Women lifting heavy question

Woman who truly get bulky...1) are genetic outliers; 2) have a spot on body building diet and eat a surplus of calories (it is scientifically impossible to build any significant muscle mass at a calorie deficit); 3) Do a lot more than hit the weight room for 30 minutes to an hour a few times per week...these people pretty much live in the gym; 4) take a lot of supplements, including hormones like testosterone; 5) are often on steroids or other HGH supplements. Also, these women work out to body build for YEARS....not a few months or something.

Stop worrying about something that is NOT going to happen to you in a million years. A dude with reasonably good genetics who has a spot on diet and really hits the weight room hard will maybe...possibly...if he's lucky put on about 6 Lbs of actual muscle mass in a year...if he's lucky. Unless you're some kind of genetic outlier, it's not going to happen so stop the madness and stop doing 100 reps of stuff.

Every body is different - but i do agree with the geneic outlier comment from a previous poster. When I started lifting the first thing I noticed was my shoulder got broader and more obviously muscled...but, it is feminine and not bulky and my bra straps no longer slide off my shoulders! (bonus!)

Woman who truly get bulky...1) are genetic outliers; 2) have a spot on body building diet and eat a surplus of calories (it is scientifically impossible to build any significant muscle mass at a calorie deficit); 3) Do a lot more than hit the weight room for 30 minutes to an hour a few times per week...these people pretty much live in the gym; 4) take a lot of supplements, including hormones like testosterone; 5) are often on steroids or other HGH supplements. Also, these women work out to body build for YEARS....not a few months or something.

Stop worrying about something that is NOT going to happen to you in a million years. A dude with reasonably good genetics who has a spot on diet and really hits the weight room hard will maybe...possibly...if he's lucky put on about 6 Lbs of actual muscle mass in a year...if he's lucky. Unless you're some kind of genetic outlier, it's not going to happen so stop the madness and stop doing 100 reps of stuff.

This x a million!! and you sir are awesome!

Once again, I think it would be beneficial to see an example of what you would like to end up looking like and what you would like to avoid.

Genetics have a major role to play as well as diet. Some women will naturally look bulkier while others will have the same strength abilities but look more petite. It's mostly genetics but in most cases you will just get more definition of the muscle unless you purposely are trying to gain mass

I think these answers in a FAQ answer this well.

*Myth: Women will get bulky if they lift heavy things*
While some things are different for women than they are for men (where your body tends to store fat, how quickly you'll lose body fat, how quickly you'll add muscle, etc.) pretty much everything in this FAQ applies equally to women and men. How to lose body fat, how to add muscle, how to get fit, how to "tone up"...the principles are same for both women and men.

Some women are averse to heavy weights because they don't want to "bulk up" or "look like a dude". However, most women will never get as bulky as guys because they lack sufficient testosterone. The female professional athletes you see with "toned" arms are more indicative of what is possible without drugs.

*Myth: Lifting weights is going to make me huge like a bodybuilder*
Putting on muscle is not easy. It takes years of dedicated work. It is insulting to the people who do this on purpose to think you could get to the same level accidentally. Unless you're specifically training to "be huge" you're not going to accidentally get huge. And even if you find yourself getting bigger than you'd like, you can always stop working out to reverse these effects.

source: http://www.reddit.com/r/Fitness/wiki/faq

I actually like the 100 reps class, and am seeing some results from it (it's a toning class), but I was more thinking of adding free weights and lifting heavy when I can't get to the classes.

I am not looking for an excuse not to lift heavy, if I was, I wouldn't have asked for help. I was just looking for advice, since I have seen some women who are fairly bulky, and it's something I wanted to avoid. These are not women who have bodybuilder physiques, but have bigger/stronger looking biceps than I would like.

Sorry but there is no such thing as 'toning' lool your just losing fat and your muscle is more defined because of that. Secondly if you are eating at a calorie deficit you will not "build" muscle and get bulky, you will be maintaining the lean muscle mass you already have. Lastly those women with bodybuilder physiques have been training for years, with supplements and hormones. Iris impossible for a women to gain that kinda mass in a short period of time and without hardcore training and supplements

You aren't going to look like that without major effort. Maybe I just work out at Average Joe's, but I still have never seen any women like that at my gym.

Besides, it's not like you lift on day, go to bed, and wake up like that. If you see yourself getting to a point you don't like then cut back.

I am sure I am going to get me some nasty remarks for this...lol. But for ME, and my preference, this is just a TINY bit too bulky.

(snip)

EDITED TO ADD: I would never call anyone's preference "gross" or "disgusting". It's not my place to judge anyone, inside or out. We all strive to make ourselves whatever we wish to become, and no one has any right to knock someone else for that. I would rather not be quite so "built" as this, but I don't think there's anything wrong with it. Obviously she worked hard to get there, and is proud of it. We should all be able to feel that way about ourselves.

You won't get any nasty comments for saying that's not your preference, at least not from me.

What we often see here though is a much less tasteful approach to discussing preferences.

She looks like that because she worked hard, built muscle, and got her body fat percentage pretty low. If you keep a higher body fat percentage you won't be cut like that. If you don't eat at a surplus you won't build that much muscle, unless you are one of the aforementioned genetic outliers.

You got some good advice here. Take a look at my pictures if you want to see a feminine girl who lifts weights. I am 110 pounds, so I don't think I have the weight to be bulky. :laugh: But I certainly pick up the heavier dumbbells and barbells, and I'm not afraid to do so.

There are a couple of girls I know who look like the pic you showed, and these girls 1) workout 1-2 hours every day (Crossfit girls) and 2) eat a LOT and take supps - I consider myself an average joe lifter, I lift for health and to look hot, I don't eat enough to build that kind of muscle, but I lift in similar style to these girls I know.

It truly comes down to what you are eating. If you're not eating enough (i.e. bulk eating), you're not going to develop muscle like that. PERIOD.

It's also worth saying that you are not going to just wake up one morning with huge muscles. There are many many days between the first day of lifting and the day you look like that model. Muscles aren't going to sneak up on you.

You won't get any nasty comments for saying that's not your preference, at least not from me.

What we often see here though is a much less tasteful approach to discussing preferences.

She looks like that because she worked hard, built muscle, and got her body fat percentage pretty low. If you keep a higher body fat percentage you won't be cut like that. If you don't eat at a surplus you won't build that much muscle, unless you are one of the aforementioned genetic outliers.

This answers my question, and doesn't make me feel like an idiot for asking. Thank you.

Good I'm glad. Good luck reaching your goals! :flowerforyou:

I lift heavy. There's a pic of me in workout clothes after a lifting session in my pics. It has definitely changed my shape, and for the better. If you bulk, it's because you're eating more than you're burning.

I am sure I am going to get me some nasty remarks for this...lol. But for ME, and my preference, this is just a TINY bit too bulky.

This won't happen without an extreme amount of effort and very careful (bulk and cut cycles) diet.

^^This, also keep in mind that this woman probably competes, is show-ready in this picture and is flexing. On a normal day, outside of competition, not even she looks like this. Never mind, that this is a professional photo, likely photo-shopped a bit.