This is my reply to the topic of Women and Weight Training, on my friend, Renaldo Gairy’s “Way2Fit” Facebook Group:
So the first topic is women and weight training, and I know its something that there is a lot of disagreement about. Even though this topic is aimed at women, I’d like to hear from both sexes. Here are a few things that can be touched upon:
-why do you train with weights and what have you found?
-if you don’t train with weights, what is the reason?
-if you don’t train with weights, how do you feel about other women who do?
-if you do train with weights, what would you say to other women who don’t?
anything else you can think of in regards to this topic.
Thanks
Renaldo Gairy
__________________________________________
__________________________________
My post:
This is a relatively broad topic, so for the sake of keeping things short, I’ll merely answer the question outline Ren provided. I have experience from both sides of the spectrum in that I do train with weights but obviously this wasn’t always the case.
I never had a problem with getting "big"…….At 190 lbs I was already big!!! I was ready to try anything (including those shock therapy belts to stimulate fat loss - ouch!)…… The reason that I chose not to train with weights was because when I looked around the gym, I’d see the majority of "skinny" women tearing away at the cardio equipment (especially the tread mills), so logically I came to the conclusion that cardio (and cardio alone) = beautiful, lean, toned body. A large part of this was also due to my ignorance in the field of health and fitness. I did lose some serious weight through cardio alone, but it wasn’t long before my weight loss plateaued and I still didn’t have that tight body that I craved.
I started doing my own research into workout plans for weight loss and "toning"…. Lo and behold, just about every site I logged onto mentioned some form of weight training to aid in attaining my health and fitness goals. Apparently, although cardio burns more calories than strength training during those 30 or so sweaty minutes, pumping iron slashes more overall (because of the "after burn"). It’s a simple concept really: muscle is metabolically active…fat is not….therefore muscle consumes calories (even when you aren’t at the gym), thus to maximize your caloric expenditure, weight training in addition to cardio and a healthy balanced diet plan is essential.
Through further research and reading, I came across the physiques of women such as Valarie Waugaman, Gina Aliotti and Monica Brant….and I was blown away!!! I fell in love with their strong, contoured definition and poise…Their curves were accentuated with curves…and their faces were beautiful and radiated confidence. That was what I wanted my physique to look like…and to look like that I would have to adapt an intensive weight training routine. Now, I’m aware of the misconception that weight training makes you bulky and masculine…. I’ve been weight training for a few years now…intensely and very heavy….sometimes a lot heavier than some of the guys at my gym….and I’m still no where as "full" as I’d like to be…and it’s certainly hard to tell that there’s some muscle going on beneath my everyday casual attire unless you’re really paying attention. The women who are really jacked and who have been equated to as being bulky, are usually athletes who use anabolic steroids and other products to achieve and maintain that degree of muscularity. Due to the fact that women do not, and cannot, naturally produce as much testosterone (one of the main hormones responsible for increasing muscle size) as males do, it is impossible for a woman to gain huge amounts of muscle mass by merely touching some weights. I train naturally, and it’s hard enough for me to diet and supplement to keep my gains!! It’s frustrating sometimes…Another misconception I found myself believing is that fat turns into muscle and that muscle eventually turn into fat if you stop training it. Talk about turning water into wine…I eventually learned that muscle and fat are two different types of tissue. Muscle can be lost through inactivity and improper dieting or even overtraining…..if you’re inactive, then fat accumulation increases thereby making it seem like your muscle is being turned into fat.
Let’s go back a bit to when I finally discovered the glorious feel of cold iron in the palm of my hand. I felt powerful and I felt like I was defying the gender boundaries set by society when I walked into that testosterone filled weight room. The only thing that I felt nervous about was my form…and what exact exercise I should perform. For a long while I actually thought the right way to perform a bicep curl was to swing the weight up while rocking your body forward as if you were going to knock yourself out with the dumbbell. That was before I took the initiative to educate myself and look up the proper form for various exercises and specific exercises to work different muscle groups. Another issue was "how much weight should I be lifting?" I was never a fan of the little pink or green dumbbells…but I knew if I was carrying around a backpack with what seemed to be 20lbs of books, or grocery bags with at least 5 or more pounds worth of shopping, or playing rocket ship, lifting my cousin’s 4 year old 40lb kid in the air….I should be lifting just a little more than that to start (depending on the exercises)….and I knew if my muscles weren’t fatigued at the end, then what was the point… Muscle responds to resistance…and if there is little or no resistance, not much if any changes will be seen in your physique.
Point blank I’m asking, how can you knock something unless you’ve tried it…or after having at least done some extensive research on the subject so that you can draw an educated conclusion? I think it’s more of a matter of "I WON’T try it because…" : I fear that I can’t handle it; I won’t know what to do; I may end up hurting myself; I’ll look like an idiot; I don’t want to be the only woman in a weight room full of men; weight lifting is a man’s game… I think the fear of getting "big" is the general excuse that most women use. Come on, when you look at your favourite celebrities, do you think they all have the physiques they have because of a magic pill only available to Hollywood’s best….or that they have tons of lipo/ surgery done?? For some maybe….but its mostly the result of intense, routine training…. I’ve seen some women in thier 40’s or later who weight train, and because of their muscle tone and posture, you’d think their were at least in thier 30’s. What about those olympic long distance runners - more power to them for being at the top of their game….but my personal preference isn’t to have my body looking like theirs’….Sprinters physiques…now that’s more my cup of tea.
I say to each their own…I’ve tried weight training and I won’t give it up for the world….my total physiques been transformed because of it….It’s like I’m the artist and my body is the clay that I can contour and shape to my own desire. As for other women who haven had the pleasure to get into weight training and have doubts about it…all I can do at this point is recommend you try it…if you like it, that’s awesome…if you don’t, you can choose to stop. Remember, if you dont use it, you lose it! 
View all comments | Leave Comment