Weight Training for Women: 5 Myths

When you think about weight training, you probably think of men doing it rather than women. What are some of the important points to consider if you're a woman who wants to get into weight training?

When you think about weight training, you tend to think mostly about men. Even so, weight training for women is becoming and more and more popular. Despite the increase in numbers, it’s a relatively foreign practice to the female gender. Something that’s contributing to this low number is false myths or beliefs that have been building up over time.

What are these myths about?

In this article, we’re going to talk about some of these myths. We want to be able to debunk them. We want you to have a clear idea about weight training and straighten up all of the concepts surrounding it. Learn all about weight training for women and get closer to your goals!

Five myths about weight training for women

1- Weight training for women carries more risk of injury

This is clearly not the case. It’s true that working with weights can cause an injury if you don’t use the correct movements or techniques. Nevertheless, it’s not any more dangerous than any other sports activity. You could even injure yourself jogging or on the elliptical machine.

That being said, executing each exercise’s technique perfectly is critical. That’s especially true when you’re just starting out with weight training for women. Also, make sure you include a good warm-up session where you prepare your joints for the weight work before starting.

You also have to choose the right weight. The right weight for you is going to vary depending on your circumstances. If you follow this rule, you’ll be reducing your risk of any type of injury.

In fact, strength training will help you prevent injuries. Sometimes it can even help you to recover from previous problems of this sort. It’ll also strengthen your joints and help them to withstand your future athletic activities.

2- Cardio is much better than weight lifting for losing weight

First of all, you should know that if you’re trying to lose weight by just doing cardio, you’re making a big mistake. Clearly, cardiovascular training is very helpful in your quest for burning body fat and losing weight. Still, it’s not the only exercise that can get you to your goals.

Weight training, or put more elegantly “training for strength and tone,” can help you in your endeavors. It’ll give you more muscle mass. Muscle mass is actually one of the best fat burners out there. That’s because it consumes energy on a permanent basis just to stay activated. Of course, you have to combine it with an appropriate diet. If you don’t, all of your efforts will be in vain.

3- Weight training will make my muscles huge

One of the most common fears among women who’re thinking about weight training is that they’ll feel too “masculine”. If this is your case, it shouldn’t worry you. Weight training for women doesn’t have the same effects as it does for men.

This difference arises because of their different hormonal compositions. As we were saying before, women have a lower amount of testosterone when you compare them to men. That means they can’t gain muscle at the same pace or even to the same extent.

4- Weight training is only for bodybuilders

Another myth is that weight training is only for bodybuilding. This is certainly not the case. Strength training is extremely important for improving your condition in general. That’s true no matter what sport you play. Even further, it holds true just for day-to-day activities.

In fact, it’s even more important for women. That’s because strength training reduces your risk of suffering from certain diseases common among women. There is, for example, osteoporosis. This type of exercise can increase women’s bone density.

5. My body will look less feminine if I do weight training

Many people seek to burn fat and increase their muscle mass at the same time. If that’s your aim, you have to do strength training along with cardiovascular work. Here they play an important role in terms of compound exercises. You can use your own bodyweight for these.

Weight training for women isn’t going to give you a more masculine build. On the other hand, it’s going to magnify your feminine physical qualities. This, together with a good diet, is going to help you reach any fitness objective you may have.

After debunking all of these myths, you don’t have any excuse not to start using the weight training part of the gym. What are you waiting for? Pick up those weights and start working out with them today!