The 4 Biggest Misconceptions About Women’s Training Revealed!
Today I want to discuss the biggest misconceptions I face on a regular basis when assisting women with their fitness goals in the gym! Just changing two or three of these beliefs will have a massive positive impact on your workouts and your results GUARANTEED! So here we go..
Light Weights and High Repetitions “Tone” the Muscle
This is probably the biggest misconception going and really stops women achieving the body they truly desire. Light weights do diddly squat in terms of results! How long can you do an exercise with those little purple 1kg dumbbells? All day long I bet! What reason are you giving your muscle to change if you haven’t pushed it beyond its current capacity?
Let me explain ; The way the muscle works is it either gets smaller, gets bigger or stays the same. The body doesn’t understand “tone” so kick the idea of a “toning” workout out of your mindset. What people commonly refer to as “tone” is quite simply a combination of wanting a lower percentage of body fat with enough lean muscle on their frame so that they can clearly see the definition in their muscles. Light weights also do not help women lose weight (Or more importantly, BURN FAT!) What would be more effective leads me on to misconception number 2…
If Women Lift Heavy Weight’s They Will Get Bulky
Man, this is like a woman’s biggest fear! The amount of times I’ve headed over to show a woman a free weight exercise, I might as well be asking them to walk the plank! ‘Oh but I don’t want to get bulky!’, is their instant response.
Guess what? You won’t. Understand that a woman’s hormonal structure is completely different from a males. You have a tiny amount of testosterone compared to men and this is the main reason it would be near impossible for you to put on muscle mass at the rate a male normally can.
Would it really be that bad though if you put on a few pounds of lean muscle? It wouldn’t be and here’s why; The more lean muscle tissue you have on your body, the higher your metabolism will be. Therefore you will be burning more calories while you’re resting AND more importantly keep the fat off! (how many diets have you been on where you’ve lost weight and then put it straight back on afterwards? That’s because you probably lost a mixture of fat, water and muscle. When you lose muscle your metabolism slows!)
Finally, adding slightly more muscle to your frame will give you those sexy desirable curves along with great definition. More preferable to most women than the ‘soft’ look. So ladies, don’t fear the weights. Embrace them because they not only give women curves but also help women lose weight!
Cardio Work Needs To Be Light To Burn Fat
How many of you (men included here) do your cardio training in the gym whilst reading a paper or watching your favorite soap on the T.V? Be honest, do you think you’re working hard enough to force your body to change?
YOUR BODY WILL ONLY CHANGE IF IT IS SUBJECTED TO A LEVEL OF DISCOMFORT THAT IT HASN’T EXPERIENCED BEFORE!
Hence the importance of progression. This same principle remains for whether you’re trying to put on muscle or lose fat. If there is no progression from one of your workouts to the next then your body will see no need to change and therefore won’t!
So, if after your cardio workout you feel just a little flustered or you’ve just started breaking a sweat then I’m sorry, but you weren’t working hard enough. You’ve just maintained your fitness (or your body) rather than progressed it.
Now when I say you weren’t working hard enough, I’m not asking you to have a near death experience with your heart pounding out of your chest but just make small progressions to give your body a reason to change. These progressions can either be increased duration (I wouldn’t go any higher than 40-45 minutes unless you’re training for long distance) or intensity. Intensity being speed, incline, resistance etc. depending on the cardio machine you prefer.
Abs/Hips/Butt Need to be Trained Everyday To Help Women Lose Weight From That Area
An area of nuisance to most people is the stomach, hips and butt area. Unfortunately (or fortunately – You’ll find out why) the majority of gym goers are misguided into believing that the more you train these bodyparts, the more weight you will lose from that area. Let me clear one thing up for you
Training your abs will NOT stimulate weight loss from that area. It is not possible to reduce fat from a particular area by training it more.
Ab training will strengthen your abs and increase your core strength so it is still vitally important to do these exercises but you do not have to give it any more attention than your other body parts. Treat them as you would any other muscle group!
The best way to burn fat is cardio (not what most people want to hear, I know) at an intensity that will force your body into shifting that excess body fat by using it for energy. Interval training is fantastic for this reason and it also gives what is known as an ‘afterburn’ effect. Which means your body is still burning a higher amount of calories up to 48 hours afterwards (increased metabolism).
Bottom line – Don’t waste your time doing every variation of sit-up under the sun if your goal is fat loss. Your time could be better spent getting your heart rate up through cardio or fast paced circuit training that will keep your heart rate elevated. It’s impossible to spot reduce fat from a particular area (according to most experts and I’m from this school of thought too) so don’t worry too much about it. If you’re doing things right, you will lose fat. Fortunately, doing a million sit-ups a day is just not necessary.