Why Women Should Lift Heavy Weights

If you’re like most gym-going women, your gym routine looks something like this:  do a 30+ minute workout with a steady, moderate pace on a treadmill, stationary bike, or elliptical, and then go to the weight machines and do many low weight, high rep sequences that target your inner thighs, glutes, and abs. Maybe some arm stuff too. Then you go for a walk or just stretch to cool down. You repeat this for weeks, months, years, and never quite get the results you want. You may look better, but you’ll never reach your dream body.

It’s so sad that we do this. We’re told that a long, boring workout on an elliptical is going to make the fat melt away, and that we’ll look like a bodybuilder if we go any higher than 15 pounds on any machine. When you leave the gym, you don’t feel a sense of accomplishment, and you spend tons of time at the gym to get mediocre results. If fitness magazines were honest, they’d run out of crap to sell you within a year. What most women don’t know is that if you want to lose fat and look better, lifting heavy weights is going to be a huge help.

And yes, I do mean heavy weights. Not the 2.5lb dumbbells that come in hot pink (although those are adorable), but heavy enough to be challenging yourself for each set of, say, 8 reps. Now I’m not trying to belittle anyone who is lacking in strength, and has to use 5 lb weights for certain lifts, but you truly need to be using weights that challenge you. Doing 4 sets of 20 reps with 15 pounds on the leg press is most likely not challenging yourself.

There are so many misconceptions about women lifting heavy weights, and the one that probably pops right into your head is that lifting weights will make you bulky. Well I’ve got great news!

Lifting heavy weights will not make you bulky.

Saying that you’re afraid of looking like a bodybuilder if you lift heavy weights is like saying that you’re afraid of going for a run because you might win the Boston Marathon (thanks for the analogy, r/loseit FAQ). Over the period of many years, female bodybuilders spend hours and hours working out each week, have an extremely specific, restricted diet, and some take illegal steroids. Not all women who compete in bodybuilding competitions do so, but chances are, if they are enormous and you think they “look like a man,” they probably take steroids. Here’s the reason why: the vast majority of women do not produce enough testosterone to get “bulky,” or “huge”. I’ve been researching health and fitness for a year and a half, and in that time, I have seen one single account of a woman who tends to “bulk up” beyond her liking from lifting heavy. Aside from that, I’ve seen hundreds of women talk about their success with strength training.

This lady up here went from overweight and unhappy, to fit and confident with the help of proper nutrition and weightlifting. Click the image to see her story on bodybuilding.com.

Muscle is what is revealed when fat is burned off, and it’s damn sexy. You know the phrase “skinny fat”? Where you’re thin, but not lean? That happens when there is no muscle beneath the fat, and there is no definition and very little shape.

I also want to address “being toned,” or “toning”. “Being toned” essentially means having muscle and being low enough in body fat. It’s a somewhat inaccurate notion, because muscle tone is simply the amount of tension a muscle maintains while resting, but everyone knows what “being toned” looks like. But the big issue is the concept of “toning”. This is a problem because it seems to imply that you can spot-reduce fat. “Sculpting” has the same inaccurate implication. You lose fat when you have a caloric deficit, and it happens wherever your body chooses, and not necessarily on the body parts you’ve been working. You can do as many sit-ups or crunches you want, but if you don’t have a low enough body fat percentage, all you’ll be doing is increasing your waistline (because as we know, working your muscles will make them bigger).

The weight machines at the gym are often isolation movements (i.e. that leg lifts that target only your quads), but what you’ll want to focus on when you lift weights is compound movements. These movements require more than one joint and more than one muscle group – think squats, bench press and pull-ups, to name just a few. There’s a number of reasons for this. For starters, it is more efficient – you can get a total-body workout doing two exercises if you do the right ones, helping you maximize your gym time. These movements also burn more calories,  meaning it’s not just efficient for time, but it’s efficient for calorie burn. Also, machines give you too much stability – when you do a leg press, you only work your legs and glutes, but if you do a barbell squat, you also have to activate your core and shoulders to hold the barbell atop your shoulders. Compound movements also mimic natural movements: a deadlift is how you should pick heavy things off the ground, a pullup mimics pulling yourself off a ledge (hopefully that doesn’t happen too often though!), etc. Now that being said, isolation training isn’t a bad thing, it just shouldn’t be your primary form of weight training. Personally, I do almost all compound movements and add in a hip thrust or step up here and there to increase my glute size (I’m a mild sufferer of FAB (flat Asian butt) disease, so I try to make mine bigger). This type of accessory work can be added in as you want, but like I said, your main focus and source of training should come from compound movements.

