9 Reasons Every Woman Should Lift Weights
No disrespect to cardio, but if you want to blast fat, get
in shape, and rock everything that comes your way—both in and out of the
gym—strength training is where it's at. Here's why.
You'll Blast More Fat
Forget that "fat-burning" zone on the treadmill.
According to a new study published in Obesity, strength training is better at
helping people lose belly fat compared with cardio. While aerobic exercise
burns both fat and muscle, weight lifting burns almost exclusively fat. mental disorder, mental health, mental health care, mental health disorders, mental health help, mental health treatment, services mental health, mental illness, mental health issues, depression treatments,
You'll Burn More Calories
Just sitting on your butt reading this, you're burning
calories—if you lift weights, that is. Your muscle mass largely determines your
resting metabolic rate—how many calories you burn by just living and breathing.
"The more muscle you have, the more energy your body expends," says
women's strength expert Holly Perkins, CSCS. "Everything you do, from
brushing your teeth, to sleeping, to checking Instagram, you'll be burning more
calories," Perkins says.
You'll Be Stronger Mentally
"Strength has a funny way of bleeding into all areas of
your life, in the gym and out," says Jen Sinkler, an Olympic lifting
coach, kettlebell instructor, and author of Lift Weights Faster. By constantly
challenging yourself to do things you never thought possible, your confidence
grows. "Weight lifting empowers you," she says.
You'll Boost Your Flexibility
Ignore that super ripped guy fumbling in yoga class for just
a minute. Researchers from the University of North Dakota pitted static
stretches against strength-training exercises and found that full-range
resistance training workouts can improve flexibility just as well as your
typical static stretching regimen. The key word here is "full-range,"
notes Sinkler. If you can't complete the full motion—going all the way up and
all the way down—with a given weight, you may need to use a lighter dumbbell
and work up to it.
You'll Strengthen Your Bones
Weight lifting doesn't only train your muscles; it trains
your bones. When you perform a curl, for example, your muscles tug on your
arm's bones. The cells within those bones react by creating new bone cells,
Perkins says. Your bones become stronger and more dense.
You'll Drop a Size
Strength training has a reputation of making women
"bulk up." But it's not true. The more your weight comes from muscle,
rather than fat, the smaller you'll be. "In fact, body weight often goes
up with strength training, but dress size goes down one or two sizes,"
Perkins says. Plus, it's really, really difficult to get body-builder huge.
"Women produce about 5 to 10 percent the amount of testosterone men do,
limiting our muscle-building potential when compared to men," Sinkler
says. To seriously gain size, you'd pretty much need to live in the weight
room.
You'll Ease Joint Pain
Go ahead, squat low. Your knees will thank you. "Proper
strength training is the solution to joint issues," Perkins says.
"Stronger muscles better hold your joints in position, so you won't need
to worry about your knee flaring up during your next run."
You'll Be a Better Runner
Stronger muscles mean better performance—period. Your core
will be better able to support your body's weight and maintain ideal form
during other exercises (like running), plus your arms and legs will be more
powerful. What's more, since strength training increases the number and size of
calorie-torching muscle fibers fueling your performance, strength training
could actually help you burn more calories during your cardio workouts, Perkins
says.
You'll Have a Healthier Heart
Cardiovascular exercise isn't the only exercise that's,
well, cardiovascular. In fact, strength training can up your heart health, too.
In one Appalachian State University study, people who performed 45 minutes of
moderate-intensity resistance exercise lowered their blood pressure by 20
percent. That's as good as—if not better than—the benefits associated with most
blood pressure pills.
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