"But, I Don't Want to Get Bulky!"
That’s what a prospective member told me. And sadly, I hear it fairly often.
She wanted to get stronger, lose body fat, and feel more confident, but she was afraid of getting “too big.”
According to her, resistance training, and especially weight lifting, were out of the question.
Lots of women want to train, get fit, and maybe “tone up,” but they’re wary of gaining “too much muscle.”
As a result, they may hesitate — or flat out refuse — to lift heavy weights or do any kind of resistance training, for fear of turning into the Incredible Hulk.
Here’s the real deal.
There’s a misconception that muscles can be “lengthened,” creating a sleek and lean appearance that won’t look “bulky.” Fitness companies and well-intentioned but ill-informed coaches may suggest that women do certain types of activities (such as Pilates, yoga, or light-weight/high-repetition resistance training) because they will lengthen muscles and won’t make them look “bulky.”
These types of activities certainly have their own merits, but the notion of lengthening muscles is a huge misconception.
Despite what many women have been led to believe about strength training, performing endless repetitions of exercises using very light weight will not yield “long and lean muscles” or strength gains.
For the woman who simply wants to be strong enough to move furniture without help and be healthy enough to live a vibrant, active life — but who doesn’t want to see a significant increase in muscle size — focusing on progressive overload of a few primary movement patterns (push, pull, squat, hinge, carry, rotation, anti-rotation) while keeping overall volume in check (around 10-20 sets per muscle per week) will likely do the trick.
Progressively overloading the muscles to get stronger means continuing to challenge the muscles as strength increases by doing any of the following:
Increasing the weight.
Adding more reps.
Increasing the volume of work.
Adding in pauses or slowing down the tempo.
Performing the exercise at a more challenging angle.
Taking less rest between sets.
Progressive resistance training can also result in a leaner appearance. The more muscle mass, the higher the calorie burn during exercise and during recovery from exercise. That means when combined with nutrient-dense foods, a caloric deficit, and enough quality sleep, progressive resistance training can help reduce body fat!
As someone very passionate about helping women find their strength with weights in hand, Hill Country MVMT can help you discover how empowering and beneficial weight lifting can be!
