Let's dispel the female myth: "if I lift weights, do I become like a man?"

Martina Marise

4 years ago

Il weightlifting turns women into powerful and muscular monsters? Obviously not!

Unfortunately, even today, in gyms we often hear some women say:

"No, I don't want to lift too heavy weights because I'm afraid of getting too big!"

Many people have come to believe that a woman who practices weightlifting is prone to becomingstereotypical image of female bodybuilder.

In this article we discover together the physiological and hormonal reasons, so it is not possible to develop male musculature!

Index

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WOMEN AND MUSCLE CONSTRUCTION

If men and women are structurally very similar, they are there great physiological differences which influence the ability of the two sexes to gain muscle mass.

HORMONES

The main reason why women are unable to gain muscle mass as fast as men is because of the difference in hormonal status.

Il testosterone is the androgynous hormone responsible for anabolism in the body; moreover, it distinguishes male features (excess hair, deep voice, increased muscle mass).

Men and women produce it because it regulates body function, but men have far higher levels than women.

The equivalent of female testosterone is called estrogen and is responsible forincrease in protein sex hormones (which reduces the amount of testosterone) and cortisol, which reduces muscle mass.

FIBERS AND MUSCLE TYPES

There is a similar distribution of muscle fibers between men and women, however women only have the 60 / 80% muscle cross-sectional area compared to men.

This reduced size translates into less muscle gains for the same training!

RESISTANCE TRAINING AND HORMONAL ADAPTATIONS

Some studies have shown that resistance training increases testosterone levels in men, while this increase does not occur in women.

In reality, testosterone increases also occur in women, but in such a low percentage that it does not allow the same muscle hypertrophy that men do.

Other female hormones, such as GH (growth hormone), may be responsible for female muscle hypertrophy.

DIET AND MUSCLE INCREASE

Diet is a fundamental component for theincrease in muscle mass; to ensure this increase you need to eat more of the calories needed to maintain body weight!

Since women are generally "smaller" than men (smaller size and bone mass, less muscle mass etc.), they usually require less calories.

If a woman ate the same amount of food as a man, she would most likely end up gaining a lot of fat as well as muscle mass.

The quality of the food chosen for your diet and the right distribution of macronutrients is also fundamental.

IN CONCLUSION

Masculinization in women does not occur as a result of weight lifting, but rather as a result of an excess of androgenic hormones associated with the correct stimulus for muscle growth.

The stereotypical image of the female bodybuilder in the media is the result of the use of androgenic compounds, aimed at significantly increasing muscle mass and size.

For women who want to improve their body composition, lose fat, define themselves and gain good muscle tone without absolutely becoming like a man, therefore, the bodybuilding and weight lifting are a highly recommended choice!

And you, fit women, have you ever been afraid of becoming like men in the gym? Let us know!

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SOURCES

Hakkinen, K. & Pakarinen, A. (1995). Acute hormonal responses to heavy resistance training in men and women at different ages. Int J Sports Med, 16. (p. 507-513).