I meet a ton of ladies who want to get in shape, but share a common concern, “working out will make me bulky”. Believe it or not, that’s far from the truth. For all the ladies who would like to get fit without ending up looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger, I have some good news for you.
First of all, let me just point out that muscles don’t just grow on trees. If that were the case, I would be out of business and every dude out there would look like Zac Efron. What I’m trying to say is that you’re not going to get ginormous biceps after lifting weight for a few months. That kind of thing takes a lot of time and attention to achieve. If at any time you feel that your routine is getting a little out of hand, you have the freedom to change it up right then and there.
Females develop muscles at a much slower rate than males, because the lack of testosterone. It’s strictly biological, but seriously, that’s the biggest separating factor between the two sexes when it comes to muscle growth. Testosterone, the hormone that is produced dominantly by the male testicles, is the key hormone involved in growing muscle, so without it, you really don’t have to worry about waking up looking like the Dwayne Johnson after a couple weight sessions.
Another reason why ladies tend to not put on as much muscle as men is because of different dietary habits. Going to the gym alone won’t induce muscle growth, a process called protein synthesis. This process is fueled by a regularly exaggerated amount of protein and carbohydrates. Why do you think guys are always out there scarfing down protein powder like addicts? (By the way that’s not the way to go about getting protein guys) So unless you’re purposefully eating more food than you require, your muscles aren’t getting what they need to grow-at the already slow rate, due to lack of testosterone.
So that’s it, end of the article? Well, no, I don’t want to leave you off right there thinking I don’t want muscle anyways, why lift weights? So instead, let’s point out some of the reasons why you should incorporate weight lifting into your routine.
Helps Burn Fat
If you came to me for weight loss help, I would include weight training in your workout routine ten times out of ten. The reason being, your body has to exert a very high amount of energy to lift weights. Now, we’re not talking about your circuit exercises with those five pound dumbbells; we’re talking about actual weighted movements like the bench press, weighted squats, or any compound exercise that will require a high output of energy for you to execute.
The purpose of weight training is to force the muscles to produce a lot of energy, causing tears in the muscles and kick start protein synthesis considering that there is sufficient fuel provided (you eating a lot more). To any ladies that are having trouble reaching their weight goals by circuit training and cardio, I guarantee I can help you find a program that will kick start weight loss for you.
Improves Physique
For anyone out there trying to slim down and look a certain way, think about this: if you burn up all that fat in your body without gaining any muscle, you will literally look like skin and bone. The only stuff there to fill the gap between your skin and your bones are your muscles! This is what give young teenage boys the thin six pack that is so easy to have at that age.
Your body composition is not just based off of how much fat is in your body. Things like bone size and muscle also play very important roles in determining your overall physical shape. By working out with considerable weights, your body will develop muscle, which in turn gives you shape, or that “toned” look that everyone is always asking about. Remember, you don’t get that “toned” look by lowering your body fat content; that look comes from lowering fat AND increasing muscle mass.
Takeaway
So what was my message here? Don’t let the fear of turning into the Hulk stop you from introducing weight lifting into your workout routine. Regardless of what your fitness goal is, I can almost guarantee that weight lifting can play a vital role in whether or not you achieve that goal.
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