Despite living in the 21st century, our fitness world is polluted with numerous fitness myths, especially surrounding women’s fitness training. Yes, our women are still warned about lifting heavy weights as they may turn them into bulky men. But, when we talk to professional trainers, they always claim that dumbbells are great for the body!
In general, our fitness world is full of strong resources and expert trainers who constantly value mass gaining. However, with so many myths and barriers surrounding us, it becomes hard to differentiate between fact and fiction and get rid of the misinformation.
This article will help you learn about the common myths and barriers women mainly face in the fitness world.
Top 5 Myths Around Fitness for Women
Before getting started with fitness, it is essential to debunk all the myths to avoid hindering your training process. Here are the top 5 myths around fitness for women.
Myth 1: Lots of Cardio is the Only Way of Losing Weight
Although cardio is mainly the first thing that strikes our mind when we think of losing weight, depending on your goals, the best results come from the combination of both cardio and strength training.
Cardiovascular training is good for burning calories, heart, and lungs, whereas any form of strength training adds muscles to your body which improves your metabolism for an extended period.
Lifting weights during a workout helps your body burn calories for the next 48 hours. On the other hand, calories stop burning as soon as you stop performing your cardio exercises. Therefore, if you are willing to lose weight, adding weight lifting to your workout regime will be extremely beneficial.
Myth 2: Women Don’t Get the Same Results from Compound Training Like Men Do.
People often claim that women don’t get the same benefits from compound training such as pull-ups, squats, bench presses, and deadlifts as men do. In actuality, the benefits women get are far-reaching.
As we all know that compound movements such as a pull-up or bench press make use of multiple muscle groups all at once, they not only consume less time to perform but help burn an increased amount of calories.
With compound training, women mainly benefit in the following ways:
- Improves intramuscular coordination
- Builds strength within muscle groups
- Increases flexibility
- Improves metabolism for a longer run
- Promotes fat burn
- Maintains lean body mass
Myth 3: Lifting Heavy Weights Make Women Look Masculine
Although weight training helps gain muscle mass, this does not mean it will turn women into men or make them look bulky. Lifting weights improves metabolism with additional benefits, including:
- Increased calorie burn
- Boosting bone health
- Supporting mental health
- Shaping curves
- Improving sleep quality
Myth 4: Cutting Calories to the Absolute Minimum is the Only Way to Get in Shape
We have seen people claiming that your workout is of no use if you continue your calorie intake. However, when you restrict your calorie intake to hamster levels, it can negatively impact your health. In many cases, it leads to:
- Slower metabolism
- Decreased energy
- Disordered eating issues
It is true that women lose weight slower than men. When we talk about weight loss, women need to be a little patient as their hormones and genetic programming asks them to hang on to their fat. This is especially the case with areas such as the thighs, hips, and lower abdomen.
Unlike women, men play a much smaller role in propagating a species, so they lack the same energy-saving programming, which makes them more prone to shedding fat. Overcoming your genetic programming is not an easy task; therefore, be patient, take your time, and perform exercises the right way, and you will surely be rewarded for your true efforts.
Myth 5: Don’t Eat Right After You’re Done Working Out
In actuality, your body needs victuals to heal your muscles and make them stronger. Therefore, make sure you don’t starve yourself.
It’s best to have a small, healthy meal within 15 – 60 minutes after your workout. Make sure your meal contains carbohydrates and protein, but it should be a good dietary choice and not just sugar. This small snack will provide your body with the energy it needs to make that workout work.
Most importantly, don’t forget to hydrate yourself. Drink plenty of water the entire day, especially before, during, and after the workout. This will help you prevent dehydration and allow blood to transport oxygen and nutrients to different parts of the body for better performance and faster recovery.
Barriers Women Face Throughout Their Fitness Journey
With lots of responsibilities on their shoulders, it becomes difficult for women to pursue their fitness goals. Among the long list, some of the common fitness barriers women face include:
- Lack of time
- Lack of energy
- Parenting demands
- Gender stereotyping
- Health conditions
- Lack of motivation
Tips for Women to Overcome Fitness Barriers
It’s true that women face multiple barriers to exercise; however, the following tips can help them overcome these fitness barriers.
1. Lack of Time
With child-rearing, household, and work duties, women mostly don’t get time to look after themselves. One great solution for this is to exercise three times for 10 minutes every day. It will give the same benefits that a continuous 30 minutes workout session has.
2. Lack of Energy
It’s obvious that women feel tired since they have a very busy lifestyle. Regular exercise provides you with the energy and stamina to deal with the daily demands of life. Your first few weeks of regular exercise may be a bit tiring, but keeping this in mind may help you push past it.
3. Parenting Demands
Most women fulfill all the caregiving responsibilities themselves, such as looking after the children and older relatives, cooking, cleaning, etc. It will be less tiring if they share these responsibilities with their spouse or hire a caregiver.
4. Gender Stereotyping
People who believe that household chores and child-rearing responsibilities are “women’s work” make it difficult for women to take time for themselves. It’s important to know that women will only be able to look after others properly if they look after themselves first.
5. Lack of Motivation
Many women claim that they have trouble motivating themselves without a training partner. Others believe that exercise has to be painful, sweaty, and tiring in order to be useful. Find a training partner if this is the case for you.