Like many women, for years I was fearful of strength training. I was afraid of getting “bulky” so I stuck to doing cardio and taking classes. I couldn’t have been further from the truth. Building muscle strength is a key component of being in good health and you don’t have to fear about getting bulkier. If anything, it will make you look tighter and leaner than ever before. I’ve found that ever since I started incorporating it into my workouts, I have loved feeling stronger – both physically and mentally.
There are many great health benefits to strength training:
– Improves quality of life – You’ll be stronger in your day-to-day activities!
– Increases bone density, which is very important as women get older
– Reduces your risk of diabetes and heart disease
– Strengthens ligaments and tendons, decreasing the likelihood of injury in other activities
– Increase in resting metabolism, making it easier to keep your body fat down, especially as we get older.
The greatest thing that I had to overcome with strength training was my fear of the weight room. These are usually full of more men than women, which can be intimidating, especially if you don’t know what you’re doing. I’ve found that its easier to get started on a routine if you go to the gym at a quieter, less busy time and let yourself get acquainted with all the machines. Then when you go to workout it will be less intimated because you don’t have to fumble around the equipment in front of other people.
I am an absolute novice at this, so please consult a professional before you take on anything yourself. I am just telling you what I do that works for me and hopefully it will give you ideas of how you can incorporate more strength training and weight lifting into your fitness routine.
My typical routine right now is to alternate my cardio and strength days, while always trying to have a total of:
– 2 days of 30 minutes or more of Cardio (biking, running, swimming, etc)
– 2 days of Strength Training
– 1 day of a class that I enjoy (BodyPump, Pilates, Yoga, etc)
– 2 days off, while trying to stay active (Walking the dog, going on a hike with friends, etc)
For my Strength Training, my very sweet boyfriend put together a great routine that I can do in the weight room at our local gym. He helped me break up the routine into two different days where I can make sure I target all the different muscle groups: Shoulders, Chest, Biceps, Triceps, Back, Legs and Core.
Day 1: Legs, Shoulders & Triceps
– 10-15 minute warm up on the treadmill/elliptical/bike
– Leg Press
– Leg Extensions
– Hamstring Curls
– Calve Raises
– Shoulder Press
– Lateral Raises
– Cable Pushdowns
– Dumbbell Extensions
– Abs
– Stretching
Day 2: Chest, Back & Biceps
– 10-15 minute warm up on the treadmill/elliptical/bike
– Dumbbell Benchpress
– Chest Fly
– Incline Benchpress
– Cable Rows
– Lat Pulldowns
– Dumbbell Rows
– Barbell Curls
– Dumbbell Curls
– Abs
– Stretching
If you would like to see videos on how to do each of these exercises, a great website to check out is the Exercise Guide at Bodybuilding.com. They are not only informative, but also lets you view the videos with either men or women performing the exercises.
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| Go Marilyn! |
One of my goals during this challenge is to increase my strength and I encourage you to try it as well. This week, go to the gym and give strength training a chance! It will take a few sessions to get into it, but once you do you’ll start to see and feel the rewards of lifting weights.
This week’s playlist theme is Kick Butt Girl Tunes! The perfect mix to make you feel like the strong and capable woman that you are! I also threw in some of the great songs that were submitted in this week’s giveaway. Fun pop songs that will push you through this week’s workouts!
Week Two Playlist: Kick Butt Girl Tunes
1. Respect – Aretha Franklin
2. All I Wanna Do – Sheryl Crow
3. Bootylicious – Destiny’s Child
4. Stronger – Britney Spears
5. Ready To Run – Dixie Chicks
6. Fighter – Christina Aguilera
7. Survivor – Destiny’s Child
8. Wannabe – Spice Girl
9. So What – P!nk
10. Man! I Feel Like A Woman – Shania Twain
Set up your playlist and go check out that weight room. After a few weeks of adding more strength work to your routine, I’m sure that you’ll see a difference.
