Few, but increasingly few, women now choose to include strength training in their sports routines.
One of the reasons why women have generally refused to practice this type of training is to avoid becoming very muscular. This is because we have a very erroneous concept of goals in strength training. Strength not only pursues the goal of getting the body of an Olympic lifter, or with a male aspect (Catena Velasco, 2014)
.There are also improvements at the neural level, achieving more efficient muscles and thus helping in a great way in daily tasks. For this reason, we should not confuse strength in general terms with hypertrophic strength.
But does a woman really have similar adaptations to a man when it comes to strength training? The answer is yes. With respect to the initial values, the changes achieved are similar. The difference is in the initial values of man in terms of maximum strength and muscle size, which in men are greater. It should also be borne in mind that in men testosterone levels and blood values are also higher, which also produces that the absolute increase in strength is greater than the female collective (González Badillo & Gorastiaga Ayestarán, 1995).
As for the improvement of strength by hypertrophic route was also thought to be more limited in women than in men, but recent research postulates that if in terms of volume, relative intensity and frequency, the trainings are equal, the adaptations to be derived are also going to occur similarly in both genders. We remember that we are talking about gain in muscular hypertrophy.
Although absolute strength values are higher in males, increases in relative percentages may be equal or greater in females (Cureton, Collins, Hill, & McElhannon, 1988; Wilmore, 1974).
On the other hand, speaking of negative points, there are certain scientific studies that point out that the progress of strength gain in women can be stabilized after 3-5 months of training, not progressing in the same way that men do (Wilmore, 1974). This difference can be seen even more accentuated in the upper train, where there is a notable difference in absolute strength between women and men, the latter being those with higher levels.
The reason why some women develop higher levels of strength than others is mainly due to hormone levels of testosterone. Those that normally have higher testosterone values will have a greater potential for developing strength and potency (Ebben & Jensen, 1998).
MAIN BENEFITS OF STRENGTH TRAINING IN WOMEN
BONE LEVEL BENEFITS
If the training is adequate, there is an increase in lean body mass, which will lead to an improvement in bone mineral density, a very important factor for the reduction of diseases such as osteoporosis, ensuring the avoidance of the risk of bone fracture (Madsen, Adams, & Van Loan, 1998).
GREATER RESISTANCE IN CONNECTIVE TISSUES
The ligaments, tendons and cartilages are greatly strengthened in strength training, which will result in greater stability and joint integrity, thus preventing the appearance of the risk of injury.
DECREASE IN FAT PERCENTAGE
One of the reasons why women have generally refused to practice this type of training is to avoid becoming very muscular. This is because we have a very erroneous concept of goals in strength training. Strength not only pursues the goal of getting the body of an Olympic lifter, or with a male aspect (Catena Velasco, 2014)
.There are also improvements at the neural level, achieving more efficient muscles and thus helping in a great way in daily tasks. For this reason, we should not confuse strength in general terms with hypertrophic strength.
But does a woman really have similar adaptations to a man when it comes to strength training? The answer is yes. With respect to the initial values, the changes achieved are similar. The difference is in the initial values of man in terms of maximum strength and muscle size, which in men are greater. It should also be borne in mind that in men testosterone levels and blood values are also higher, which also produces that the absolute increase in strength is greater than the female collective (González Badillo & Gorastiaga Ayestarán, 1995).
As for the improvement of strength by hypertrophic route was also thought to be more limited in women than in men, but recent research postulates that if in terms of volume, relative intensity and frequency, the trainings are equal, the adaptations to be derived are also going to occur similarly in both genders. We remember that we are talking about gain in muscular hypertrophy.
Although absolute strength values are higher in males, increases in relative percentages may be equal or greater in females (Cureton, Collins, Hill, & McElhannon, 1988; Wilmore, 1974).
On the other hand, speaking of negative points, there are certain scientific studies that point out that the progress of strength gain in women can be stabilized after 3-5 months of training, not progressing in the same way that men do (Wilmore, 1974). This difference can be seen even more accentuated in the upper train, where there is a notable difference in absolute strength between women and men, the latter being those with higher levels.
