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Straight talk about strength training for women

• "I don't do strength training; I prefer aerobics."

Do you want to know how nonsensical this sounds?  Picture someone saying, "I don't do showers.  I prefer to brush my teeth."  This is obviously a no-brainer; showering and oral hygiene are (hopefully!) part of the morning wake-up routine, but both are indispensable.  The same is true of aerobics and strength training:  both represent modes of exercise, but both are also essential to a complete fitness program, as they each provide unique benefits.

• If 10 repetitions are good, 50 are even better.

Actually, your ticket to toned muscles is in getting your muscles to fatigue within about 10-20 repetitions.  If you can perform 50 bicep curls, you are not working the muscle hard enough to trigger any muscle growth.  Remember that the next time someone complains that they do hundreds of crunches but have yet to see their abs tone up!

• When I say slow, I mean S-L-O-W!

I was at the gym recently, when I found myself in the free-weight area with one other woman.  Whenever I'm "off-duty" and working out for myself, I have to consciously fight my professional instincts and refrain from approaching someone who is exercising incorrectly.  I realize that some may appreciate any suggestions or guidance, but most people (myself included) tend to bristle when receiving unsolicited advice at the gym.  On this occasion, this other woman, who looked about my age, was neither significantly overweight or tremendously out of shape; on the other hand, there was nothing about her appearance that would suggest a dedicated fitness regimen.  As the two of us worked out, I couldn't help but notice her haphazard approach to form and technique.  She moved her weights through each exercise with more momentum than actual muscle control.  What I found particularly interesting is that we were at times performing the exact same exercise, but with notable differences in the speed; I clearly dedicated at smooth, controlled, 8-10 seconds per repetition, vs. this woman's hyper 1-second-per-repetition pace.  This pace is not only ineffective; it greatly increases the risk of injury.  Rather than say something--again, most people don't appreciate unsolicited advice, however well-intentioned, I hoped that my own, very different, execution of the same movement, coupled with the fact that my muscle tone reflects the success of this approach, might provide an example for her to follow.  No such luck.  It did, however, remind me of just how frequently I encounter this caffeine-like speed approach to strength training, both in women and men.  The rule is, count slowly at least to four for the first half of the movement, then count slowly to at least four for the second half.  You'll likely need lighter weights, but that's okay; remember, the goal is to fatigue your muscles, not stroke your ego with impressive numerical statistics!

• "I'm trying to lose weight, so for now I'm just doing cardio."

This is a myth that's dying a difficult death.  It was at first thought that a person interested in losing weight should first concern themselves with actually dropping the pounds before then adding a few back in the form of muscle mass.  This is a mistaken notion; for although adding lean muscle through strength training will inevitably mean a bit of weight gain (read:  less than five pounds), this is weight you want to add, and for three reasons.  First, lean muscle mass helps in reshaping your body, giving you a leaner, more toned appearance even before all of the excess weight (fat) is gone.  Second, adding lean muscle mass helps keep the metabolism running high, which will actually help your weight loss efforts.  Third, adding lean muscle mass helps in positively shifting your body composition, that is, the percentage of your body weight that is comprised of fat, an important factor in good health and fitness.  The trick is to incorporate lighter weights, higher repetitions (12-20 per exercise), and just 1-2 days of strength training per week; you should then balance the week with plenty--ideally, at least 4-5 days--of aerobic exercise, which helps burn the calories.

• "Won't I bulk up?"

Pardon me if I giggle.  I had a discussion with a colleague not too long ago about this, and I have to admit, we rolled our eyes and chorused, "I only wish 3-5 pound weights could accomplish that!"  We weren't being totally literal, of course, as I'm certainly not looking for a build a body-builder's physique, but we were certainly lamenting the fear of bulking up.  The truth is, you cannot build a significant quantity of muscles on the amount of weight and the types of exercises that are part of your typical strength training routine.  Please note that I said, "significant."  You can certainly improve your muscle tone, and even see some remarkable changes in body shape, but in order to approach anywhere near the kinds of ultra-sculpted physiques demonstrated by fitness professionals, you need to be doing some serious lifting.  And to bulk up in a way that you see these "I can't tell if it's a man or woman" body builder types, you also would need some serious, ahem, supplementation.  Women lack the hormones necessary to bulk up; in fact, it's because of this that the real concern is just the opposite:  you cannot afford to not do some form of strength training!

• "What's my strength training routine?  Well, I'll grab a pair of weights--maybe five or eight pounds--then perform a bunch of movements.  I'll move my arms overhead, go back and forth, side to side, that kind of thing.  I don't really count; I just sort of play it by ear."

This is never smart.  Strength training with free weights is a science that targets, very deliberately, specific muscles and muscle groups.  Quality is the key to working these muscles in such a way that they respond by increasing in tone.  You should therefore have a list of specific exercises, a guideline as to the repetitions you expect to perform, and knowledge on how to focus and work the muscle(s) properly and thoroughly with each exercise.

• "I've done the same toning video tape for the last five years."

If this is true, and you've been fairly consistent, this is bad news.  Your muscles would have adapted to this routine a long time ago, leading to a plateau that you've yet to leave.  Your muscles need variety and constant new challenges in order to be signaled to grow and increase in tone.  A quick and simple solution is to have 2-3 tapes, so that you can switch back and forth from time to time.