Ignore the scale

There’s something very, very important that you will need to accept on your weight loss and weightlifting journeys: your scale is a dirty, dirty liar.. Take a look at the volume of 5lbs of fat vs. 5lbs of muscle below:

The muscle above takes up much less space than the fat does, even though they weigh the same amount. If you start weightlifting, you may find your weight doesn’t change, or even increases, but your focus should be on how your body has changed. Your water weight fluctuates by up to about 5 pounds per day, which just adds to the notion that weight is mostly irrelevant. Like I’ve said before, unless you are a ballerina or need to reach a certain weight class, your weight does not matter.

Some additional health benefits of strength training include increased bone density, protected joints, and some chronic conditions like arthritis, diabetes and osteoporosis can be managed through strength training. But something I never anticipated that I personally would gain is the unwavering sense of accomplishment and empowerment. My previous cardio and light weight routines at the gym left me feeling…confused, I guess. I didn’t really know what I was doing, and it didn’t feel very challenging, but since it was generally accepted as what women do at the gym, I kept doing it. I would never see results, and relapse into my old habits. Now that I’ve started strength training, I feel like I can do anything. The other day I finally deadlifted my body weight, and then a few weeks later, I deadlifted 180 pounds. For some women, this is nothing. They warm up with this. But for me, this was huge. I’d never had hamstring muscles that I could feel, and now I can recruit them to help me lift 180 pounds. It feels incredible. Doing something you didn’t know you could is amazing.

What you can do when you start

I’m not going to prescribe a specific program for you. Like I said, I’m not an expert, and there are books that go into much more detail, and will help you more than I can. I would suggest picking up The New Rules of Lifting for Women, or Starting Strength. Both outline not only programs for beginners, but they give detailed instructions for the movements you’ll do – deadlifts, squats, bench press, front squats, pull-ups, whatever (Starting Strength is renowned for its incredibly in-depth descriptions of compound lifts). It’ll tell you how to lift with proper form, which is crucial to prevent injury and maximize muscle use. I personally do not follow a set program like this, but I think that these are great ways for beginners to build foundational strength and learn how to properly perform these moves.

If you don’t have access to a gym, or are unable to afford it, take a look at bodyrock.tv. They have great short workouts that incorporate both cardio and body weight exercises that can be adjusted for all levels of athleticism. My only real criticism is that lately they seem to have made their videos and pictures even more overtly sexual than before, which is saying something, so I’m not able to go on their website while at work without feeling weird.

A fantastic way to track your workouts and progress is Fitocracy. You track your workouts there, and earn points for everything you do, levelling up over time. There is a fantastic community filled with groups and member spotlights, and it’s a great way to connect with like-minded people. I love it and would highly recommend it!

Your results won’t come overnight, but you can make a lot of progress in the beginning if you stick with it. Don’t fear hard work, and don’t fear being stronger than you were before. Weight lifting is one of the most empowering things I’ve ever done, so get started! You have nothing to lose but fat 🙂

Eating to Lose Weight Pt. II

*I am not a trained nutritionist, dietitian, or physician of any sorts. Before you make a lifestyle change, you may want to speak with your doctor.*

Now that we’ve covered some diet myths, I’d like to talk about guidelines for eating well to lose weight.

If you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight!

It’s pretty straightforward. As long as you burn more calories than you consume, you will lose weight. In order to determine how much to eat, you’ll want to use a basal metabolic rate (BMR) calculator, such as this one here. Put in your height, weight, age and gender, and then press “Calculate BMR”. This number is the amount of calories your body needs to function if you were to spend the entire day laying in bed, doing nothing. From there you will click the link that says “Daily Calorie Needs,” which will determine your caloric needs based on activity level. Choose the level that corresponds with the amount of activity you get, and multiply your BMR by the number that follows it.

