Women and Weight Training

Being a fitness expert in a women's only gym, I came across so many women for whom working out with help of free weights or Machines is a strict No-No. There are so many myths in mind of women who decide to workout in a gym. Most of them feel that weight training is only for men who aim to have a 20 inch biceps or a 6 -pack abs.

If you want to get stronger, leaner and healthy you have to supplement your aerobic workout with the key component of fitness and thats "Weight training".

" USE IT OR LOSE IT"

As we age our muscle mass gradually decreases and hence our metabolism (i.e the energy our body spents in normal functioning of our important physiological systems). So when all these depletes your fat percentage increases.

Lets look into some Myths related to weight training :

Myth I : Weight training will make you bulky or masculine

My dear ladies the hormone to be blamed for it is testesterone which is in abundance in males but is in very minimal quantity in females. Our oestrogen abundance prevents us to have a masculine body ,unless you take steroids externally.

Myth II : Weight training will Increase chest size

Breast size can never be increased or decreased. But yes it will surely make your chest look firm.

Myth III : Weight training will make your body stiff

There are many exercises such as dead lifts, chin ups, etc which will make you use your complete muscle length and hence maintain flexibility.

Myth IV : If you stop exercising your muscles will turn to fat

This myth is just like someone saying you can turn gold into brass!! Remember, both are different types of tissues so it cannot interchange.

Myth V : Women only should do cardio workout and if they want to do weight training they should only do with lighter weights.

I agree, cardio workout is very important component but if you are doing long hours of only cardio workout it will not only burn you fat but also your muscles. Also If you are weight training with light weights then its not of much use as there wont be any muscle breakdown. You need to overload your muscle to get the desired result of toning up.

So now as most of the myths are busted, lets quickly see the Effect of Weight Training :

1) Helps you to have stronger bone by increasing bone density thus preventing osteoporosis.

2) Increases your resting metabolism and thus you will burn the more calories even when you are at rest (as your Basal Metabolic Rate will increase).

3) Decreases the risk of injuries by making your bone,muscles and ligaments stronger.

4) Helps to improve balance and coordination.

5) Improves your stamina.

6) And above all for most of the women it gives you a fabulous toned body .

Now the question comes -
"How often ,how much and how we should proceed with this weight training program?"

According to American College of Sports Medicine :

Weight training should be done 2- 3 days per week and to get the best result supplement the weight training with aerobic workout in form of circuit training.

How much weight you should take will depend on your muscles ability to lift maximum weight in one go. Usually to start with 50-60% of this maximum weight can be used.

Also to start with 2 sets of 15-20 repetitions is sufficient to get desired results.

You can use a variety of options for weight training such as machines, your own body weight, dumbbells, tubes and the latest one the Kettlebells.

Just make sure you adopt the right posture, correct breathing (Exale when you exert) and right amount of weight. Consult your fitness trainer for the same.

So dear ladies, Pick up the dumbells and lets hit the gym with right kind of workout, food and rest.

COMING SOON : Some 'MUST DO' exercises for women who find no time to visit gyms!!

STAY FIT AND STAY HEALTHY !

Cheers!