Often times, it blows my mind that female athletes are so hesitant to strength train. They are afraid of getting “too big” or looking different from the other girls. The cool thing about this field is that we have science to back up the things that we put out there. You cannot argue the fact that women will see crazy amount of muscle mass gain from two full body workouts a week, because the topic is not open for debate. Women produce about 1/10 the testosterone (muscle building hormone) of their male counterparts; they WON’T gain a ton of muscle from strength training! This is fact, please don’t try and argue with it or use scientifically contradicted reasoning. It is like saying the sky is orange. If some women feel as though they get “bulky” when they train, it is likely due to frequent visits to the ice cream stand, NOT strength training.
You gotta get strong ladies!
Now that I have your attention, and have made you realize that female athletes will not become hulking monsters from strength training, I have some more food for thought. What seperates male and female athletes? Seriously, think about it. Is it conditioning? No, women can typically attain equal or better fitness levels than men. Ok, well then sprinting, males have a quicker turnover. Not so fast, I have seen women who have quite a high turnover rate. Well, then what is it? Aside from height and limb length, which are both genetically predetermined traits, force production is the difference between male and female athletes, and frankly, men produce more force into the ground.
Think Dwain Chambers can produce some force?
If men produce more force, then why aren’t more women strength training? The only reason that I can gather is that our society has created this fictitious notion that women will become “masculine” from training, and only light weights in the 40-60 rep range will prevent mounds of muscle from building. By the way some female athletes talk, simply walking into the weight room will add muscle. And to think I have read T-Nation all of these years looking for size and strength gains…I should have been reading Shape magazine!
Our female athletes learn that force production is closely linked to speed!
All kidding aside, if you are a female athlete, sprinting and jumping are only a part of your road to becoming more athletic. Increasing your lower body force production will go a long way towards improving your athletic ability. Implement squats, deadlift variations, wall squats, leg presses, lunges, step-ups, and other compound, multi joint movements. Focus on adding weight slowly and steadily, eat a balanced diet to keep your body composition in check, and watch your speed, jumping ability, and change of direction improve…all without looking like a bodybuilder!
