Muscle Up Like a Girl

I met a coworker in the gym the other day and she commented that she would like to lift weights more, but she doesn't want to get big and bulky. This is, by far, the most common myth I hear from other women. Unfortunately, the media gives us the idea that women end up looking like the Incredible Hulk, when in fact, our bodies do not make enough free testosterone to stimulate that type of muscle growth. Women DO have testosterone, as it is one of the many hormones that is including in the delicate balancing acts within our endocrine systems, but men have more free testosterone, or testosterone that is not "bound" to the sexual system, which gives the muscles more of that hormone that increases the rebuilding of muscle tissue that has been broken down (by weight lifting, for example.) Women have less free testosterone, so our muscles do not get the same build-up. Having said that, there are pictures a-plenty on the internet or in magazines of women who are bulked up...can you say anabolic steroids? That is, in fact, the only way a woman would get this type of muscle mass.

On the other hand, lifting does help strengthen and tone the muscles you do have. Muscles need more fuel than fat does, so you get an increased caloric burn since your muscles will need to feed. The pitfall with this is not lifting and then assuming you can eat whatever you want since "the muscles will burn this off!" This is not the case. A good strength training program in combination with aerobic activity is often times the best way to burn calories. Creating a deficit is what encourages the body to burn off fat stores. Healthy eating (not dieting!) is the best way to increase this as well. The best motivation I have is browsing through the Oxygen Magazine website and looking at the healthy, fit models (not super skinny, anorexics!).

I may never actually look like those models, but I do know that strength training has helped me "see" more of my muscle and has helped me do things that maybe I wouldn't have been able to do before. One night I was at the grocery store, the parking lot was semi-dark since some of the streetlights weren't working and a woman and her small child were putting groceries in the car when she dropped her car keys. The car was unlocked, but obviously, she couldn't go anywhere. She couldn't see the keys and didn't have a spare. My husband and I asked if we could help and we she mentioned that she thought the keys had fallen underneath the car, I immediately and without thinking, dropped down into a pushup plank position and held it (it had been raining and the lot was wet, so I didn't want to get wet!) until I could locate the keys. Then I was able to reach out with one hand, while holding my position, and grab them. She was grateful, needless to say. I felt awesome because I had just proven to myself that all that strength training paid off in a functional way (Rar! Go, Me!).

Finally, strength training is a weight bearing exercise that can help women, particularly those in peri-menopause or menopause who are worried about losing bone mass.

So, get your butts in the gym (strength training can help the butt too!)