This number is a general estimate of how many calories your body needs to maintain its current weight given your level of activity. Now, in order to lose weight, you need to eat fewer calories than your given number. A pound of fat is the equivalent of 3,500 calories. If you reduce your daily caloric intake by 500 calories, you should lose a pound of fat each week. A reduction of 1,000 calories would merit a two pound fat loss per week. You can also choose any number in between, but it is often advised that you never consume less than 1,200 calories per day.

Counting calories may not be for everyone, but it helps quantify the food you are eating. If anything, spend a couple weeks accurately tracking all the food and drink you consume. It will give you a good idea of how many calories you typically consume. Using calorie tracking apps such as MyFitnessPal, you will see not just the calories you consume, but the protein, carbohydrates, fats, sodium, and sugar as well.

Eat enough protein and fats

Protein and fat will help you feel full faster, and for a longer amount of time. You know how you can eat pasta for about an hour before you feel full, but after eating about 6 ounces of steak, you’re eating slower? That’s because proteins and fats are more satiating than carbohydrates. Not only that, but protein is essential in building muscle, and good fats will help with overall health. Personally, I have nowhere near enough energy on days where I’m lacking in protein or fat.

Minimize how much processed food you eat

Oof. That’s scary.

I’m not going to try to push a “whole food only” diet on you, because you can ultimately meet your calorie goals eating anything that fits into your allotment. But in general, unprocessed and minimally processed foods tend to be best for you in the long-term – they are more nutrient dense, and have little to no preservatives. Foods like vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, meats, fish, and oils. This means eating less pasta, rice, bread, crackers, cookies, snack foods, chips, noodles, soda and candy.

I’m not trying to say that you should cut out all processed foods from your diet, or never treat yourself. If you’re counting calories, you’ve got x number of calories per day, and you can accommodate those into your day. If you’re not counting calories, like I said, just try to minimize these foods. Have them be an occasional treat, rather than a daily occurence.

You can also change the types of processed food you eat. White bread and plain pasta do little for you, but if you get multi grain bread or whole wheat pasta, you’re able to get more nutrients such as fiber and minerals in there. Try rye crackers, brown rice, and other options.

80/20

I think this is a good way to eat well, but give yourself room to indulge. You eat clean for about 80% of the time, and have more leeway 20% of the time, allowing yourself foods that are not quite so good for you, but just can’t give up. The ratio doesn’t have to be 80/20 – you can change it in either direction – but it gives you a good guideline for eating good foods and giving yourself some wiggle room for less healthy foods.

Cook more meals at home

This kind of ties into the whole processed foods thing. When you make your own food, you know exactly what’s going into it, and how much is in there. You don’t have to do this for every single meal, but increasing the number of homemade meals you eat will help you immensely. I’ve heard the “I don’t have enough time” excuse and the “It costs too much,” which to be honest I don’t understand since eating out can be so expensive. Anyways, there will be future posts that address both quick healthy meal solutions and eating well on a budget.

Eat tons of vegetables

Don’t they look delicious?

It doesn’t have to be a crazy amount, but you should be getting 5-8 or so servings of vegetables each day, which is more veggies than most people eat. They give you tons of nutrients, and most of them are low in calories. Try to eat a wide variety too, and experiment with vegetables you haven’t tried yet. Maybe my life is too dull, but it’s pretty exciting for me when I become obsessed with a new vegetable or start liking one I’d previously hated.

Your approach

Some people are able to make a huge diet and lifestyle overhaul immediately and stick with it. If that is you, then great! Start by determining how many calories you need each day (use the instructions above), and subtract around 500-1000 depending on how quickly you want to lose weight. And start! It can take some getting used to,

However, some people are going to need a slower, longer transition. If you think you need to take this change slowly, try either of these approaches:

• Eat as you normally would, and track the calories for the foods you eat for a week or two. It will help you get an understanding of how much food you are eating compared to how much you actually need, and you can get the hang of tracking calories before you need to make a change. After the initial week or two, begin eating for weight loss.
• If you’re not counting calories, or even if you are and just want to improve your eating habits, try a slow elimination of unhealthy foods. For two weeks, don’t drink any soda, juice, or other sweetened drinks. Stick to tea, coffee, and water. If you go out for drinks, get a vodka soda with a lime wedge, or red wine. The following two weeks, cut out candy and cookies in addition to the sugary drinks. After that, cut out chips and crackers. You see where I’m going with this? If you’re going to need to go slowly, take it a week or two at a time, working on cutting out one or two things. I’ve seen tons of people saying that after a few weeks of not eating sweets or snack foods, they don’t crave them anymore. The same goes for me – if I’m at home and feel like eating dessert, I want an apple or a tangerine, not cookies or candy.

