great results!
Thanks! I am too.
This is one of the biggest misconceptions that women have about working out and getting toned. So many women don’t realize that they can burn fat faster and look so much more toned and sculpted when they add in strength training. Great points!
When I take around new gym members for tours I’m constantly hit with the “I don’t want to get big muscles” whine. I tell them that big muscles take a lot of work and that helps as well. lol
I see this problem all the time! Girls thinking they will bulk if they lift weights. I wish every girl could read this article, thanks so much!
I was too concerned that I would get bigger as did resistance training, but my boyfriend convinced me to try it anyway. That was over a year ago and all it has done is increased my muscle tone and helped me loss a few pounds.