Why do so many women lift such light weights?

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  • dixiewhiskey
    dixiewhiskey Posts: 3,333 Member
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    I'm not. I do a body pump class (bar bells with weights) and I love that I can lift as heavy as I do for as many reps as I do. It's endurance lifting, but it pushes you to your max.

    I always looked at Body Pump as more of a cardio thing than anywhere close to lifting.
  • Dposh67
    Dposh67 Posts: 16 Member
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    Agree with a lot of comments already made, but I've always been a little baffled by this ...

    I played high school sports ( basketball and softball ) now I'm 26 so I've only been removed from high school for 8 years, but when we were in athletics at my high school we were required to be a part of a weight lifting program.

    I had to learn to bench press, use free weights, incline. Sure we didn't do dead lifts and some of the more "men" oriented moves, but I still knew how to use dumbells and barbells.

    I would assume that a lot of high schools had this type of structure. So it baffles me that there are so many women that don't know even how to do some dumbell exercises.

    Now, I get not everyone plays sports, but I would think in High School more than 50% participated in some kind of sports. Maybe my high school was just really intense ..... lol

    or your school was just small.
    For those of us who came from bigger schools there's no way that percentage would be up to 50%. There would have to be 10 baskeball teams, 16 football teams to accommodate 50% of the student body to participate in school sports. lol. My graduating class was 784..and those were just the seniors who passed.

    A lot of schools have different programs for gym class. And lifting weights was just not in a typical "gym day" . I can understand some women never playing kickball or doing a situp. But knowing how to lift is something different
  • MireyGal76
    MireyGal76 Posts: 7,334 Member
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    Agree with a lot of comments already made, but I've always been a little baffled by this ...

    I played high school sports ( basketball and softball ) now I'm 26 so I've only been removed from high school for 8 years, but when we were in athletics at my high school we were required to be a part of a weight lifting program.

    I had to learn to bench press, use free weights, incline. Sure we didn't do dead lifts and some of the more "men" oriented moves, but I still knew how to use dumbells and barbells.

    I would assume that a lot of high schools had this type of structure. So it baffles me that there are so many women that don't know even how to do some dumbell exercises.

    Now, I get not everyone plays sports, but I would think in High School more than 50% participated in some kind of sports. Maybe my high school was just really intense ..... lol

    or your school was just small.
    For those of us who came from bigger schools there's no way that percentage would be up to 50%. There would have to be 10 baskeball teams, 16 football teams to accommodate 50% of the student body to participate in school sports. lol. My graduating class was 784..and those were just the seniors who passed.

    A lot of schools have different programs for gym class. And lifting weights was just not in a typical "gym day" . I can understand some women never playing kickball or doing a situp. But knowing how to lift is something different

    I never saw weights in my high school experience. We were taught all sorts of stuff... including trampoline and line dancing, but never did they do any lifting. In fact, I don't even know if my school had a weight lift area. It may have, but we certainly weren't introduced to it. I vaguely remember two guys in our school who were lifters, but it was a rarity.

    I wish that I had had that exposure as part of my education. I wish that there had been more of a focus on teaching sports and exercise that we could carry on into our lives (other than team sports). As an individual, I had a lot of self learning to do.

    And now... I aim to teach my girls that lifting is great. They watch me sometimes, and are pretty awed by "how strong mommy is"
  • crystalfisher89
    crystalfisher89 Posts: 196 Member
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    I'm not. I do a body pump class (bar bells with weights) and I love that I can lift as heavy as I do for as many reps as I do. It's endurance lifting, but it pushes you to your max.

    I always looked at Body Pump as more of a cardio thing than anywhere close to lifting.

    It's actually considered resistance training more so than cardio. Yes it does ramp the heart up, but usually mostly only during the squat and clean and press sets.
  • Myhaloslipped
    Myhaloslipped Posts: 4,317 Member
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    I wonder the same thing. It seems like a long, slow process that is a waste of time.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
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    I think the women that lift light weights are often in their twenties or younger. They are already fit from other activities and youth. So, they lift light weights as something extra, and they are happy with where they are so they don't have any reason to try something different and they just haven't learned anything different.

    However, these days fitness knowledge is spreading more and more through social media and the internet and sites such as mfp, new books, and magazines for heavy lifting women, friends sharing and talking.
  • phred_52
    phred_52 Posts: 189 Member
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    Because they all visit MFP, and knew it would be just another, uhm, comical topic.: yawn:

    I must say that when I need some chuckles, well, forums are awesome. :wink:

    But honestly, why does it matter what they do or don't do?

