Work It Out Girl

Tips for Your Inner Weight Lifting Diva

By Natasha Senko

Weight training has to be one of the best things you can do for your body.  Ladies, I know what you are saying “I don’t want to bulk up and look like one of those body builder chicks or even worse, a guy.”  Have no fear, you won’t.  Of course if you focus on becoming that way, you most definitely can, but there are plenty of body building exercises you can do with out even coming close to the Incredible Hulk or, in this case, Hulkette.  Besides, women naturally do not have enough testosterone to become extremely bulky.  So get on out there and start pumping some iron. The health benefits (especially as we age) are fantastic!!  Here are 5 benefits to strength training that will have you on your way to a healthier you.

1. First and foremost, you will increase your strength, stamina, and energy levels.  This will help with everyday chores like lifting kids and other daily tasks the super women of today are up against.   Gaining strength also helps prevent injury.

2. Cardio is of course important to weight loss but gaining lean muscle through weight lifting helps you burn more calories in the long run. Resistance training definitely helps to tone your body after fat loss, but what you may not know is muscle burns more calories than fat-up to 30-50 calories per day.  Not only will you burn more calories all day but also while you sleep Burning calories without even getting out of bed? NICE.

3. Building muscle mass increases your metabolism.  We all know the older we get, the slower our metabolism gets, so this is a great way to maintain that 20 something metabolic rate.

4. Women who lift weights several times a week help prevent bone diseases such as Osteoporosis.  The more stimulation you give your bones, the denser they become. Be sure to couple this with proper calcium intake.

5. Weight training helps reduce your risk of heart disease.  It improves cardiovascular health by lowering bad cholesterol (LDL) and increasing good cholesterol (HDL) as well as lowering blood pressure.  Add some cardio to your routine and you increase these benefits even more.

Always keep in mind that proper exercise should work in conjunction with a balanced diet.