Benefits of Resistance Training for Women.

By Meghan Hinchey.

There seems to be a general perception by many women that they should avoid resistance training because they don’t want to bulk up and look masculine. These perceptions are simply untrue, and I want to debunk the bulking up myth and set you straight on how and why you can benefit from resistance training.

Firstly, let’s define what I mean by resistance training. Resistance training is where a force is applied to your muscles with the aim to increase muscle strength and endurance by doing repetitive exercises with weights, body weight, weight machines, or resistance bands. There are several reasons as to why, even though you’re adding load, females don’t have a tendency to bulk up.

It’s all in the hormones.

A female will not bulk up to the extent of which a male can. Bulking up, or hypertrophy (increasing muscle mass), is due to the hormone testosterone. Women do not have enough testosterone present in sufficient amounts to drastically increase muscle mass. With resistance training your muscles will develop, but it would be difficult to gain a large amount of mass.

It won’t happen overnight.

Body builders are athletes who are dedicated to their sport. They train extremely hard and for hours a day. They are on restricted calories and a scientifically engineered diet; they have very specific, technical workout programs to achieve their physique and some rely on chemical enhancement. Without this determination and dedication during your training schedule, the fact is you are not going to wake up one morning with bulging biceps.

Heavy weights = strength, not size.

If you were to lift heavy weights, and by heavy I mean lifting weights over 85 percent of your body weight, the primary stress imposed on the body is placed on the central nervous system, not on the muscles. Bottom line: with proper training, your strength will improve without hypertrophy.

Train specific to your goals.

There is a science to building muscle and getting big, and like I mentioned above, there is specific training you would need to be doing in order to achieve these results. If your goal is to tone up without building too much muscle, there is also training specific to these goals. For example, to get big you need to have a certain amount of “time under tension” which is the amount of time the muscle is kept under load. Explosive cross training with less time under tension will help you look lean and toned.

The important things to remember

•   Muscle tissue weighs more than fat. If you are starting a resistance training routine and you don’t see a drop in the scales, then remember that your body weight may increase or stay the same because of the increase in muscle mass. The best way to track your progress is by assessing your body fat percentage vs lean muscle mass.

•   Muscle is “thermogenic” which means it burns fat. The more muscle mass you have, the more calories you will burn at rest. You can burn up to an extra30-50 calories per day by increasing your muscle mass.

•   Resistance training can spike the good hormone levels in your body by 49%

•   Lifting weights increases bone density, which is especially important for young females to help prevent osteoporosis and other degenerative bone diseases later in life.

•   Resistance training has many health benefits including but not limited to: reduced blood pressure, reduced risk of diabetes, an increase in ‘feel good’ hormones, avoiding depression, reduced risk of stroke and improved posture.

Research has consistently found that resistance training has many benefits for our health and, more importantly, it ensures we are in optimal physical condition to carry out our everyday activities without injury. Keep your training regime varied and remember to progress your exercises to keep them challenging and to ensure results throughout your training. Ideally you want to aim for at least 2-3 resistance training sessions per week.

So go on – pick up that dumb bell! With all those health benefits, you’d be silly not to.

References:

Donna Aston, Body Business, Penguin Books Australia 2001

Bill Kreamer, Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, Human Kinetics 2008