The word “exercise” causes most women to cringe, giving rise to an intense feeling of dread and mistrust. Our past is riddled with the exercise related emotional trauma of girls locker rooms, gym class mishaps and period pain letters from your mom ignored by the gym teacher. It is no wonder that by the time we leave school or varsity, most of us give up on exercise all together or go into a crazy cycle of gymming and crash dieting.
Yet, exercise is immensely important for women and can help you thrive in all aspects of your life when applied correctly. Applying exercise correctly means exercising according to your FEMALE body’s needs instead of trying to keep up with your husband, brother or male cross-fit instructor. This is what we (as a society) have gotten all wrong. The feminist movement has allowed us to stand firm in the belief that we are just as strong and just as capable as our male counterparts. And although this is the truth in the workplace, in politics, in business etc, it is merely ignorant to think that our physiology and anatomy is entirely irrelevant when it comes to exercise.
So here are a couple of misconceptions about weight training that I have personally heard from women in my practice.
- If I weight train (lift weights), I will become muscular and bulky and lose my feminine shape.
Amongst a variety of other hormones, women also have the hormone testosterone- the so called “male sex hormone” – floating around in the system on a day to day basis. Although testosterone is not the primary sex hormone in females, it is ultimately very important in optimal hormonal health. Having too much or too little of this magnificent hormone can cause problems.
Having too little testosterone can cause you to feel totally drained by 4pm in the afternoon and have no sex drive. On the other hand, the inability to detoxify estrogen out of the system, results in excess estrogen which then turn into testosterone. This results in a woman having too much androgens/testosterone causing symptoms such as hormonal acne, facial hair growth or balding (androgenic alopecia), also commonly seen in PCOS.
So, the overall picture is this: unless you are injecting/ingesting any form of exogonous testosterone, your female physiology will not allow you to become muscular and bulky. You simply are not making enough testosterone for that! Even when you are lifting heavy in the gym.
2. I should stop weight training as I get older because it is bad for my back and joints
Unless you have a diagnosed back or joint condition, you should be weight training regardless of your age and especially as a woman! Our skeletal muscles are amazing organs of longevity. Keeping them strong and maintaining muscle mass throughout your life means that you will decrease your risk of various chronic diseases, decrease your risk of age related diseases and decrease your risk of cognitive decline.
Muscle strength, size and performance wastes away as we get older and this is called sarcopenia. Sarcopenia is caused by many age-related-factors such as insulin resistance, chronic inflammation and Vitamin D deficiency. However a major contributor to sarcopenia, which is not age related, is physical inactivity. Therefore resistance training can prevent the decline of muscle mass and help to improve your overall quality of life.
If you have a diagnosed back or joint condition, you should see a qualified Biokineticist who can help you by creating an exercise program best suited to your needs and limitations. Exercise is not off-limits to you but proper guidance is crucial.
3. I shouldn’t be finding it so difficult to train hard day in and day out. I must be lazy.
As much as we like to compete with men, our physiology just does not work the same. Firstly, men have a daily hormone cycle. Each morning, when they wake up, men have a sharp increase in testosterone which gradually declines throughout the day and is at it’s lowest by early evening. This repeats day in and day out for men.
As women, our hormones change on a daily basis and throughout our monthly cycle. You have probably heard of the new health hack for women called “cycle tracking” or “cycle syncing”. Well it turns out it actually works! Cycle tracking works because it considers how the fluctuation of our hormones make us feel, affects our motivation, energy, moods, impacts social needs and so much more. And doesn’t it make so much sense? As women we have been told that we can expect to be highly emotional before or during our periods. But what about the rest of the month? And what about other symptoms like lack of energy to train hard in the gym? Well it turns out that if we work with our menstrual cycle (and not against it) we can actually fine-tune our bodies so that we can live our best, happiest lives possible.
Week 1: Bleed week. This week all your hormones are at their lowest. This week is your chance to turn inward. Training hard in the gym is not going to feel great and you probably won’t even have the motivation to do so. Moving your body will still feel good though and could help with back or pelvis pain. So grab a yoga matt or take your dog for a stroll.
Week 2: Follicular phase. Hormones are starting to rise nicely, including testosterone. This week you may find that you have higher levels of energy and motivation. Now is your chance to hit the gym and capitalise on your new found enthusiasm for weight training.
Week 3: Ovulation phase. This week your estrogen and testosterone levels reach their peak. You will feel most confident and social this week so make the most of time spent with colleagues, family and friends! You can hit the weights hard this week and chances are that you are feeling like a super-freak as testosterone surges.
Week 4: If you are not pregnant, your progesterone levels will drop rapidly this week causing you to feel demotivated, sluggish and perhaps a little more negative about life in general. A decline in energy and motivation means you probably won’t be hitting your personal best performance in the gym this week. So don’t try to! Instead opt for slightly lighter weights and more repetitions -around the 15-20 reps of 3-5 sets per exercise.
The point is, we women, are not little men. Yes we can do anything a man can do (most of the times we do it better!). But to harness your true feminine powers, you have to work WITH the ebbs and flows of your own hormonal cycle, not against it.
The takeaway from all this is:
- Lift weights! We have been shoved into the cardio section at the gym for much too long! If you don’t know where to begin, find a Biokineticist who can help you and show you the ropes!
- Listen to your cycle! Whether you are still menstruating, pregnant, post-pregnancy, peri-menopause, menopausal or post-menopausal your body is uniquely intuitive. Adapt your training routine to sync up with your cycle and you will feel like the superhuman that you are!
- Your skeletal muscles are valuable organs with a role in metabolic health and overall longevity! Use them, don’t lose them!!!
