There are so many benefits to resistance training for both men and women. However, what we’ve heard quite a number of ladies saying is that they refuse to start training with weights as they feel that they will become bulky and develop muscles – almost like a man’s – if they decide to take part in this form on exercise.
Nothing could be farther from the truth! In this article, we’ll take a look at why this is, what the benefits of weight training re in addition to what are the different forms of weight training. The design of the dumbbell set with rack makes it much easier to organize the weights by size.
What is weight training?
Weight training (which is also called strength training or resistance training) uses a form of resistance that counteracts against a muscle contraction in order to build muscle. Let’s use the bicep curl as an example:
• During this exercise, you take hold of two dumbbells – one in each hand. When you clasp the weights, your biceps contract because you’re holding the weights.
• As you lift the dumbbells towards your shoulders, the resistance of the dumbbell acts against the contraction of the muscle. In this way, your biceps become stronger.
A man’s body and a woman’s body are made up very differently:
• A man has more muscle than a woman does while a woman – owing to her body being designed to cushion and protect a foetus – has more fat stores. This means that a man bulks up quicker than a woman does.
• However, this is not to say that it’s impossible for a woman to bulk up in the same manner as a man. It just takes a lot longer for the results to show.
• Testosterone – which is the main hormone that a man has in his body – is responsible for developing muscle mass. While a woman does have testosterone in her body, she’ll develop muscle at a far slower rate than a man will be owing to her lack of this type of hormone.
What are the benefits of weight training?
There are a number of benefits that training with weights has for a person and their fitness levels. Some of these are the following:
• Increased lean muscle mass stores. Weight training helps to up a person’s lean muscle mass stores. Having this type of muscle in your body is important because it helps you to burn more fat when you’re at rest. This means that you don’t actively have to be working out to see the benefits once you have lean muscle mass stores.
• Your bone density will be increased thanks to resistance training. This is important as it helps you to ward off debilitating diseases – such as osteoporosis – in later life that make your bones brittle and more difficult to heal.
• Training with weights helps to increase the strength of your tendons and connective tissue in your body. This goes to helping you develop more internal body strength which – at the end of the day – will improve your overall health.
What are the different forms of weight training?
There are different ways that you can train with weights. Here are some of them.
Free weights and weight machines
The most obvious choice for weight lifting is to use free weights or weight machines. Some people shy away from this area of the gym because they feel intimidated and may almost be ‘looked down’ upon if they are seen to be performing an exercise in an incorrect manner.
If you feel this way, but have always wanted to give weight lifting ago using these weights, why not enlist the help of a personal trainer who will be able to steer you on the right path.
Kettlebells
Another great alternative for working out with weights is using kettlebells. This piece of equipment gives you a strength training workout in addition to a weight training one which makes it fantastic for people who are short of time but want the best results for their exercising.
Pilates
Instead of using external weights to achieve the results that you want to, Pilates uses a person’s own body weight to resist against all muscle contractions and thus build muscle strength and endurance. The great thing about Pilates is that there’s always an instructor that leads the class who will keep an eye on you should you have any questions about the various exercises.
If you’re not doing any form of weight training at the moment, you should! This type of exercise is suitable and beneficial for everyone. If you are unsure about how to perform any of the above exercises it is always good to consult with a qualified Personal Trainer to help you get over your exercise hurdles and prevent any injury you could possibly cause.