WOMEN - WEIGHT TRAINING?

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EthanJeremiahsMama
EthanJeremiahsMama Posts: 534 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hey ladies! I understand that weight training is a huge important factor towards weight loss as far as decreasing your body fat. Which I'm trying to do and not bulk up! What are some really good weight training excercises? The only ones I honestly know are just lifting weights.. LOL. I'm so new to weight training but I try to lift for at least 10-15 minutes!
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Replies

  • ambermichon
    ambermichon Posts: 404 Member
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    I have been lifting for 2 years....whole body....you cannot spot train so you need full body. I started light and now lift pretty heavy. Its very difficult for a girl to get bulky, but you will get sculpted, defined muscles that keep burning fat after you are done working out. I would never have it any other way and am happy I started doing this day one! :-)
  • shantie10
    shantie10 Posts: 62 Member
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    I do a weight lifting class ....with music and an instructor....45 mins and during lunch hr..LOVE IT! I see muscles where I never knew I had them...:)
  • sunshineshica
    sunshineshica Posts: 277
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    I have been lifting for 2 years....whole body....you cannot spot train so you need full body. I started light and now lift pretty heavy. Its very difficult for a girl to get bulky, but you will get sculpted, defined muscles that keep burning fat after you are done working out. I would never have it any other way and am happy I started doing this day one! :-)

    So how long did it take for you to see results when you started?
  • dragonbug300
    dragonbug300 Posts: 760 Member
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    Start with weights that you can do 16-20 reps and NO MORE. (I'd suggest 10-15lbs)

    Here's what I did to get used to it:
    20 reps bicep curls
    20 lunges
    20 bent over rows (or 20 for each arm in the lunge position)
    20 squats
    20 overhead tricep extensions
    20 plie squats (toes pointed out, feet wider apart)
    20 chest press

    Start with going through this once, then move to two rounds. Then 3. When you can do 3 rounds of this, it's time to increase the weight and lower the reps to 16 instead of 20.

    Keep with this for 1-2 months and when you're finally in the groove of weight lifting, change up the routine!

    ** PLEASE look up proper form before doing any of this, too. The back should never arch, the spine should be straight, abs tight, and don't let the shoulders ride up to your ears.
  • lcamanda
    lcamanda Posts: 28
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    To build muscle, you also need more calories than your "maintence level" amount. It takes energy to build muscle so dieting (calorie defecit) and muscle building don't really work well together.

    I like to break it up into a 6 day schedule. chest/arms, legs, rest, back/shoulders, rest, rest. I've heard you really don't need to (and shouldn't as rest is also important for muscle growth) work out the same group more than once every 36-48 hours.

    It has been a long time since I've gotten any advice, though, so I'm sure somebody more knowledgable will be around shortly!

    Have fun!
  • tradykstra
    tradykstra Posts: 3
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    I'm a group exercise Instructor and from my experience, most women do not bulk up by lifting weights. If you're worried about it, you can do lower weights with higher reps (in other words, lighter weights but more reps).
  • tradykstra
    tradykstra Posts: 3
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    Totally agree with that quote!!!! It is so true! Good job!
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
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    I have a trainer that has showed me a lot.. and I try to do at least 1-2 exercises that will target each muscle group.

    I generally do twice a week:
    Lunges
    Squats
    Bicep Curls
    Planks
    Chest Press
    Tri Cep Dip
    Seated Row
    Leg Press
    Pull Ups

    And then I turn into jello :) that whole thing takes me about 35-40 minutes.
  • duckpond11
    duckpond11 Posts: 197 Member
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    I recommend the book "The New Rules of Lifting for Women". It has 6 months of plans for you to follow.
  • rachmaree
    rachmaree Posts: 782 Member
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    Check out a book called the new rules of lifting for women.
    It is quite difficult for MOST women to get bulky from lifting weights (I say that because if I mention absolutes, someone will want to argue that they got bulky from lifting weights).
    To build muscle you really need to eat at a calorie surplus, but it can help with fat loss also.
    The person who suggested 16-20 reps... personally I think that is FAR too high, I'd go more for 6-12 reps with most exercises, lifting a weight that is heavy enough to be challenging, and hard to do those last couple of reps. You can check out simplyshredded.com, there is a great section on womens fitness there. I lift weights 5 days a week, I love lifting :)
    I usually do biceps and triceps twice a week, legs once but calves twice, shoulders and back once a week, and abs whenever I feel like it. If you haven't done much weight lifting before, you'll notice the effects quickly- in a good way!
  • tomomatic
    tomomatic Posts: 1,794 Member
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    My wife used to lift and now does indoor rock climbing. She has never bulked up at all. She complains about sore arms after alot of climbing but that's about it.