Ultimately, everyone is different. I highly suggest counting calories for a few weeks to get a visual understanding of how much food you’re eating, but from there you can go in many directions. Some people have great success continuing to count calories, others have a fantastic time eating less than 20 grams net carbs on the ketogenic diet, others love eating primarily whole foods with the paleo diet. It’s okay if there’s a trial and error period finding the best fit for you – it’s a lifestyle change, you should take the time to find what is the most effective for you and you enjoy the most!

Eating to Lose Weight Pt. 1 – Diet Myths

*I am not a trained nutritionist, dietician, or physician of any sorts. Before you make any big lifestyle changes, you may want to first speak with your doctor.*

Let’s talk about diet, and focus on weight loss. When I refer to your diet, I’m talking about the way you eat, as a lifestyle, a habit, and a long-term thing. I don’t mean going on a diet. I have no interest in quick fixes like the Beyonce diet, the cabbage soup diet, or any of that short-term, I-want-results-now fads that only reduces your water weight (yes, you weigh less because there is less water in your body, not because you’ve lost fat). It’s not sustainable, it doesn’t work, and no one wants to live like that.

Another important clarification – weight loss is affected by your diet more than it is by how much you exercise. To put things in perspective: in order to burn off the calories in one single M&M, you need to walk the length of a football field. It is damn near impossible to out-exercise a bad diet. However, a combination of proper diet and exercise will be extremely beneficial to your weight-loss goals.

But even if you talk about diet as a long-term lifestyle change, there’s tons of differing opinions about what’s the best. There’s people telling you to eat 6 small meals a day, or avoid all carbs, or don’t eat after 8pm. In one way or another, most of this advice and these diets are myth-based, so let’s start out by squashing some of them.

Myth # 1: Fat makes you fat/unhealthy

This kills me. Even just typing it is painful. First off, there are fats that are good for you, and fats that are bad for you. The good ones are monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat, and saturated fat*. Think fish, meats, nuts, seeds, avocados, olive oil, coconut oil, sesame oil. The bad one is trans fat – fried foods, margarine, shortening, and candy bars. Fat is an essential part of your diet – it carries fat-soluble nutrient, forms cell membrane walls, is a vital source of energy, and helps keep you full.

Now, what will make you gain weight is calories, not fat. High-fat foods may be higher in calories, but it is not the fat content that will cause you to put on pounds. Also, foods that are advertised as reduced fat or fat-free are typically less healthy than their fuller fat version – companies add in sugar and other additives in order to make the product taste more like “the real thing,” and you’re ultimately getting a product that isn’t better for you, and tastes worse. As an example: if you want sour cream on your taco salad, use regular sour cream, but measure it out. Or use Greek yogurt instead – it’ll give you more protein.

*There’s debate on whether saturated fat is good or bad for you. From what I’ve read, it is generally good for you, and the politics of food has played a big part in the demonization of saturated fat. I will try to find studies that support this, and if I’m unable to, I may alter my stance. I would also like to add that oils such as vegetable oil, canola oil, and corn oil are not as good for you as olive oil and coconut oil – I will expand on this when I find the supporting studies.

Myth # 2: You must eat small, frequent meals to keep your metabolism up

If this were true, the people who do intermittent fasting, or IF, would never lose weight. With IF, you have a set window where your can eat your daily calories, with fewer calories on rest days and more on workout days. Some have as few as 4-5 hours where they can eat, others have 8, and everything in between. Some of people eat two huge meals, and others are able to fit in three slightly smaller meals. Either way, they simply don’t have enough time to fit in 6 small meals, and despite this, tons of people have had great weight loss results with IF.

Food frequency has little effect on your metabolism – muscle will be a greater factor in your metabolism, which I will address in a future post.

