Sunday, June 2, 2013

Should Women Lift Weights Regularly?

By Howe Russ


One of the most frequently asked questions in gyms today is, "Should women lift weights?" Today you'll get the answer. Many ladies want to put weights into their routine alongside HIIT but are unsure if they're allowed, due to the many myths out there.

This isn't a new phenomenon, and the myths surrounding it were dis-proven many years ago. However, every ten years the fitness industry throws up a new trend which brings the same old methods back into the mainstream. After kettlebells and circuit training in recent years, this year appears to be the return of high intensity cardio alongside pumping iron on a regular basis. [
Personal Trainer Russ Howe PTI answers the question should women lift weights in the gym today.
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While it's fantastic that girls are no longer scared to ask trainers about resistance training, there are still a few old, useless myths which attach a negative stigma to it. This puts a lot of ladies off, despite not having any solid evidence behind it. These myths include:

* Women will get a bodybuilder-like bulky physique if they lift regularly.

* Ladies should never lift anything heavy.

* Women tone up from high reps and low resistance. If a lady doesn't follow this rule, she's going to put on size....

* Avoid training your lower body if you do cardiovascular exercise, because it will give you bigger legs...

The four myths shown above have dogged the fitness industry for decades, despite being dis-proven many times! Despite the huge scientific advantages we have over the generations before us, if you walked into a health club today you'd probably still be able to find a lot of ladies who believe these myths to be true.

The simple answer is yes, women should be using resistance training in their workout if they are to achieve the toned, lean look most ladies desire to own.

It would be easy to look at a female fitness competitor and presume that's what will happen to you if you train with barbells and dumbbells. But that would be as foolish as a man looking at Arnold Schwarzenegger and making the same presumption. Female's release much less testosterone than males, causing the muscle building process to be far harder. Female fitness competitors don't just go to the gym, they diet and supplement specifically to add size...

So worrying about lifting a slightly heavier weight and seeing massive gains is nonsense.

The ironic thing is that most ladies who are terrified of resistance training list fat loss as their main fitness goal. Fat loss is one of the biggest benefits to a regular resistance training program. Your body experiences a phenomenon known as excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, E.P.O.C. for short, in which you continue to power through calories at an increased level well after you finish training. It's also one of the best ways to tone up a body part you consider to be bulky at the moment, i.e. legs.

So let's make our final verdict, should women lift weights or avoid them completely? Not only should they be using them, they should be using them regularly! The most recent science in the fitness industry confirms that regular resistance training and HIIT are one of the most effective methods for burning unwanted body fat and getting leaner.




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