    Ok, sarcasm done.
  • ashberry86
    ashberry86 Posts: 6
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    my legs are boss and I'm at 220pounds but I'm very inexperienced with lifting in general. I want to but I'm embarrassed to try. Lack of training here
  • Blokeypoo
    Blokeypoo Posts: 274 Member
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    Deleted
  • shanaber
    shanaber Posts: 6,410 Member
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    For me personally it used to be intimidation plain and simple. I was not confident at all that I knew what I was doing to be able to lift at all let alone go heavy, I didn't want to look dumb or get hurt because I didn't have the correct form. However now that I have been lifting for almost 3 years, with direction from a really awesome trainer, I have the confidence to go into a gym and not be intimidated. I know what I need to do and how to do it. I do get looks - I am often the only woman and usually the oldest in the gym lifting. Its okay though because I feel great, love the way I look and am stronger than I have ever been. As someone else stated in an earlier post it is empowering to be able to do these things and do them well.
  • beautifulwarrior18
    beautifulwarrior18 Posts: 914 Member
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    Go to the store and open up a copy of SHAPE or Fitness Magazine. That's why women lift tiny weights.
  • spacelump
    spacelump Posts: 233 Member
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    I would feel a lot more confident in the weights section if every male in a 500 foot radius didn't feel the need to blatantly stare and make judgement. But, hey, that's just me.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    I would feel a lot more confident in the weights section if every male in a 500 foot radius didn't feel the need to blatantly stare and make judgement. But, hey, that's just me.

    who says they are making a judgement? Stare maybe but that probably has something to do with women usually not being there...

    I found it funny that this thread is here at the same time I saw a male here assume that because a poster was Deadlifting 200lbs it was a guy...:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

    He was corrected but there is something else...assumptions that women can't lift that heavy....please.
  • laurie04427
    laurie04427 Posts: 421 Member
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    I'm too weak to do a push up so yeah if you saw me in there I'd be sweating while I'm benching the bar.

    Not sure why someone stronger would lift lightly though.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
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    I wonder the same thing. It seems like a long, slow process that is a waste of time.

    So what you are saying is...if you don't lift heavy...you shouldn't lift at all?

    There are a few of us that would love to lift heavy...but due to some conditions...our bodies don't allow us to...so we lift...light. Maybe it is a waste of time...but I like doing it...so...

    I started with my "Barbie weights" at 3lbs. The 13lbs weights that I use now...feels heavy to me!
  • Elsie_Brownraisin
    Elsie_Brownraisin Posts: 786 Member
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    Does anyone on this site do this?

    Seriously, 'I'm the lone woman in the weights section', 'I am woman hear me grunt' threads, 'eat deficit, lift heavy, suck it, brah brah' appearing somewhere as an answer to almost every post. Surely there can be no-one who uses the community section who isn't aware of this subject and feels either smug or chastised.

    I do weight lift and use heavy weights (except for standing shoulder presses :grumble:), but don't give a toss what other people do. Unless they actively come up to me and have a go at me for it, I just don't care.
  • Betty_Rubble
    Betty_Rubble Posts: 117 Member
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    This is a great thread!
    For me, my answers are pretty simple:
    I would LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to go HEAVY!!!!
    1 - can't afford gym membership
    2 - can't afford necessary equipment for home gym

    I have dumbbells at home - using 15lbs (each hand) now, next week I'll be adding in some reps with 20lbs. I have a barbell and various weights, but no rack or anything like that.

    :angry:
  • Dalker
    Dalker Posts: 44 Member
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    No one actually ever told me I needed to and it never occurred to me since the 'women's area' of the gym is set up with little dumbbells and I very much doubt I ever saw a picture of a fit woman in a magazine using anything but the tiniest dumbbells.
  • mschicagocubs
    mschicagocubs Posts: 774 Member
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    No one actually ever told me I needed to and it never occurred to me since the 'women's area' of the gym is set up with little dumbbells and I very much doubt I ever saw a picture of a fit woman in a magazine using anything but the tiniest dumbbells.

    Who designates the small dumbbells are the the "women's area" ... women.

    I'm not at the point where I can grab 30 lb weights, but I'd like to. & no man or placing of small dumbbells is going to make me stop trying.
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
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    No one actually ever told me I needed to and it never occurred to me since the 'women's area' of the gym is set up with little dumbbells and I very much doubt I ever saw a picture of a fit woman in a magazine using anything but the tiniest dumbbells.

    there shouldn't even a be a women's area. Women train the same as men. I can understand the need for an area with smaller weights- people rehabbing need small weights.
    Children- need smaller weights
    people just starting out need smaller weight

    women do not inherently need smaller weights.
    It's actually considered resistance training more so than cardio. Yes it does ramp the heart up, but usually mostly only during the squat and clean and press sets.

    it's cardio. It's cardio with resistance- but it's still cardio.

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