Women Who Workout Like Men?
August 9, 2010
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Posted by billspaced
Guest post by Jenna Atkins
http://www.fitnessbodyonline.com
Many of us women out there love to burn and sweat just as hard and as much as men do. So the question arises?are we then going to be cut and "ripped" like them too? Well, I don't know about you, but I don't want to have legs that could kill a small kid with just me flexing them. Most women like the "long and lean" muscle look. The "Pilates" body so to speak. So does that mean that we can't use at home workout programs more geared to men? What does that mean for us wives or girlfriends whose men use and love these programs? Does that mean we are doomed to exercise loneliness?
Maybe you have heard of some of the programs?Billy Blanks Get Ripped Taebo, or Shaun T's Insanity? the most popular get ripped routine for men seems to be Tony Horton's P90X. All of these have the aim of kicking your butt and getting you ripped, thus the reason men flock to them. I have to say though, I am a woman who has used at least one if not more of these programs. Did I get "ripped"? Well?. No.
It's really your aim in the program and how you use it. For instance; say you are doing arm exercises with weights. Do you do 8-10 reps or 12-15? Well, to get that long and lean look?you should be doing the higher reps, while your significant other or male counterpart is sticking with the 8-10. This is just one way that you can tailor these programs to fit the needs of a woman's body. Good rule of thumb? think that the more reps you do, the less bulk you are going to put on. As women we also have an advantage (or disadvantage however you look at it) in that we are not designed to "get ripped". We can get cut, lean, and strong without having to look abnormally strong. This can allow us to work just as hard and dig just as deep as the men in our lives and still create a feminine silhouette for ourselves.
One other bonus?many of these programs have great kick your butt, heart pounding cardio routines that is really for any of us. Some of them are yoga routines, kick boxing, plyometrics (great one!), and the list goes on. If you are still weary of anything that has to do with getting you "ripped", stick with these at first and you will love and see the benefits and this might give you the courage to work out more like a man (and probably be more graceful doing it). Coming from a woman who has a man who loves these routines, and who has used them with him?you can work out like a man but still look like a woman.
About the writer ? Jenna Atkins is a guest writer for several Health and Weight Loss related blogs including Fitness Body Online. Jenna enjoys participating in and writing about the newest exercise programs and diet plans.
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Categories: Women
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Tags: can a woman get ripped like a man, Women Who Workout Like Men
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I think it just depends on whether you are trying to build muscle mass or just tone. Most men want to build mass while most women want to tone. The workouts to do both are very different.
My girlfriend is all about the long and lean look! She is half my size and weight but can do almost three times the amount of situps that I can do and she seems to always be either on her way or back from pilates!
It could be one of the reasons. Working out is also keeping yourself healthy and alive. If you are maintaining your fitness, you will have the proper observance of your habits, training, and eating patterns. Women needs a lot of exercises to get total benefit.
@ Ken – it is much harder for most women to build the kind of mass that a man can given the same training regimen. It comes down to hormones.
woman with big mussle = ugly women
Most of the girls that I know who go to the gym really want that Pilates body that you mention. I havent met many women body builders even though I know they do exist!
I have been doing insanity for a few weeks and have lost 11 pounds. I am starting to get more ripped but it is hard to look at the scale and see how low my weight is now.
Jenna I consider myself in pretty good shape and can do a lot of push ups but the girls on Insanity kill me! I am blown away at how good of shape they are actually in.
Take inspiration.
Women should be using men's programs more often I feel because they target big muscle groups which burn calories faster. This is not to say they should be doing bicep curls but instead take bodyweight exercises such as deadlifts and squats. This is because it activates unused muscles, thus burning calories and producing great results for your butt.
Most of the girls that I know are all aiming for that perfectly toned body look. I dont know many female body builders…actually I dont think I know any at all!
Working out is about as much about what you eat as well as how you maintain your fitness levels. The difference could be in what women and men are predisposed to eating and what is best for their metabolisms?
More woman should train with free-weights. They shouldn't be afraid of the weights, it will give them a toned physique rather than a bodybuilder's physique. If they want a bodybuilder's physique then they need the free-weights and the diet plan.
Thanks
Probably for tips on work outs. :p
unless your a genetic abnormality or on "ped" then the chances of women get "big n bulky" are slim to none… women on average have 17 times less testosterone then men, which translates into a much less chance of getting "big n bulky". all women should challenge them-self's every every time there at the gym.. lift heavy weight but keep good form, pushing yourself is the only way your body will grow..easiest way, when 12 reps are done easy move up in weight.. compound workouts help a lot as well, some of the sexiest girls are very strong:) deadlifts, squats, kettle balls good luck go break a sweat.
This is one of my biggest pet peeves in the fitness industry… So many men and women "think" they need to work out drastically different from one another.
For example, many women think they need to do 20 or 30 reps per set of every exercise with little pink 3 or 5 lb barbie weights, because if they actually lift heavier weights, they falsely believe they will "bulk up".
Also, many men think they need to do 1-rep maxes to build muscles… this is simply not true… overall training volume and a caloric surplus builds more muscle than does 1-rep maxes… although I'm not saying there isn't a time and place for 1-rep maxes.
One of my biggest frustrations over the years when I was training lots of females and I would show them the workout I wanted to take them through… they would say something like…
"I don't want to do those exercises. That looks like a man's workout!"
And they would go back to their little pink 5 lb dumbbells and endless cardio routines and keep getting NO RESULTS at all for months or years.
However, the females I trained that were open-minded enough to trust me that if they used heavier weights they would not "bulk up" (as long as their caloric intake was in the correct range), always got tremendous results.
As a matter of fact, some of the leanest females I've trained over the years were the ones that actually trained with the heaviest weights. I had a few female athletes that could deadlift 175 lbs and they were VERY lean, and NOT overly-muscular. In fact, they had very feminine, but lean bodies.
Working out is about as much about what you eat as well as how you maintain your fitness levels. The difference could be in what women and men are predisposed to eating and what is best for their metabolisms?
I often have women on my team ask the same question, they want to tone up but not bulk up. And then when I talk about them doing resistance training they instantly tune me out. That's why I refer them to programs like Beachbody's Turbo Fire, Insanity or the Asylum. All of these programs combine a good mix of cardio and resistance.