Myth #3: Going on a quick diet will help you lose weight

Okay, technically it can help you lose weight. But it’s all water. You may have dropped 5 pounds over the last 3 days, and shrunk a bit after drinking that cayenne pepper, lemon juice, maple syrup water, but that is all water weight and it will be gained back within a few days of stopping.

Myth # 4: You need to drastically cut calories if you want to lose weight

If you eat fewer calories than you burn, you will lose weight. The higher your net burn, the more weight you will lose. It is typically not a good idea to eat fewer than 1,200 calories, as your body does still need the energy to function properly, especially if you’re active. However 1,200 calories is a baseline “don’t go below this,” not a hard set number. If you’re around 5 feet tall, that may be a very good daily calorie allotment to allow you to lose weight.

Myth # 5: Starvation mode

Starvation mode: where your metabolic rate declines during caloric restriction or weight loss so drastically that further weight loss becomes impossible or you begin to gain weight. I’ve seen many accounts of people worrying about their body going into starvation mode, and because of this they are afraid to cut calories from their diets.

Now, starvation mode does happen, but it happens when you’re literally starving. Not when you say “oh, it’s 2pm and I haven’t eaten all day!”, or “I’ve been eating way less than usual the past three days!”. Here’s what the reddit.com/r/fitness FAQ (a great fitness forum and community) has to say about starvation mode:

Starvation mode is a myth that was popularized due to the Minnesota Starvation Experiment in which subjects were given 50% of their daily calorie intake for months. The result? Well, they lost weight until they had almost no weight left to lose and their bodies simply could not get the calories ANYWHERE. Concisely put: starvation mode happens when you are, quite literally, wasting away. Not when you have a simple caloric deficit. Your body will make up for it with fat stores. That’s what they’re for. Do not worry about starvation mode.

Myth #6: the food pyramid 

You know the one. This sucker up there^^ that we learned in grade school. It has no basis in science or nutrition, but in what companies were paying the government the most money at the time (hello, wheat!). You should not be eating more bread, pasta and rice than you are vegetables and fruits. These foods are nutrient-sparse, and serve as calorie-filled vehicles for better food. The only food that I think you should try to get x number of servings of is vegetables – shoot for 5-8 servings daily. Everything else should be gram and macronutrient-based: x grams of protein a day, y grams of fats, and z grams of carbohydrates.

Myth # 7: Fruits

I wasn’t entirely sure how to word that title. But there seems to be a misconception, especially in the female community that fruits are some end-all to weight loss. I’ve seen titles from “What’s more healthy than a big bowl of fruit?”, to “MIRACLE FRUIT”. If there is any “miracle food,” it would be vegetables – the majority of them are low-calorie and filling, and incredibly nutrient-dense. Fruits tend to have fewer nutrients than vegetables, more calories, and are much higher in sugar. But don’t get me wrong, fruit can be wonderful. A couple of cold slices of watermelon on a hot day are amazing, and eating a peach or apple instead of ice cream for dessert is always going to be a better choice.

Myth # 8: This food/drink will make you burn fat!

A calorie deficit will burn fat, not any specific food or drink. Foods and drinks cannot burn fat. Some stimulants, such as coffee, will give you an insignificant and temporary increase in metabolism, but there’s no fat burn unless you burn more calories than you consume.

 

I am sure that this list will grow over time, as I remember more and more myths that people consider to be fact. I will also add sources as I find them to support these claims.

The Biggest Loser – Strengths and Shortcomings

I want to start off my women-oriented food and fitness blog by talking about something most American women are familiar with: The Biggest Loser, a reality competition where overweight and obese contestants compete to lose the highest percentage of weight. Complete with a ranch where they live together, trainers, gyms, and team challenges, it’s become a household name over their 14 season run. They’ve even expanded to Australia and the UK. I think it provides a great common ground to start the discussion about fitness, diet, and overall health, but it’s not all going to be praise. *NOTE: There will be finale spoilers in this post!*

I followed this season’s Biggest Loser since it started in January. They had the usual set-up: x number of contestants living at the ranch, working out with their teams’ respective trainers, trying to lose the highest percentage of weight in order to win the quarter of a million dollar prize.  This year they added in an another component – there were three kids, each representing one of the teams, who were there to help raise awareness of childhood obesity. They did not stay on the ranch with the competitors, as they were still in school, and they could not be eliminated.

