Strength training
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Joannavictoriaashley
Posts: 21 Member
Here's a great article by Nia Shanks from Girls Gone Strong, about the benefits of weight training for women. The original article can be found here: http://beautifullyhardcore.com/2011/11/7-reasons-why-women-should-strength-train/
The title of this article is 7 Reasons Why Women Should Strength Train. I want you to pay attention and focus on the last two words of the title – strength train.
I could have easily used other words instead of “strength train” such as workout, exercise, lift weights, or numerous other words or phrases. However, I chose “strength train” for several reasons that will be revealed below.
To “strength train” or “train for strength” means to train with the purpose of getting stronger.
1) Increase self-confidence
Most women aren’t aware of the physical strength they truly possess. However, once they increase their strength and start squatting and deadlifting well over their bodyweight, or busting out flawless sets of push-ups, inverted rows, chin-ups and parallel bar dips, they become of aware of their true abilities.
It’s very common for this newfound realization in the weight room to carry-over into everyday life as well. Getting stronger and doing physical feats you didn’t know were possible will teach you “what you are made of” and increase your self confidence to new levels.
Yes, it will be challenging and you’ll have to work hard and train consistently, but you will be able to perform chin-ups with your bodyweight. You will be able to deadlift twice your bodyweight. It can happen, and it will as long as you train hard and train smart.
2) Build the body you really want.
Hours of cardio every week is not the best way to build a lean and strong body. Most women want to slim down; they want lower levels of body fat and feminine curves. Unfortunately when most women decide to start exercising, they automatically start doing hours of cardio each and every week. If they do “strength train”, it usually consists of machines or dumbbell exercises with very light weight for high reps.
If you want to shed body fat, build some rockin’ feminine curves and look better in (and out of) your clothes, then you need to lift weights (barbells, dumbbells, your bodyweight, kettlebells, etc) and get stronger.
Check out this video of me and my Girls Gone Strong crew. Every lady in this video has amazing shoulders, arms, midsections, butts, and legs. These bodies were built from barbell exercises like snatches, cleans, squats, deadlifts, presses, and bodyweight exercises such as push-ups, parallel bar dips, pull-ups, and kettlebell training.
Don’t listen to the cardio queens; strength training is how you build a strong, healthy, and lean body.
3) Leads to positive goals
If you strength train with the primary goal of improving your performance in the gym, you are setting yourself up for success. Too many women enter the gym, mount a piece of cardio equipment, and track the calories burned that are displayed by the machine. That becomes their only focus and concern in the gym – burning calories.
Unlike cardio, strength training is a great way to set positive, motivating goals that will keep you going to the gym week after week, month after month, and year after year. And not to mention, allow you to achieve the body transforming results you’re after.
Don’t focus on going to the gym just to burn fat and calories. Instead set performance goals for yourself and adjust your strength training program accordingly. Train hard and make it a goal to bust out sets of push-ups and chin-ups with your bodyweight. Strive to squat and deadlift 1.5 times your bodyweight.
Once you achieve some of those performance goals, your body will have transformed, and you’ll enjoy the journey it took to get there.
Enter the gym and think about nothing but beating your previous workout. Last week you may have squatted 110 pounds for six reps. This week squat that same 110 pounds for seven reps, or add weight and squat 100 pounds for eight reps. Whatever you do, improve your performance!
Here is a sample progression using the squat example:
Week 1 – Squat 110x3x6 (110 pounds, 3 sets, 6 reps each set)
Week 2 – Squat 110x3x7
Week 3 – Squat 1115x3x6
Week 4 – Squat 115x3x7
This particular benefit is something I am very passionate about and a key point I stress to all of my clients. Even if your only concern is losing body fat and looking better in a swimsuit, you should still set positive, motivating performance goals in the weight room.
4) Stress relief
Once you’re deadlifting and/or squatting twice your bodyweight, you won’t get overwhelmed or upset by the little things. So what if your coworker made a stupid comment at work – you can deadlift twice your bodyweight, for reps.
Long day at work that didn’t go quite as planned? Get in the gym, follow your training program, and beat last week’s workout. Strength training is a great way to relieve some stress in a positive and productive manner. After setting some personal records in the gym, you may have completely forgotten about what upset you to begin with.
5) Leading by example
Training for strength, improving your health, and becoming the best you possible is a great way to teach the generations behind us; leading by example is much more powerful than words. This is something to keep in mind if you have daughters – show them that women can be physically strong. Show them that you go to the gym to build strength and improve your performance because you have positive goals.
Don’t let the generations behind you think all that matters is getting skinny and losing body fat. Show them the more positive, rewarding journey of strength training.
6) Because other methods for building a better body have failed
Many of my clients have come to me as a “last resort”. They have tried other methods of losing fat (fad diets, popular workouts, gimmick exercise machines, etc) that left them stressed, frustrated, burned out, and with less money in their wallets.
When they give me the reins and allow me to teach them how to properly strength train, they finally start achieving the goals they’ve longed for and in much less time than they thought was necessary. Forget the fads and gimmicks – improving your performance through strength training is the real way to get results.
7) To prevent diseases such as osteopenia and osteoporosis.
It’s is very important for women to participate in load bearing activities, especially as we get older, to prevent these conditions and diseases.
