There comes a time in every woman’s workout routine when she must encounter weights. Even if its just the 1-5 lb weights. We must
encounter them and I don’t know about you, but for me, I’ve always had this
LONG moment of silence before doing anything with them. It was almost like I
wasn’t sure that I would come back alive. *Smile* I’ve done so much research about weight lifting and discussed the
subject with various trainers and a few body builders who shared a lot of
insight. So much that I was moved to not only implement weight lifting into my
workout routine, but to share what I’ve learned with you.
One of my main fears was that I would bulk up and
look “manly.” However, studies show that weight lifting is an effective way to
burn calories AND lose weight. So lifting weight helps you tone, define and
lose weight! A woman’s body is built in such a way whereas it is impossible for her to
bulk up and look like a man by lifting weights. Why? A woman has too much
estrogen and not enough testosterone to remotely be able to do so. It’s just
not naturally possible. Elite FTS states, “These
‘grocery stand models’ are most likely pumped full of some extra juice. This is
why they look like men. If you take the missing link that separates men from
women and add it back in, what do you have? A man!”
So my main fear was a huge misconception. Lifting weights can help women build a toned, sculpted,
feminine body, and build stronger bones. Plus it can boost your metabolism,
making you not only look great but feel great, too. Now, by no means am I
saying lift weights and stop cardio. You really have to be well rounded and
implement both. I was instructed to do about 20-30 minutes of cardio before
weight lifting. And I can really feel the difference of doing the cardio right
before.
Now for those of you who say that Cardio is better than
Weight Lifting, I wouldn’t say one is better than the other. Cardio is
definitely needed for a healthy heart. However, while cardio burns more
calories than strength training during those 30 sweaty minutes, pumping iron
slashes more overall. A study in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning
Research found that women who completed an hour-long strength-training workout
burned an average of 100 more calories in the 24 hours AFTERWARDS than they did when they hadn't lifted weights. At three
sessions a week, that's 15,600 calories a year, or about four and a half pounds
of fat—without having to move a muscle. So essentially your body is always in
burn mode with weight lifting/strength training.
Now…if you’re wondering why your scale hasn’t moved but you’re
eating right and working out consistently…maybe it’s time for you to kick up your workout
routine a notch…add some weights…See what happens.
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References:
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