Within the culture of fitness, a terrible myth has
been circulated. It jeopardizes the
potential for a woman to truly experience and enjoy everything that her body is
capable of doing. While it is slowly
being defeated among the female college, professional, and Olympic athletes;
this myth still runs rampant among the general population. Every day, thousands of women walk through
the doors of a local fitness club or head outdoors in pursuit of a healthier
body. Yet most remain, at best,
uninformed, and at worst, incorrectly educated into avoiding a true
body-reshaping activity: heavy strength training. I believe that there are three primary
reasons for this:
1.
Incredibly
poor representation in the media of how weightlifting will change the physical
appearance of a woman’s body.
2.
A
cultural misperception that a physically strong woman cannot be both strong and
beautiful.
3.
A lack
of proper education and instruction that dispels the first two reasons.
Let’s dive a little deeper into
those. Over that past thirty five years
or so, mainstream media, in particular body building magazines, have typically
shown women who are so muscular that they look manlier than most men. These publications feature women who professionally
compete as bodybuilders in national and international competitions. For these women, lifting weights is their
full time job. Many, but not all, of
these women use anabolic steroids as part of their training. It is because the average person gets their
information from these magazines that the idea that a woman will build massive
muscle size and look bulky like a man has become a false truth. And so, reason number two came into
existence: a woman who strength trains will end up looking like a man, and,
therefore, lose her beauty as a woman.
This is not true, and, unfortunately, many women have bought into this
lie because of reason number three.
If most women
avoid heavy weightlifting for fear of developing a masculine looking body they
do so without understanding a fundamental difference between the male and
female body. This difference makes it
impossible for a woman to naturally develop a man’s muscle size. There is a simple explanation for why men can
increase muscle size and strength while a woman can become incredibly strong
without developing the same muscle size.
The answer to this lies in the difference in testosterone levels between
men and women. Yes, women have some
testosterone, but the levels are seven to eight times lower than in men. A research study published in 2010 in the
Journal for Exercise and Sport Sciences found that the higher levels of
estrogen produced in women participating in heavy strength training contributed
to significant improvements in muscle strength, similar to what a man could
expect with the same training, but not muscle size. Women simply cannot increase the overall size
of their muscles to the extent that a man because of naturally lower levels of
testosterone.
Developing incredible physical strength while
remaining distinctly feminine and beautiful is not only possible; it is a
reality for any woman willing to take on the challenge. Women whom take on this challenge will discover
that physical strength enhances feminine beauty.
the majority
of women whom strength-train do so with incredibly light weights and perform
high numbers of repetitions. The flaw
with this type of training is that it places limits of physiology of the
muscles by only training one type of muscle fiber.
There are two
primary types of muscle fiber within the human body: slow-twitch and
fast-twitch. These are also referred to
as Type I and Type II muscle fibers.
Each type of muscle fiber responds to a different type of training. To maximize fitness and improve body
composition a comprehension training program must emphasize training that
incorporates the use of all muscle fibers at some point of the program.
Slow-twitch,
or Type I, muscle fibers produce low amounts of force during contraction, a
slow contraction speed, and have a high
aerobic capacity, which delays fatigue.
These fibers are best suited for long duration, cardiovascular based
exercise. The longer a particular
activity lasts the more these muscle fibers are utilized and trained. The muscles
receive energy from the aerobic oxidation system, one of three different energy
systems within the body. This is
important to understand because the aerobic oxidation system is the slowest
system for delivering energy to the muscle cells. These muscle fibers play the dominant role in
any cardiovascular-based exercise, like running or biking that lasts longer
than about two minutes. When lifting
weights this system is utilized any time the weight is light enough that more
than 12-15 repetitions can be completed within a single set. This is where the majority of women tend to
spend their time when weight training.
Keep this thought in mind: Type I muscle fibers typically only comprise
45-50% of the total muscle fibers within the human body. An example of a highly trained individual who
is predominantly Type I fibers would be an elite marathon runner.
Fast twitch,
or type II, fibers are more complex.
There are two subtypes of these fibers: fast twitch A and Fast Twitch
B. In general, fast twitch fiber are
capable of great force production, faster contractions, and power outputs than
Type I Fibers. These are the fibers that
are capable of big explosive, energetic bursts of strength and speed. Fast twitch B fibers operate using the ATP-Cr
energy system which provides the initial burst of energy for high intensity
physical activity. Activities like power
lifting, sprinting, plyometric training are fuelled primarily by this system
and rely on the fast twitch B fibers.
Targeting these muscle fibers when weight training requires using heavy
enough weight that about 1-6 repetitions are all that can be completed in a set
of any given exercise. Typically these
fibers are only engaged in high intensity activity lasting less than twenty
seconds.
Fast twitch A
fibers are slightly more inclined towards aerobic capacity than Fast twitch B
but both are less so than Type I fibers.
The fast twitch A fibers work using anaerobic glycolysis as an energy
system. This is the intermediate energy
system that supports activity lasting from approximately twenty seconds to two
minutes. When weightlifting these
muscle fibers tend to be recruited using moderate weights in which 7-12
repetitions may be completed. The
combination of Type II A and B fibers make up approximately half of the total
muscle fibers within the body.
So what does
this mean from a training standpoint? It
means that by training with light weights for a high number of repetitions
(more than 12 per set), or, just performing long duration low intensity cardio,
or, a combination of the two, trains only 45-50% of the body.
In other words, by neglecting the fast twitch
fibers, a woman leaves 50% of her body’s potential untapped!
Ladies, if you
are wondering why it is so difficult to change your body into the lean machine
you want, the answer is here: CHANGE THE WAY YOU TRAIN! Other than improving the quality of your
nutritional program nothing will change your body faster than specifically
targeting the half of your body that your current program is not touching. I am not sure who said this, but it is one of
the most accurate comments I have heard come out of the fitness community:
The only people who think women should not lift heavy weights are women
who fear effort and men who fear strong women.
Do not live your life, and especially, do not
determine your health by someone else’s misconceptions. Embrace the challenge of difficult exercises
with heavy weight: Power Cleans, Hang Cleans, Front Squats, Back Squats, and
Deadlifts. Get under the bar and get
results!
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