Avoid Tiny Weights: Weightlifting Is Not That Special for Women

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So many strength training for women deviates from the actual development of strength and power, with an emphasis on lighter weights. This perpetuates the idea that the workouts that men do are somehow just not for us. But this is not the case. Women can and should train with the same intensity and with the same exercises and programs as men, if they want to.

All in all, building muscle and strength isn’t an easy walk for anyone – women or men. They require an incredible amount of proper nutrition, exercise, mental stamina, and dedication. However, for women, some psychological and social barriers make the process a little more difficult and difficult .

Is weightlifting right for you?

Hell to yeah.

At least that’s what I love to say to every friend of mine.

We often say that strength training is better for losing weight and building the lean, strong physique you want than cardio. The benefits extend beyond physical beauty. By lifting more weights, you can get insanely strong, be able to lift heavy objects (great for getting around and shopping for groceries), and more importantly, feel more secure and confident.

Ultimately, however, it all comes down to fitness goals – be it aesthetics or performance – and more importantly, personal preference. The current trend shows that women seem to be more interested in developing pep in the back and possibly killer arms, while guys gravitate towards rounded breasts and an overall more massive upper body. This brings me to my next point.

Will you look bulky when lifting weights?

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read, been told, or heard that I should stick to light weights and avoid hard work, like you would do a pickup at a bar with Ed Hardy. “You want to look thin, not bulky,” they say. Bulky in this sense is just a value judgment: what seems bulky to someone may seem quite normal to others. (For the record: I don’t mind when people tell me I look a little stronger. This photo , for example, shows the visual progress I’ve made in lifting weights.)

So, I cannot promise you that you will absolutely not look “bulky”, but instead I will tell you two things:

For one, you won’t automatically grow strong hips from tree trunks or boulder shoulders like the ones you’ve probably seen on the Internet. You just can’t do it, at least not without drugs (and certainly not in a short period of time – we’re talking years). Even if the ladies did receive an unnatural impulse, the learning and years of dedication could not be mimicked by a pretty Instagram filter or flattering camera angles; it’s a damn hard job that you have to do day in and day out, plain and simple.

It should be recognized that some ladies (including myself) may be genetically predisposed due totheir body type to the fact that in some areas the muscles are more pronounced than in others, and therefore they may look larger. However, this goes for everyone, including guys, because no two trainees will respond the same way to the same training. (Because genetics, work ethic, workout history, diet, and all that jazz is different for everyone.)

And finally, of course, if you find yourself getting bigger than you would like, you can always reduce the weight a little. Nothing is permanent and you can gain a lot.

Psychological differences between men and women

Aside from the obvious differences in reproductive organs and the fact that we are usually just prettier when exercising, there are physical, metabolic, and hormonal differences between men and women that can affect the way we exercise. Women have:

  • Less Muscle Mass Overall: It’s no surprise that the average woman tends to have less muscle mass than the average man. In particular, the gender difference in muscle mass is more pronounced between the upper and lower body .
  • Lower metabolic rate than men: This is true in relation to the point above, but a study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition seems to suggest that energy expenditure between men and women of normal body weight is largely the same after accounting for muscle mass and activity … To be clear: Differences in metabolic rate are more related to different body composition (ratio of lean mass to fat mass) and size, rather than gender.
  • Different distribution of fat: The pear-shaped contour (called the gynoid) of the female body means that we tend to carry more weight (and therefore more muscle compared to the upper body) around the thighs and below. These areas tend to contain a certain type of fat called subcutaneous fat, which appears topose less of a metabolic hazard than visceral fat.
  • More estrogen, less testosterone: Higher levels of natural testosterone in men tend to increase their proportion of muscle mass compared to women. This is the reason why we will not get this “hack”. On the other hand, higher estrogen levels give us several benefits. For example, research in human physiology suggests that estrogen has a significant protective effect against muscle pain. Yes, we still hurt, but not what hurts.
  • Different composition of muscle fibers: The muscles in our body differ between type I and type II muscle fibers, respectively called slow and fast twitch fibers. A study from Ohio University found that women had a higher percentage of type I muscle fibers than men. This means that our muscles, combined with higher capillary density, can receive more nutrients and are better equipped to convert glucose and fatty acids into energy.
  • Higher threshold for fatigue: Women seem to prefer to burn more fat under conditions of metabolic stress such as exercise, which in turn may explain how we can handle exercise for longer.

Thus, men are not necessarily stronger than women simply because of their gender. The gap in strength becomes much smaller, or perhaps even absent, if a man and a woman follow a similar training plan and have the same amount of muscle and fat.

In fact, when you look at genetic muscle and strength potential – or predicting how much muscle and strength someone might gain in the long run based on their own genetics – that’s roughly 75-85% of a man’s potential for a woman. … In other words: “If a dude can squat 400-500 pounds for several years of smart and consistent training, you should expect to squat 300-425 pounds if you’re the same weight,” says Strengtheory owner Greg Knuckles .

How to change your weight lifting routine

Okay, so it’s okay. But what do these points mean in the real world for a woman who wants to get stronger and feel more confident?

According to Greg, the short answer actually is: “More [than men]: more reps, more weight (relative to the maximum percentage of any given movement) and more frequency.” In fact, women generally require more of these different training stimuli than men to achieve similar results.

And based on what we know about our physiological differences, in particular the proportion of Type I fibers, the female body is top-notch and ready to kick ass for “more.” Simply put: we are more resistant to fatigue and can handle more intensity and volume (amount of work done) than guys in general. Jesse Nyland of ReModel Fitness says: “A woman can (and should) force herself to do more reps at a higher percentage of her 1RM (that is, the maximum weight performed per rep) than a man would probably be able to. do.”

Obviously, both weight and volume gains will not happen overnight, but you will benefit from training at a higher intensity and not be afraid of it.

JC Dean of JCD Fitness says he basically uses the same training pattern as men when advising a female client, although he focuses on certain movements over others depending on the goal to “create how as many hourglass illusions as possible. ” JC adds that he enjoys programming for women because they tend to handle much more volume for longer, which usually creates a more favorable aesthetic in his coaching experience. Both JC and Jesse agree that when training women, they avoid putting too much pressure on the abs or core in favor of increasing strength.

If you are looking to tackle a more serious weight lifting program, I highly recommend exploring resources such as:

Any well-structured strength training program will work for short-term muscle and strength gains.

Workout around monthly cycles

Believe it or not, the different phases of a woman’s monthly cycle can really affect strength, energy, recovery, and even injury risk. This does not mean that the menstrual cycle completely overrides individual performance and overall training strategy, but it does. It seems to many that the negative effects of menstruation noticeably affect performance only due to the hair in the nose. I myself feel lower than usual in motivation levels in the days leading up to my cycle, but find that my gym performance was largely unaffected before and during. No doubt it will be different for everyone, but it’s interesting to consider.

When working with her female clients, Jesse approaches this more emotionally by saying:

“Emotional or physical exhaustion is not the best option when you go beyond your limits, so I just ask them to tune in and trust the feedback they receive.”

Strengtheory, on the other hand, offers a much more comprehensive training guide for menstrual and contraceptive training . While this kind of training optimization is rare among non-competitive strength athletes, the information it contains is still good for the curious.

Strong as a girl?

The vast majority of differences in exercise performance between men and women can be attributed primarily to body composition, muscle fiber types, and some structural differences (eg, wider hips). So practice like your boyfriend friends, if you like, and show them how to do it.

Just as Jesse asks his clients, I ask you: are you ready to get a personal best today?

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