The reason why some women develop higher levels of strength than others is mainly due to hormone levels of testosterone. Those that normally have higher testosterone values will have a greater potential for developing strength and potency (Ebben & Jensen, 1998).
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| Core Exercises Fitness Model by Thoroughly Reviewed in Flickr.com (CC BY 2.0) |
MAIN BENEFITS OF STRENGTH TRAINING IN WOMEN
BONE LEVEL BENEFITS
If the training is adequate, there is an increase in lean body mass, which will lead to an improvement in bone mineral density, a very important factor for the reduction of diseases such as osteoporosis, ensuring the avoidance of the risk of bone fracture (Madsen, Adams, & Van Loan, 1998).
GREATER RESISTANCE IN CONNECTIVE TISSUES
The ligaments, tendons and cartilages are greatly strengthened in strength training, which will result in greater stability and joint integrity, thus preventing the appearance of the risk of injury.
HIGHER LEVELS OF STRENGTH
Strength training will produce an increase in women's functional strength. We know that over the years, aging leads to a significant decrease in strength, which is associated with a number of functional capacity problems.
Improved physical performance will thus guarantee a higher level of health and a good quality of life (ACSM, 1998a).
DECREASE IN FAT PERCENTAGE
The increase in lean mass leads to a decrease in the total fat percentage. Since the fat mass is a non-functional element, this decrease will further accentuate this increase in functional strength. In addition, the fact that the transversal area of the muscle is larger will also influence muscle strength (ACSM, 1998b, 1998a; Ebben & Jensen, 1998).
PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS
There are several studies that show that women who do strength training develop better levels of self-esteem and other healthy psychological effects. A sense of personal empowerment is created (Ebben & Jensen, 1998).
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| Fitness Gym Workout Weight Strength Training by ThoroughlyReviewed in Flickr.com (CC BY 2.0) |
Therefore, we can conclude this post affirming that the musculature in both sexes presents similar characteristics at physiological level, and that the response to the training is produced in the same way. We have also seen how the increases are equal in proportion in levels of absolute strength with the training.
We also mention again the total amount of health benefits derived from strength training in women.
We conclude by saying that the myths that postulate that women will hypertrophy excessively with strength training, achieving a male aspect, and that the gains in strength levels are much greater in men than in women are completely false. These facts as we have seen are totally unfounded.
See you in the next post.
See you in the next post.
May the force be with you!
REFERENCES
ACSM. (1998a). Position
Stand. Exercise and physical activity for older adults. Medicine and Science
in Sports and Exercise, 30(6), 992–1008. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9624662
ACSM. (1998b). Position
Stand. The recommended quantity and quality of exercise for developing and
maintaining cardiorespiratory and muscular fitness, and flexibility in healthy
adults. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 30(6), 975–991.
Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9624661
Catena Velasco, F.
(2014). La importancia del entrenamiento de fuerza en mujeres. Retrieved March
11, 2019, from
https://www.holmesplace.com/es/es/blog/fitness/la-importancia-del-entrenamiento-de-fuerza-en-las-mujeres
Cureton, K. J., Collins,
M. A., Hill, D. W., & McElhannon, F. M. (1988). Muscle hypertrophy in men
and women. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 20(4),
338–344. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3173042
Ebben, W. P., & Jensen,
R. L. (1998). Strength Training for Women. The Physician and Sportsmedicine,
26(5), 86–97. https://doi.org/10.3810/psm.1998.05.1020
González Badillo, J.
J., & Gorastiaga Ayestarán, E. (1995). Fundamentos del entrenamiento de
la fuerza : aplicación al alto rendimiento deportivo. INDE Publicaciones.
Retrieved from https://www.inde.com/es/productos/detail/pro_id/194
Madsen, K. L., Adams, W.
C., & Van Loan, M. D. (1998). Effects of physical activity, body weight and
composition, and muscular strength on bone density in young women. Medicine
and Science in Sports and Exercise, 30(1), 114–120. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9475652
Wilmore, J. H. (1974).
Alterations in strength, body composition and anthropometric measurements
consequent to a 10-week weight training program. Medicine and Science in
Sports, 6(2), 133–138. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/4461973
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