Take a load on: reasons you should weight lift

There are girls who weight lift, and there are girls who are afraid of picking up a 5lb dumbbell. To the former group, it goes without saying that weight training will not make you look like a bodybuilder. The guys and girls who are stacked with muscles have worked hard for their physique over the course of many years. Even if you tried, it’s going to take more than lifting weights once in a while to get swole.

Weight training isn’t all about size however, there are many health, mental, and physical benefits as well, and it’s a great sport for women to get into. Just consider these benefits:

• Lifting weights will make you strong. The kind of strong where you can open a pickle jar on your own or rearrange the furniture in your house without straining your back. This leads to increased body confidence and proper weight management.
• Weight training improves bone density, a big problem for most women. According to the National Osteoporosis Foundation, one in two women over the age of 50 will break a bone due to osteoporosis. Lower your chances and protect your bones through lifting weights.
• The more muscle you have, the more fat you burn. When you lift weights, you build type II muscle fibers which improve whole body metabolism. If you’re trying to lose weight the best thing you can do is put on muscle, not spend hours on the elliptical trainer.
• Weight training is therapeutic and can help relieve symptoms of depression. When you persevere through a weights workout and are able to overcome discomfort, this mental toughness carries over to everyday stresses as well.
• Weight training improves performance, dexterity, endurance, and hand-eye coordination. If you’re an endurance athlete who wants the extra edge, start lifting weights. The work you put into the gym will translate into higher performance levels on the field, court, track, or garden.

Besides the reasons I’ve already listed, there are many more benefits to picking up weights. Namely, it improves your posture, lowers heart disease, improves your sex life, and inspires others.

You don’t need to look far for a reason to lift weights.