What I’m about to say might come as a shock. It might make the hair on the back of your neck stand up and send shivers down your spine.
In today’s post, we are talking about how women need not be afraid of muscle gain.
Yes, I know…years of training women between ages 30-70, a very similar sentiment has been spoken many times.
“I don’t want to get too bulky”
Muscle is the most important aspect to your health for the long-term. There is no argument that can be made against that. For men and women alike, building muscle improves so many aspects of life…all of which I’m going to go over now.
By the end of this you will learn the difference between building muscle and burning fat, as well as why muscle gain is beneficial for women.
The key differences between building muscle and burning fat
Before we dive into why muscle building is so vital for women, let’s firstly get our facts straight as to what burning fat and building muscle actually means.
Firstly, let’s talk about burning fat.
When we use this phrase, we are essentially talking about reducing stored body fat by using it for energy. Think about it like this: body fat stores itself in various parts of the body. Popular spots will be found around the midsection, around the hips, legs, and underarms.
Fat is stored because your body has an excess of calories, and will store that energy for future purposes.
Back in the hunter-gatherer times, it was an evolutionary advantage to store excess food as fat. Food was not always easy to come by. So fat stored itself as usable energy for when food could not be hunted or found.
Fat loss occurs when you are in a calorie deficit. Let’s say your body needs 2000 calories to sustain itself everyday. If you eat 1500 calories of food for the day, your body needs to make up those extra 500 calories. In response, your body pulls 500 calories from your fat storages. (I’m keeping these numbers simple, and in a 1:1 ratio…it doesn’t quite work exactly like this but for this discussion I think it gets the point across!)
Secondly, building muscle…
Muscle building, or hypertrophy, is the process of strengthening and growing muscle tissue through resistance training.
We gain muscle because of microtears that occur in the muscle fiber during exercise. So when you elicit a stimulus to a muscle, let’s say your bicep. Over time and tension, microtears will happen (and this is normal and good, this isn’t an injury!)
Your body then heals these microtears (usually experienced through body soreness) , adding new muscle tissue and thus, increasing both the size and strength of that muscle fiber.
In order to support this muscle growth, your body repairs this tissue with protein that is found within the food you eat. So with that being said, you need to eat enough protein and usually eat a bit of surplus in calories to gain muscle.
Why do both of these matter?
Balance is best. So for most women a mix of activities that support fat loss as well as muscle building will give the best results.
So our typical aerobic exercise such as riding a bike, running, walking and low intensity house chores would fall under fat loss.
Strength exercises fall under resistance training, or muscle building.
So then, increasing muscle mass while also burning excess fat will result in the best body composition possible. You can’t just do one by itself in a vacuum.
Why building muscle won’t make you “bulky”
Here is the aged old concern from so many women - you don’t want to get bulky.
I get it, I understand…you aren’t trying to look like a man. Typically masculine features will be more defined muscles, shoulders that are bigger, arms that are bigger.
But there is a key difference why that is a masculine look…and that’s all due to testosterone playing a huge role in muscle production.
From a hormonal perspective it is MUCH, MUCH harder for a woman to gain muscle because of the lack of significant testosterone.
Generally speaking, most women who gain muscle get the lean look that most women are after. So we want women to gain muscle! This is what we would call lean muscle.
What are the benefits of lean muscle you ask?
Lean muscle helps to boost metabolism. This means that you will burn more calories at rest. I’ve written about this plenty of times before but the fact remains, more muscle requires more energy to sustain it. Therefore, your body turns into a furnace.
This helps to improve long-term management of weight. I know I am not a woman but I think of myself in this example. I’ve fluctuated probably about 10-15 lbs since high school and I never had to “worry” about my weight getting too high. I know that a large part of this is because I strength train, and build muscle that helps maintain a healthy weight balance.
Lean muscle also creates a more sculpted and defined physique. So seeing the lines in the arm, the definition in legs, glutes…this is all thanks to resistance training. This is not BULK!
