Women are often looking for that fountain of youth or the best and most effective way to lose weight and "tone up" and more often than not will embark on a health and fitness plan with an excessive amount of lettuce and cardio exercise to help them get there and they often over look weights training because they "don't want to get big" or "bulk up".
This is one of the biggest misconceptions in the health and fitness world that must have been sent out as propaganda by the weight lifting men so that women didn't show them up in the gym!!! For women, weights training NEEDS to be an essential part of their health and fitness program, with structured and regular weights sessions actually helping women to change their body shape for the better!!
Women do not have enough testosterone in their body and generally speaking do not eat enough to "Bulk Up" and as a result do not build muscle like men do! Weights training though is beneficial to achieve the ever elusive "toned up" look as it will help to build long lean muscle and decrease your body fat-allowing you to see the muscles under the skin! The main benefit to weights training though is that it builds and maintains muscle and this is the key element to increasing your metabolism, even when you are at rest, with an increased lean muscle mass your metabolism will burn more energy. The more muscle you have the greater your capacity to store carbohydrates which means you can eat more carbs without them being converted into fat.
Another key reason for women doing weights training is the ability for weights training to help prevent the on set of Osteoporosis-a condition that affects 1.2 million Australians-with three quarters of that number being women (according to Osteoporosis Australia). Weights training helps to build bone density and stimulates cell growth and calcium deposits.
Finally, other benefits to weights training include; increased strength and everyday functional capability, reduced blood pressure, lower risk of developing Type II diabetes, Healthier joints, and a delayed aging process!!
So, ladies-for a couple of sessions a week-step away from the treadmill and start lifting some weights to reap the benefits that weights training can provide and ensure you have a well rounded health and fitness plan delivering the results you're after!