Now as I said, the Biggest Loser provides a great opportunity to motivate people to increase their physical activity, improve their diets, and ultimately their lives. But what many people fail to acknowledge is the extremity of the show, and the shortcomings it has.

Let’s start out with the good. On the show, people who have let themselves go are given a chance to change their lives. They are given a tailored eating plan, access to an extensive gym, and trainers to provide them with the many pushes they need. Each season, we see contestants learn what correct portion sizes look like, the calorie content for different foods, how to prepare healthy meals, and how to work harder than they thought they ever could. It helps motivate viewers to eat better and exercise more. This year, the children on the show also helped raise awareness of childhood obesity. The kids all lost weight through a healthier lifestyle, and they all had improved their self-worth and confidence when the show concluded. Every finale brings jaws to the floor as we see months of hard work pay off for each contestant. But sometimes these habits don’t stick with the contestants, and months or years later, they’re back where they started.

To name just a few, Season 3’s winner, Erik Chopin, has gained all his weight back. A woman shown in this season’s live finale as the previous winner voted to be in a Subway commercial with Jared, was overweight and clearly looked nothing like she had when she won. (For the life of me I can’t remember her name, and sorry for the wordiness in that last sentence.) The show’s formula of restricted eating on an extreme exercise regime is, well, extreme. And it’s not sustainable, because unfortunately, most people just don’t have the time to work out for four hours each day – these conditions can’t be replicated at home. They also judge the contestants solely on weight lost – body fat is not a factor, so muscle gain is detrimental to their literal losing weight. (I will get into this in the future, but it’s never too early to start: your weight is just a number. It should not matter to you unless you are a ballerina or in a weight class: what matters is that you are healthy and happy with how you look.) Add on the fact that it is ultimately a reality television show that needs viewers and good ratings, and you have a model that does not translate to the average American.

Now let’s switch to my favorite part of the entire season: Danni Allen. In the beginning, she was unsure of herself, and did not believe she could complete the workouts, or lose the weight she needed to. But soon after the show began, something clicked. I know this, because it has happened to me. There is a moment where you realize you cannot resist anymore, and that the commitment you need to make is entirely non-negotiable. You know that it will be worth counting your calories and exercising most days. And it makes you happy. I resisted counting calories for months and months, and when I finally threw in the towel, it turned out to be more rewarding than I could have ever anticipated. I saw that change in Danni, and from that moment on, she was amazing. She won almost every challenge, most of them on her own, and each week she continued to lose large amounts of weight. When I saw her last night on the finale, I couldn’t believe it. I was floored by how incredible she looked.

But to me, the best part was she looked strong. She didn’t look like she had spent the previous months simply jogging for hours and hours on a treadmill. She had not only burned off fat, but she had built a body to be proud of. Over the next few weeks and months, you’ll see that this type of body is the kind I aspire to achieve, and even though it is not everyone’s ideal body, their ideal body can be achieved through the same means – eating less, and doing both strength training and cardio exercise.

Even though many contestants have reverted back to their old ways, whether partially or entirely, I highly doubt that Danni Allen, the season 14 winner will do so, because she developed an understanding that her health and a body that she is proud of are far too important to compromise. That is what I loved about her – she was able to change herself both outside and inside, and her transformation transcends the shortcomings of the show.

There are so many misconceptions in the fitness world, and while the Biggest Loser can provide motivation and inspiration for people to lose weight and become healthier, it unfortunately can create unrealistic standards and make the numbers seem too important. (It’s possible to lose huge amounts of weight in a short amount of time, especially for those who are morbidly obese, but for many it just isn’t realistic or more importantly, safe.) Part of what I hope to achieve with this blog is to inform women of what will actually going to help them achieve their goals. It won’t involve any miracle pills or crash diets, because it will be sustainable – a combination of proper eating and fitness – and it will help improve your life in the long-term, as opposed to giving you a temporary fix for your troubles.

Some of what’s to come:

• my account of the lovely Poulsbo Beer Run this past weekend
• general guidelines for eating well and exercise
• how to eat well and healthy on a budget
• recipes and product reviews
• Fitocracy, my favorite workout tracking website!