Lean muscle is also more dense than fat (it takes up less room) but still weighs the same.
Let me repeat that, muscle and fat weigh the same.
A pound of muscle is the same as a pound of fat….weight wise. However, the way it looks is completely different. Fat takes up more space whereas muscle takes up less space.
So although you might see a change in the mirror with more muscle, you might not see a change on the scale.
I’ve also written at length about how the scale is a poor measure of progress, if its the only thing you focus on. You can drive yourself crazy as your waistline goes down yet your pants feel tight around the legs. You haven’t lost weight yet your body is completely changed!
Why is muscle key to long-term fat loss and overall health
If you don’t use it, you lose it.
If we don’t actively use our muscles to do some type of work, the muscle will atrophy. Why is this an issue?
Building muscle and having muscle mass is directly correlated with bone density.
Bone density is SUPER important as we age…how many times have you heard of the 70/80 year old who fell and broke a hip?
Well, I’d bet part of this could have been avoided had those bones been stronger. I’ve seen how resistance training can REVERSE osteopenia! Healthy bones are important.
Not only does the muscle help support stronger bones, but more muscle will help joint function as well.
Having pain in your shoulder? Have lingering knee pain? Well, increasing muscle around those joints will help to improve pain.
USE it or LOSE it…it’s really your choice. I hope you make the right decision without letting this idea of getting bulky get in your way.
Lastly, when it comes to long-term function and benefits of muscle, think about your daily activities.
Carrying groceries, lifting kids up and down, moving furniture…all of these daily tasks require strength and muscle to perform. Being able to be independent in this way can leave you feeling confident to do things on your own. Stay strong and you’ll stay independent. It literally works that way.
So how can women build muscle without excess bulk?
So in order to build muscle without getting bulked up, I’d recommend women staying in a 3-12 rep range for exercise. What this means is that the weight is moderate to heavy, focusing more on building strength then size of muscle.
Once we start getting up into the 12-20 rep range, we are training more for bulk.
I know, it’s probably the opposite from what you’ve heard in the past. I’ve heard plenty of people tell me that their doctor told them to lift light weights and do high reps! This is the opposite of what you should be doing to effectively gain muscle while preventing a big bulk. (Even with that being said, as stated above due to lack of testosterone from women, it’s very hard to bulk up)
With that, we want to focus on progressive overload. Progressive overload is basically increasing either the weight, reps or intensity of a movement. Your body continues to adapt to that new stimulus which will result in muscle building awesomeness.
For women specifically, building muscle takes time so you must be patient with this process and focus on getting a little bit better every week.
The psychological benefits of gaining muscle
Sometimes the benefits we receive from doing something aren't so visual. When it comes to muscle and strength, the psychological component can be life changing.
One of the best things that we gain from building muscle and doing hard things is the confidence to succeed.
Many times I’ve heard clients tell me that they’ve gained new found confidence in their self-esteem, body image, and overall sense of accomplishment.
Not only that, women who build muscle and lift weights support this new notion that women can be strong. Strength is beauty and I truly believe that this is a welcome change from past impressions of women and what they are capable of.
It’s damn impressive to see ladies routinely lifting heavy in my gym. Even with our kids program, seeing girls lifting weights is a welcome sight as these habits will stick with them forever.
Lastly, the mental clarity that one gets from exercise and strength training is understated. Mood, energy levels and management of stress all improve once you gain some muscle and start feeling that exercise vibe hitting!
Don’t fear the bulk
To close this one out today, I hope that you have learned that building muscle and lifting weights does not make women bulky. You women just don’t have the testosterone to support big muscle growth.
I want your mindset to shift from “just losing weight” to building muscle and strength. Vitality is the word of the day with this and muscle will help you feel younger and stronger. The fear of getting too bulky is not set in reality, so no need to worry about picking up those weights!
I encourage all women who read this to let the mind be at ease when lifting weight, and I encourage any men who read this to support the females in their life. There’s nothing like a woman who is both emotionally and physically strong. Those are the real ones.
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