Beginner's Fitness Programs

Today many women are interested in acquiring an excellent physique. Weight-training is almost as popular for women as it is for men. You can find many articles about women’s weight-training even in some of the fashion magazines! This doesn’t mean that you need to use heavy weights like men; weight-training routines for women have their own flavor.

The benefits of weight-training for women are tremendous. Moderate weight-training helps you stay young. It keeps the body’s hormones balanced, maintains high bone-density even after menopause, promotes a lower body weight by stimulating your metabolism, and gives you better posture and balance, which may prevent accidents and injuries. There is no reason to not start weight-training.

Some women worry about getting “big” like a man. Good luck! It won’t happen. Only one in 5,000 women has enough male hormones to develop that masculine muscle tone. Most women (4,999 out of 5,000 – probably including you), even working out 3 times harder, don’t get “buffed” like a man. Especially if you use lighter weights with more repetitions (see below), you get definition without beefing up.

So what are the major differences between women and men regarding weight- training? The most important concern is safety, especially of the joints. Women tend to have narrower bones, and some joints are more loosely connected than those of men. They also have an overall structural difference. For example, women’s hips are wider, and knees tend to bend inward (X legs). This is why more women get knee problems from running.

Because of these differences, lighter weights with more repetitions are far more preferable for women’s workouts, at least in the beginning. This does not mean that 50 bicep curls with 1-lb weights are necessarily adequate. You need to choose the weights so that you can do 14-20 reps. If you don’t feel the “burn”, you need to increase the weight.

It is also appropriate to do functional training using your own body weight. Your body is much heavier than you think, but not so heavy as to not be useful for your workout. Your body is a well-designed machine that is made to move, so as long as you use your body correctly, your joints will stay healthy, too. However, make sure that you work with a personal trainer and/or other fitness professional before doing a functional workout. If you do it wrong, it could be dangerous.

I also recommend joining a gym and attending a group class. Many women enjoy group classes far more than working out alone. The instructor of the class can also correct your mistakes. You can also make friends who will usually motivate you to keep training. There are even some specific beginning weight-training classes for women. If you cannot find a similar class, find a functional training class.

In any case, weight-training must be a part of all women’s fitness plan.

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