The Truth About Weight Training for Women

By Nadine Valcourt

So stereotypical was the weight room at the local gym. It was thought that the weight training room was for men who wanted to pump hundreds of pounds of iron and if a woman walked in all eyes were on her. What was she doing in there when she clearly belonged in the aerobics room?

And it was the women who thought the same. They felt that if they were to start lifting weights with the guys soon they would look like one too. They thought their muscles would literally balloon into Popeye's.

Luckily times have changed and we have smart beautiful women like Kelly Ripa, Brooke Shields, Sheryl Crow and Sarah Jessica Parker just to name a few as spokeswomen for strong ripped muscles. And know that they work very hard to get those toned muscles and they are by no means gorilla shaped!

In fact, it's pretty difficult for a woman to bulk up because of a couple of reasons. Yes, it is possible as a female body builder to increase muscle size but surely not the point of a male. And that would involve spending about 20 hours a week in the gym curling very high weight.

One of the reasons is women are lacking enough of the male hormone testosterone in order to build the size and strength of a male muscle. The second reason is that building the kind of muscle a man has takes a long time of training and lifting heavy weights for sometimes hundreds of reps which women simply don't do.

A good goal to shoot for when starting a weight training program for women is to be able to do 15 repetitions of an exercise such as arm curls and have the muscle becoming tired toward the end of the rep. Increase the weight if the muscle is not being challenged. After 3 sets of the exercise the muscle should be highly fatigued.

Now you may think that weight training for women is just about getting those toned muscles but the benefits go far beyond the physical appearance of them. It is a fact that weight training will build stronger bones which will help fight osteoporosis. Weight training also leaves you in a high calorie burn mode which means you will keep off unwanted weight which in turn helps you live longer.

So pick up a pair of hand weights and start weight training at home or walk into your gym and start curling with the guys. - 17269

About the Author:

Nadine Valcourt writes for the Woman Workout Group for the Big Day Diet. She contributes articles, research and invaluable insight into the fitness world for women. Get free weight training for women exercises, full training videos, bikini boot camp videos and more. Visit the Woman Workout Site and start defining those muscles.