Articles

Motherhood, Faith, Fitness, Nutrition. We've got you covered

3 Reasons Women Should Lift Heavy Weights


by Coach Debbie

 

Do you know how to select the right size dumbbells for your workouts?  Chances are, you are stronger than you realize!  Lifting heavy weights will NOT make you HUGE!

 

When picking up a pair of weights, you want to be able to (initially) perform 10 repetitions, but not 11; as the workout progresses, you will not be able to do 10 reps, so you’ll rest more and more.  This means that if you start a workout and can only do 3 reps, you need lighter weights.  And if you start a workout and could easily do 18 reps, you need heavier weights.

 

Why do we want to lift heavy weights?  Isn’t that a guy thing?

 

Here are 3 reasons to lift heavy (and get smaller):

 

1.        Lifting heavy weights is efficient.  You do more work in less time!  This means you have more free time (well, except for kids always needing something from you).  Before a workout, eat some protein and drink BCAA’s (branched chain amino acids); you don’t need carbs in advance.  After a workout, enjoy protein, complex carbs, and BCAA’s.

2.       Lifting heavy weights is effective.  When we lift cute pink weights, there is little change in our figures.  If we want a sculpted figure, heavy weights will stimulate the change wanted.  It’s all about the hormonal impact that a workout can have.  You want to make sure to get the B’s and H’s:  breathless, burning muscles, hot, and heavy weights.  The bonus is having better posture too!

3.       Lifting heavy weights is empowering.  Using 2 pound dumbbells with 100 reps is simply going to work on our endurance.  But when we use challenging weights, we work on our strength and power!  This includes feeling empowered, confident, and mentally stronger too!

 

We suggest exercising 3 times a week consistently.  If you’re new to exercise, just aim for 1 or 2 workouts a week until it’s a habit.  For the super fit, feel free to try 4 or more workouts a week, allowing ample rest days to recover and build muscle.