There are various myths circulating around in women's strengthtraining. If you know about these myths, then it will help you to get the maximum benefit from strength training.

Myth 1: women should not lift heavy

There is a myth that women should not lift heavy or they will become bulky. This is the biggest myth in female training. Picking up heavy things does not make a bulky. Those female bodybuilders who look very heavy and big, they have spent years to look like that and they have eaten, exercised and taken supplements to look like that because they need that look for bodybuilding competitions. Simply lifting heavy will not make you look like them. But lifting heavy will do a few things to your body. It will make your muscles stronger. If you eat a caloric deficit diet, the right kind of healthy foods, and use heavy weight, your muscles will become stronger and denser. Lifting heavy will also help you to burn the fat on top of your muscle and as a result of that you will get the toned look.

If you pick up light weights and do 20+ repetitions, it will build muscular endurance but it will not help you to build tight, dense, strong muscle. For such type of muscles, you will need to lift heavy. If you want to look really good and be strong, then you should lift heavy.

Myth 2: you can spot reduce fat

This is another myth that you should be worried about. It is not possible to spot reduce fat. Even if you do hundreds of side bends and situps, it will not help you to lose the fat from those specific areas of your body. Side bends may make your side muscles stronger and situps may help you to spend in the core muscles but they will not help you to lose fat.

Your body is genetically predisposed to store fat in certain locations in certain order. If you start to lose weight, your body will lose fat. It will lose fat fast from your arms, then legs, then belly, then your chest and then your butt. It may also happen in a different order, depending on your personal genetic make-up. Targeted exercises will not help you to lose fat from specific areas.

Eating better will help you to lose fat from your body. Your diet is crucial because it is generally responsible for your fat loss.

Myth 3: one plan will work for everyone

Many people believe that one plan will work for every woman. This is another myth and it is not true. One workout plan cannot work for every woman. You will react to food, training and other stimuli differently from other women. You have unique characteristics, preferences, struggles and life from another person. Probably, you need a different plan depending on your specific requirements and that will work better for you. However strength training and following a specific diet plan will increase the chance of achieving what you want to achieve.

Myth 4: you need cardio to lose weight

Many people believe this myth and so they focus on doing more cardio and spending hours doing it. If you believe that running on a treadmill for several hours will help you to lose fat and weight, maybe you are wrong. If it is not suitable for you, you don't have to do it. Probably you can achieve that result with a fraction of work. You don't have to do cardio unless you want to do it. Cardio is good for you and your heart but it may not be able to help you to lose fat and weight.

References

1. Unapologetically Powerful
2. Resistance training “ health benefits
3. The benefits of strength training for older adults