5 Reasons for Women to Start Weight Training

I can't believe how often I still women saying that they don't weight train. It's not that these women don't weight train because they just don't work out at all, no, these are women who exercise regularly but do not find it necessary or important to include weight training in their workout program. Well ladies, that's just nuts. Weight training is the ideal form of exercise to benefit the female body. Any woman hoping to stay strong, lose weight quickly, look toned and shapely, and stay active into her senior years should absolutely be participating in a resistance training workout plan.

1) Boost your metabolism. Women have a harder time than men do losing body fat. The female body wants to hold onto fat, because it still thinks it's starving in the wilderness with a bunch of hungry mouths to feed. Well, while times may have changed, our bodies haven't gotten the memo. Weight training is the perfect solution to our biological disadvantage when it comes to metabolism. Increasing your muscle mass, increases your resting metabolic rate. That means that you'll be burning more calories even while you sleep. And don't worry about getting bulked up. Do you have any idea how hard you'd have to train to build the big bulky muscles you're thinking of? It's not exactly something you can do by accident. If you're still not convinced, just think of it this way. For every pound of muscle you put on your body, that's 30-50 more calories you can eat every single day. I say, pump it up and chow down ladies!

2 ) Improve your posture. Ever noticed how much thinner you look when you stand up straight and suck in your tummy? Resistance training is an easy way to improve your posture and protect your back. As women get older, back pain is one of the most widely reported age related problems. Strengthening your stomach muscles and shoulders is a great way to support your back and keep yourself pain-free for years to come.

Resistance training is also an excellent way to protect your joints from daily wear and tear. Weight training can help to prevent crippling conditions such as arthritis, and it can save you money by helping to prevent you from needing a knee or hip replacement down the road. Muscle is the special equipment your body needs for increased endurance, agility, and balance. Being stronger means you can try new activities with far less fear of injury.

3) Reduce stress and feel better. Those of you familiar with the runner's high shouldn't discount weight training. A good weight training workout can release tension and leave you feeling relaxed and energized. Studies have linked resistance training to improving or decreasing occurrences of depression, and it may even slow the cognitive aging process. Adding resistance training to your weekly workouts may also help you sleep better. Getting enough sleep has, on its own, been linked to weight loss. And as far as self-esteem, few experiences can boost your confidence like lifting more weight than you ever thought you could!


4) Tone up. Weight loss through cardio training can certainly help you lose weight and get skinnier, but weight training is the only kind of exercise that can actually change the shape and proportion of your body. Without resistance training you'll always lose weight in the same spots, but for someone like me with a pear shape, I can use resistance training to balance out my body by building up my shoulders and back. Resistance training can give us a much needed booty lift, and it can even make a woman's bust look bigger and firmer. Best of all, you can begin to see the results of your weight training program even before you really start taking off the fat. In other words, as your muscles start to form, they'll make even your chubbiest parts start to look firmer and shapelier. People will swear you've lost weight, even if you haven't.

5) Prevent Osteoporosis. As women we face the special challenge of protecting our bones from deterioration associated with Osteoporosis. Calcium can help us to build up our bones when we're young, but other than medication, weight training is the only known way to actually increase bone density as we get older. That's right! Weight training makes your bones thicker and stronger. After seeing my grandmothers suffer with Osteoporosis, that's reason enough for me.

Resistance training is an absolutely indispensable tool for women. It improves our bodies and our well being in countless ways. If you've never weight trained before start slowly. We're lucky these days. There are literally thousands of DVDs, websites, books, and magazines available that can help you to put together your very first resistance training routine. So start lifting yourself healthy!