One of the most persistent myths some women have about strength training is that working out with weights will turn them into female hulks.
Unless a woman hits the gym with a vengeance, determined to look like the cover girl of a muscle magazine, it just won't happen. What can happen, though, is that she will end up with a firmer looking body.
Resistance training, as it is often called, helps a woman develop a stronger heart and stronger connective tissue. It helps control weight and offers protection against osteoporosis, a major debilitating disease that can happen in women after menopause.
Strength-training studies show that men and women can have a fairly similar increase in strength from resistance training, but women usually start out at a lower level in terms of strength. Most women just don't have the ability to have an increase in muscle size that men do.
The reasons are physiological and hormonal. The average man is taller and stronger than the average woman and, thus, generates more force. Men also produce about 10 times the testosterone of a woman. Testosterone affects the ability to increase muscle size (muscle hypertrophy). A woman who has a bigger body type or more testosterone may have a greater potential for strength and power development than other women.
Getting started
For most women, lifting weights 45 minutes twice a week won't turn you into a muscle-bound bodybuilder. You have to have the ability to tolerate a hard-training regimen to have a large increase in muscle size. Of course, check with your doctor first before you start an exercise program, especially if you have a medical problem, are very overweight, or have been in active for some time.
For those women interested in getting started with strength training, first finding someone qualified and experienced to help because it's more likely you will get a good program. There are a lot of trainers around who have minimal experience. Find out what kinds of certification they have.
The American College of Sports Medicine certifies instructors, and The American Council on Exercise allows visitors to search its site online for an ACE-certified personal trainer or group fitness class in their state.
It's always better to start off with resistance that's too easy than too hard. The most important goal is to learn proper technique. If you are straining and the weight is too much, the chance of injuring yourself is higher.
Once you have the pattern of working out and you have the technique down, increase the resistance. Choose a weight or resistance that makes your muscles tired at the end of that particular set of reps. You should never feel pain, but you should feel fatigued or feel the burn. You have to challenge your muscles. That's the way you get stronger.
Where and what to lift
There are lots of different ways to get stronger - dumb bells, calisthenics, weight machines, free weights, and stretch bands. Beginners often find it easier to use machines.
Strength training doesn't have to be done at a gym. It can be done in the home, with simple equipment, such as free weights and stretch bands, and perhaps with an added incentive of having a workout buddy or a workout tape.
Finally, women need to look at their schedule and find out when their workout would fit best.
This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.
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