Are you afraid of the weight room?

When women hear someone say they should lift weights, they picture themselves becoming bulky and big as Jay Cutler, ruining their joints and losing their femininity. I have listened once people were pointing when you start lifting, you can't stop, as this will cause you to get fat.

Guess what? Those statements are not factual at all. And it is my job to share with you the correct information.

Don't get me wrong, practising yoga using cardio machines such as treadmills and cross trainers all have their place. However, things will start slowing down when you have been doing this routine for a while. Have you asked yourself, 'why am I not getting my results'? Or 'why is it taking so long for me to reach my goal?

For this reason, I want to put all the concerns and myths of women lifting weights aside and guide you through all the benefits of lifting weights to get you stronger, healthier, leaner, all in a quicker time than just sticking to your cardio routine.

But, what is strength training?

It is also known as resistance training, weight training and muscular training. You use your own bodyweight or equipment to build muscle mass, endurance and strength.

Here are a few points to why women should adopt a strength training program:

1.      Bone Health

As you get older, your body ages too; this in women most commonly cause osteoporosis, especially in Postmenopausal. The reason is that our bodies secret less estrogen. So for us women, it has been proven that strength and resistance training reduce bone mass loss and prevent osteoporosis, which is when the density and quality of the bone decrease to become more fragile.

2.      Stress Relief

It has been proven that people who exercise and do resistant training are less likely to experience fewer adverse reactions to stressful situations.

It also helps with memory.

If you are a mom like me, well, you know what I mean 😉

3.      Increased Energy

Resistance training causes an increase in energy expenditure hours after your session. This effect happens because weight training promotes the breakdown of glycogen and supports fat metabolism. In simple words, you use the 'fuel' in your body to perform, and as a result, you burn more body fat.

4.      Quality sleep

Strength training significantly improves sleep quality, aiding in your ability to fall asleep faster, sleep more profound, and wake less often during the night. In addition, having morning resistance training or a high-intensity session dramatically affects the quality and lengthens sleep time the night after training.

5.      More muscles mean more calories burnt

As you increase strength and lean muscle mass, your body uses calories more efficiently. Daily muscle contractions from a simple blink to a heavy squat contribute to how many calories you burn in a given day. For example, sitting burns fewer calories than standing; standing burns less than walking, and walking burns fewer than strength training.

The more muscle contractions you experience during a day, the more calories you'll burn. If you have more lean muscle mass, you'll have more muscle contractions and thus burn more calories.

So, if you feel tired, stressed, have no energy and want to start getting results, I suggest you pick up a dumbbell instead of another cup of coffee.