Lee Crompton

Should Men and Women Train the Same

The majority of women involved in fitness or trying to acheive weight loss train wrong. That’s a bold statement, but it comes from seeing a lot of failed efforts from women who are truly getting frustrated with their bodies and the information available to them.

Because of old-fashioned stereotypes and outdated myths, women’s fitness has suffered an undeserved blow. The truth is that women who practice the same well-designed strength training programs as men benefit from bone and soft-tissue modeling, increased lean body mass, decreased fat and enhanced self-confidence in exactly the same way as a man would. The only difference is that a man will put on muscle mass faster and easier because of hormonal differences. Strength training for women should be the same as for men.

Women should strength train in the same ways as men, using the same program designs, exercises, intensities and volumes, relative to their body size and level of strength, so they can achieve the maximum change to their bodies in the shortest possible time.

It’s All About The Hormones - The role of testosterone and its effect on strength or power and size development is huge. This is why some of the above-average sized men take extra testosterone through the means of steroids. If men take extra testosterone to grow large muscles and the “normal” woman on average has about one tenth the testosterone of the “unassisted” man, then the theory that women in fitness shouldn’t lift hard because they will grow huge muscles has no merit. However the level of testosterone varies greatly among women. Women who have higher testosterone levels may have a greater potential for strength or power and size development than other women, but this is not a bad thing. The advantages of having muscle are numerous and if you ever do reach the point of not wanting any more size in a muscle group, then it is a simple matter of backing off in the intensity and load variables for that muscle.

So what are the benefits of experiencing all the grunting and groaning under heavy weights?

- Enhanced bone modeling to increase bone strength and reduce the risk of osteoporosis, which is often thought of as an older person’s disease, but it can strike at any age.

- Stronger connective tissues to increase joint stability which helps prevent injury so that you can train hard, stay active and burn calories!

- Increased functional strength in women for sports and daily activity. It doesn’t matter if you’re sprinting across the finish line or picking up your little one, it always gets easier and more enjoyable with strength. “Train hard so you can play easily.”

- Increased lean body mass and decreased body fat; that is, you get to look good in whatever you want!

- Higher metabolic rate because of an increase in muscle is metabolically active and requires fuel to survive. That fuel comes partly from fat oxidation and calorie consumption. Because of this, even when you’re watching TV, you’re going to burn more calories daily because of your newfound muscle.

- Improved self-esteem and confidence. Don’t we all want this? According to one survey of female trainers, 94% of the participants reported that athletic participation did not lead them to feel less feminine. Strength training also appears to give women a sense of personal power, especially for women who have been raped or abused.

In order to reap the benefits of weight bearing exercises, you must do just that — bear weight. If you rely solely on weight training machines, lift so lightly that you’re barely out of breath or never increase your weight or intensity, then your body will not respond to your training.

Making changes to your body is going to require hard work. It can be difficult to skip the temptation of buying into the latest exercise fad that looks effortless and quick. But, it will pay off if you stick to the basics and base your training around large multi-joint exercises that turn your body into a calorie-burning furnace.

Examples of some multi-joint exercises for the lower body are lunges, walking lunges, step-ups and squats. For the upper body use multiple muscle groups in exercises like the bench press, pull-ups or pull downs, and for even more intensity and metabolism boost try the more explosive multi-joint exercises such as the power clean and press, power cleans, hang cleans, push jerks, and push presses. There are many more than the above. Form, technique, posture and body positioning are all extremely important with these more advanced as well as the not so advanced exercises.

The purpose of strength training in your fitness schedule is to put a demand on your body that causes it to overcompensate (get stronger, leaner, faster, etc.) so it won’t be caught off guard again. This process of overcompensating not only makes you stronger, but also by default, makes you look great. This theory is called the SAID principle – specific adaptation to imposed demands, AND this will only continue to happen if another principle is adhered to – Progressive Overload. You must give your body a reason to get stronger/change, as 12 reps at a given weight gets easy and 16 or 18 becomes possible it is time to increase the weight or the speed (explosiveness), or the reps or the exercise itself. Increase the intensity!