This just goes to show that strength training has benefits beyond the aesthetic realm. Sure, lifting weights and getting stronger will allow you to look better naked, but it can also greatly improve your health and quality of life. Do not lose sight of this important fact.
The title of this article is 7 Reasons Why Women Should Strength Train. I want you to pay attention and focus on the last two words of the title – strength train.
I could have easily used other words instead of “strength train” such as workout, exercise, lift weights, or numerous other words or phrases. However, I chose “strength train” for several reasons that will be revealed below.
To “strength train” or “train for strength” means to train with the purpose of getting stronger.
1) Increase self-confidence
Most women aren’t aware of the physical strength they truly possess. However, once they increase their strength and start squatting and deadlifting well over their bodyweight, or busting out flawless sets of push-ups, inverted rows, chin-ups and parallel bar dips, they become of aware of their true abilities.
It’s very common for this newfound realization in the weight room to carry-over into everyday life as well. Getting stronger and doing physical feats you didn’t know were possible will teach you “what you are made of” and increase your self confidence to new levels.
Yes, it will be challenging and you’ll have to work hard and train consistently, but you will be able to perform chin-ups with your bodyweight. You will be able to deadlift twice your bodyweight. It can happen, and it will as long as you train hard and train smart.
2) Build the body you really want.
Hours of cardio every week is not the best way to build a lean and strong body. Most women want to slim down; they want lower levels of body fat and feminine curves. Unfortunately when most women decide to start exercising, they automatically start doing hours of cardio each and every week. If they do “strength train”, it usually consists of machines or dumbbell exercises with very light weight for high reps.
If you want to shed body fat, build some rockin’ feminine curves and look better in (and out of) your clothes, then you need to lift weights (barbells, dumbbells, your bodyweight, kettlebells, etc) and get stronger.
Check out this video of me and my Girls Gone Strong crew. Every lady in this video has amazing shoulders, arms, midsections, butts, and legs. These bodies were built from barbell exercises like snatches, cleans, squats, deadlifts, presses, and bodyweight exercises such as push-ups, parallel bar dips, pull-ups, and kettlebell training.
Don’t listen to the cardio queens; strength training is how you build a strong, healthy, and lean body.
3) Leads to positive goals
If you strength train with the primary goal of improving your performance in the gym, you are setting yourself up for success. Too many women enter the gym, mount a piece of cardio equipment, and track the calories burned that are displayed by the machine. That becomes their only focus and concern in the gym – burning calories.
Unlike cardio, strength training is a great way to set positive, motivating goals that will keep you going to the gym week after week, month after month, and year after year. And not to mention, allow you to achieve the body transforming results you’re after.
Don’t focus on going to the gym just to burn fat and calories. Instead set performance goals for yourself and adjust your strength training program accordingly. Train hard and make it a goal to bust out sets of push-ups and chin-ups with your bodyweight. Strive to squat and deadlift 1.5 times your bodyweight.
Once you achieve some of those performance goals, your body will have transformed, and you’ll enjoy the journey it took to get there.
Enter the gym and think about nothing but beating your previous workout. Last week you may have squatted 110 pounds for six reps. This week squat that same 110 pounds for seven reps, or add weight and squat 100 pounds for eight reps. Whatever you do, improve your performance!
Here is a sample progression using the squat example:
Week 1 – Squat 110x3x6 (110 pounds, 3 sets, 6 reps each set)
Week 2 – Squat 110x3x7
Week 3 – Squat 1115x3x6
Week 4 – Squat 115x3x7
This particular benefit is something I am very passionate about and a key point I stress to all of my clients. Even if your only concern is losing body fat and looking better in a swimsuit, you should still set positive, motivating performance goals in the weight room.
4) Stress relief
Once you’re deadlifting and/or squatting twice your bodyweight, you won’t get overwhelmed or upset by the little things. So what if your coworker made a stupid comment at work – you can deadlift twice your bodyweight, for reps.
Long day at work that didn’t go quite as planned? Get in the gym, follow your training program, and beat last week’s workout. Strength training is a great way to relieve some stress in a positive and productive manner. After setting some personal records in the gym, you may have completely forgotten about what upset you to begin with.
5) Leading by example
Training for strength, improving your health, and becoming the best you possible is a great way to teach the generations behind us; leading by example is much more powerful than words. This is something to keep in mind if you have daughters – show them that women can be physically strong. Show them that you go to the gym to build strength and improve your performance because you have positive goals.
Don’t let the generations behind you think all that matters is getting skinny and losing body fat. Show them the more positive, rewarding journey of strength training.
6) Because other methods for building a better body have failed
Many of my clients have come to me as a “last resort”. They have tried other methods of losing fat (fad diets, popular workouts, gimmick exercise machines, etc) that left them stressed, frustrated, burned out, and with less money in their wallets.
When they give me the reins and allow me to teach them how to properly strength train, they finally start achieving the goals they’ve longed for and in much less time than they thought was necessary. Forget the fads and gimmicks – improving your performance through strength training is the real way to get results.
7) To prevent diseases such as osteopenia and osteoporosis.
It’s is very important for women to participate in load bearing activities, especially as we get older, to prevent these conditions and diseases.
This just goes to show that strength training has benefits beyond the aesthetic realm. Sure, lifting weights and getting stronger will allow you to look better naked, but it can also greatly improve your health and quality of life. Do not lose sight of this important fact.
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