180 Degrees personal training in Poole, bring you information on why women shouldn’t be afraid of gaining muscle and how it helps with losing weight fast.
1. You’ll Have Less Body Fat
Muscle mass is the best defense against getting fat and losing weight fast. For example, one study compared a 12-week periodized resistance training protocol using loads ranging from 60 to 80 percent of maximal with a muscular endurance protocol using light loads with 15 to 30 reps on body composition in women. The women that did the periodized program lost nearly 5 kg of body fat, gained about 3 kg of muscle, and had dramatic increases in strength. The women who did the high rep, light load muscular endurance program lost NO fat and gained no muscle. They didn’t get stronger either!
It’s okay to start getting strong at a young age. Studies show that girls from age 7 on up can develop equal strength as boys of the same age. Plus, in young girls, having a stronger handgrip, and more lower and upper body strength are all associated with better body composition, lower BMI, and greater functional ability as measured by vertical jump. By developing strength at a young age, you’ll set yourself or your kids up for a lean and strong future!
2. You’ll Look Better in Clothes…and Without Them
Strong, developed muscles can give women curves—glutes and abs with muscle development are much more aesthetically pleasing to the male eye—and you’ll look better in clothes. Perhaps more important than conforming to the male gaze is research that suggests that building strength by training is an effective way for women to take control of their body image.
Once you have a tool to help you get the body you desire, you’ll feel empowered. I guarantee that achieving personal records and squatting or deadlifting more than you weigh will make you feel and look awesome, let alone help you by losing weight fast.
3. You’ll Have a Healthier Baby and A Leaner Pregnancy
A recent study found that pregnant women who participated in an aquatic resistance training program for 6 months until the start of the third trimester had healthier babies than a control group. The offspring had better insulin sensitivity over the first year, and less chance of being big or small at birth (both markers of poorer health and risk of disease development).
The women in the training group gained significantly less weight and had much better glucose tolerance throughout the study. There were no cases of gestational diabetes in the training group, whereas half of the women in the control group developed gestational diabetes.
4. You’ll Have Less Disease Risk: Cancer, Diabetes, etc.
As mentioned in part 1, the more muscle and bone you have, the greater the acid buffering power your body has, which correlates with a better immune system and higher levels of the endogenous antioxidant, glutathione. Lower glutathione is a primary predictor of fatal disease risk, especially cancer.
A new study has linked lower handgrip strength, which is correlated with low muscle mass in women, with poor health and a much greater risk of developing a number of chronic diseases. In women, stroke, poor posture (kyphosis), history of a fall, hyperthyroidism, and anemia were associated with a weak handgrip.
5. You’ll Have Better Posture
If you lift smart, you will develop structural balance, which basically means your muscles will be coordinated to help you move well and have better posture. A strong lower back and core will help you stand up tall, keep your abdomen tight, and avoid back pain. A stronger upper back will give you the ability to roll your shoulders back by retracting your shoulder blades.
More strength will help you develop better body awareness so that you keep you head in line with your spine (not sticking forward), and your movement patterns will be smoother. You’ll look and feel more confident, and people will have more respect for you!
6. You’ll Have Better Balance and Flexibility
A study of untrained women who participated in a 10-week resistance training program showed that they improved their balance by doubling the amount of time they could stand on one foot with outstretched arms from 43 seconds to 85 seconds. These women increased lower body strength by 32 percent and gained an average of 20 kilos on their leg press 1RM. The also decreased body fat by 2.2 percent!
Better flexibility isn’t a given because it depends on a variety of factors including whether you stretch or get body work on a regular basis. But, studies do indicate that women who perform better on tests of lower body strength have better flexibility. Naturally, a more active lifestyle will help you maintain flexibility and avoid immobilizing injuries, such as injury to the rotator cuff, hip, or knee.
7. You’ll Have A Better Mental Outlook
The 10-week study of women mentioned in #6 also found positive changes in the participants’ mental outlook from strength training. These women demonstrated greater physical confidence, much fewer mood disturbances and feelings of depression, and they had less fatigue by the end of the study.
8. You’ll Have a Stronger Immune System
Lifting weights improves gene activity and enhances the body’s natural antioxidant system so that it is ready to launch an assault when exposed to viruses. Research shows that people who do moderate to vigorous training get sick much less often than those who are inactive—one study found a 43 percent lower incidence of getting a cold during the winter months.
9. You’ll Age Better
Greater muscle mass percentage in older women is strongly associated with better mobility, faster gait speed, lower body weight, and lower fat mass. Gaining muscle now will help you stay leaner, maintain stronger bones, and avoid pain as you age.
10. You’ll Live Longer
At least six studies have shown that women who have more muscle mass will live longer. Being stronger means you’ll have better mobility and muscle power as you get older, which is another primary indicator of longevity.
A related bonus is that by getting strong, lean, and muscular at a young age, you’ll avoid what is being called sarcopenic-obesity, or being fat and having low muscle mass when you are old. Although it’s unclear whether older people gain fat first or lose muscle first, these two physiological actions go hand in hand. Once you start losing muscle, you are just about guaranteed to get fat if you don’t take action by lifting some iron!
Referenced from Charles Poliquin.