    It takes a lot to bulk up. Hugh Jackman had to eat a meal every 3 hours and then burn off that meal so that he could put on extra bulk for the Wolverine movie. Even then, he lost that extra muscle quickly when he went back to his old routine. Adding significant bulk requires a drastic change to eating and workout.

    Exercises with weights is proven to burn more fat than cardio alone. If you are concerned about bulk, then go for more repetition with lighter weights instead of heavier weights. Lightweight resistance bands are surprisingly handy.
  • Kath712
    Kath712 Posts: 1,263 Member
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    I recommend the book "The New Rules of Lifting for Women". It has 6 months of plans for you to follow.

    I'm doing this now and LOVE it! Explains everything you need to know, including nutrition to go along with the strength training.
  • johnwhitent
    johnwhitent Posts: 648 Member
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    Hi, I'm a guy just dropping in to say congrats to all you ladies for doing strength training. There are many benefits to strength training beyond weight loss, such as increasing bone density. Most of you are probably too young to be thinking much about it but in years to come you will be glad that you began strength training early. Aging is lousy, but being feeble and brittle is (largely) avoidable. So congrats to you all; keep up the good work!
  • LeslieMartina
    LeslieMartina Posts: 160 Member
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    I have the New Rules of Lifting, but I also like the Women's Health Big Book of Exercises. It's full of color pictures that show you exactly what position you should be in and has suggested workouts. I also like the Jillian Michaels No More Trouble Zones DVD.
  • FitCoachJen
    FitCoachJen Posts: 139 Member
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    You have to eat above maintenance levels to put on muscle mass. You will not bulk up. It's incredibly difficult for women to gain significant muscle mass due to lower testosterone levels (to oversimplify things).

    Do you want to get stronger? Lift heavy weights @ 3-5 sets for 3-5 reps
    Gain muscle mass? Do 3-4 sets @ 9-12 reps
    Muscular endurance? 2-3 sets @ 12-20 reps

    You may look "bulky" if you've still got fat to lose and you're not careful with you calories. If you're eating at a surplus you may put on muscle underneath the fat.

    exrx.net is my go-to for planning workouts, along with Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle (Tom Venuto's e-book).

    I'd advise doing full-body workouts over a split routine for now. Hit the following muscle groups every workout: chest, back, abs, shoulders, arms, glutes, legs.

    I.e: pick one exercise from each muscle group:
    Chest - push ups, bench press, incline press
    Back - pull up, chin up, bodyweight row, seated row
    Abs - sit-ups, side crunch, v-up, crunch on bakk
    Shoulders - Arnold press, lateral raise, overhead press, bent-over row
    Arms - tricep dip, tricep pushdown, bicep curl, preacher curl
    Glutes & legs - good morning, deadlift, squat, lunge

    I prefer to do multi-joint exercises over a single joint whenever possible because it'll burn more calories. Chin-ups work your back, shoulders, and arms (versus just doing a bicep curl). Then again, if you're aiming for strength gains you'll probably want to do concentration curls for your biceps.

    Hope this helps :-)
  • katekrise
    katekrise Posts: 178 Member
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    You'd have to work REALLY hard to "bulk up". Women don't have the testosterone for that.
  • agthorn
    agthorn Posts: 1,844 Member
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    I recommend the book "The New Rules of Lifting for Women". It has 6 months of plans for you to follow.

    I just bought this book - it's coming in the mail today!
  • ambermichon
    ambermichon Posts: 404 Member
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    I have been lifting for 2 years....whole body....you cannot spot train so you need full body. I started light and now lift pretty heavy. Its very difficult for a girl to get bulky, but you will get sculpted, defined muscles that keep burning fat after you are done working out. I would never have it any other way and am happy I started doing this day one! :-)

    So how long did it take for you to see results when you started?
    I had lost an amazing # of inches in 30 days even though I hadnt lost any real weight. Most people think I weigh about 15 lbs less than I do and I attribute that to weights. Now that I have my diet under control and I am getting rid of the fat I am seeing a lot more muscle definition which is what I want. If you havent done it...try it...you wont be disappointed!
  • Lisa__Michelle
    Lisa__Michelle Posts: 845 Member
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    Bodybuilding.com is where I go to makeup my workouts!!
  • manjingirl
    manjingirl Posts: 188 Member
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    I do cardio and weight training - I aim for at least 3 days a week weights and 5-6 cardio 30-45 minutes. I go to the local gym and they will prepare for me a new program every 6-8 weeks if I want. I LOVE weight training, I've been doing it for about 2 years now and haven't bulked up at all, definitely got much stronger and have better muscle definition. Getting good advice at the start helped me to avoid injury and keep going. I do a combination of machine and free weight exercises and when I'm at the farm working I do alot of body weight exercises.

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