Few Women in the Weight Room?

Training
81

ok… really quickly… sorry to go right back to this… but I just can’t resist:

Tracy Anderson says women should never lift anything over 3 lbs… and then a couple of sentences later, Gwyneth talks about how much better her left arm looks than her right since she carries her 30 LB SON AROUND IN HER BETTER-LOOKING ARM ALL DAY LONG! I mean contradictory, much? Tracy Anderson makes me want to kill myself… I have literally read quotes from her that say things like,

“I like to target the accessory muscles (the small muscle groups). Strengthening the accessory muscles help to create a tight knit group of small muscles that actually pull in the larger muscle groups to create a smaller dancer-like body.”

WHAT THE F*CK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? You look decent because you are a former dancer and you still dance like 10 hours a day with clients! Seriously… stop acting like you know what you are talking about and just disappear!

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[quote]rtm27 wrote:
Look at the SI swimsuit issue and most of the models are about 20 years old. They look great, but they don’t have ideal bodies, they have youth. Women waste their lives hoping for something that can’t be achieved through any diet or workout–youth. Much better to embrace the fact that a perfect adult body is going to have to be more muscular than the youthful ideal most women aspire to, because you just can’t turn back the clock. The fat that accumulates with age, having kids, life… is simply most effectively removed by getting tough. It’s a simple concept from a scientific standpoint but a lot tougher to take from an emotional one. This post probably now qualifies me as an obnoxious internet wannabe expert.[/quote]

^^
This is true!! And very well said.

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dianab / figuremuscle.

Great Response. It was a mistake of me to use an obvious photo shop job (its an ad and sex sells) but I wanted to use Jennifer Aniston because my girlfriend showed me the picture and was surprised how good she looks, even if photo shopped, at age 41. The age thing is overblown and for what it is worth - nothing is more attractive than a good looking more mature woman (did not use the term older for fear that a 41 year old femal poster would somehow find me).

Yes of course a person’s curves will not disapper overnight but as was pointed out “heavy” is a relative term. However, Dianab you say that “heavy” means to progressively add weight to the bar. If I am not mistaken this progression will quickly stall or go very slowly if one is not lifting in an intensified manner. As you stated, building muscle and strength takes hard work. Progression takes hardwork. So on this point I somewhat disagree in the manner that you stated it.

84

If you disagree in the manner I stated it, it’s all good, but the fact remains that pushing oneself to lift heavier is not going to create such an overload of muscle that a woman will turn too “manish”. The average middle aged woman will tell you that she looked her best in her late teen/early 20’s, why, because that is when she carried the most muscle mass on her body. The years that follow, if she does not do something about it, result in a loss of muscle mass and a gain of fat. Not rocket science, lift weights, push yourself to do more, go “heavier”.

Jennifer Anniston is a lovely woman, she makes her age look good. Since most of us do not have access to live the lifestyle of a celebrity, we have to use what we can to keep our looks. Heavy weight and diet, more often than not, are the key to staying youthful and fit.
Don’t be afraid to use the term older here. As far as I know, most of the women in this forum are quite happy with their age (:

85

I progressively add weight/reps and I don’t look like a hugemongous monster yet! Only shrinking and getting more lean…

86

Ok well it is hard to disagree with valid points so I am just going to say that the problem of “few women in the gym” should be looked at as encouragement fot the ones that do go. I feel that in a way it is easier for a guy to go lift heavy weight and get himself to the gym on a more regular basis since there are simply more of us there and the likelihood of having a friend, co-worker, willing workout partner, etc is perhaps higher in most situations. Hopefully it can be moved more into the forefront and become less of a “bulgarian thing” (shameless stealing of a thread title).

87

[quote]dianab wrote:
If you disagree in the manner I stated it, it’s all good, but the fact remains that pushing oneself to lift heavier is not going to create such an overload of muscle that a woman will turn too “manish”. The average middle aged woman will tell you that she looked her best in her late teen/early 20’s, why, because that is when she carried the most muscle mass on her body. The years that follow, if she does not do something about it, result in a loss of muscle mass and a gain of fat. Not rocket science, lift weights, push yourself to do more, go “heavier”.

Jennifer Anniston is a lovely woman, she makes her age look good. Since most of us do not have access to live the lifestyle of a celebrity, we have to use what we can to keep our looks. Heavy weight and diet, more often than not, are the key to staying youthful and fit.
Don’t be afraid to use the term older here. As far as I know, most of the women in this forum are quite happy with their age (:[/quote]

Amen, sista!!!

I’m 56 years old, played team sports my whole life, but didn’t start lifting until I was 50. There is no way in hell that I will ever look like I did 30, 20 or even 10 years ago. I’m heavier now than I ever was (except for my last pregnancy, which was twins) but I’m strong and my bones aren’t crumbling into dust.

I really have no idea why there aren’t more women in the weight room. We pick up grocery bags and babies all the time, but have no idea that the bar across your shoulders is lighter (and steadier, because it doesn’t squirm all over the place) than your 5 year old. Picking up a loaded, laundry basket off the floor, stacked with towels that you have to use your chin to steady, is good form for deadlifting. Lying on the floor and grabbing your toddler under his arms and pressing him into the air over your chest is just about benching. So what’s the difference? Weights won’t laugh or giggle like your kid, but they also don’t kick you in the head or piss down your back either. (By accident, of course, all children are angels.)

I work out early in the morning, and I’m the only woman in the weight room. I wasn’t intimidated when I first started, because I’m used to being laughed at, what with playing onstage and looking weird with all my tatts. And besides, nobody really looks at a woman over 50 anymore, and that’s a blessing and comfort in the gym, at least.

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[quote]eagertolearn wrote:
my girlfriend showed me the picture and was surprised how good she looks, even if photo shopped, at age 41. The age thing is overblown [/quote]

I don’t think so. Women over 40 should be taken out and shot.

89

kpsnap - not sure if that was sarcasm on your part, in a mistaken assumption that I meant to degrade women of that age. If so, that was certainly not the case, in fact it was the opposite. If it was just a joke then I read too much into it.

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Mom-in-MD is right. I must use the emoticons or risk alienating all my friends online.

It was a joke.

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[quote]kpsnap wrote:
Mom-in-MD is right. I must use the emoticons or risk alienating all my friends online.

It was a joke.[/quote]

Fuck you, snaps.

92

[quote]kpsnap wrote:
Mom-in-MD is right. I must use the emoticons or risk alienating all my friends online.

[/quote]

Nah. To know you is to love you.

P.S. You are not an emoticon kind of chick.

93

[quote]kpsnap wrote:
Mom-in-MD is right. I must use the emoticons or risk alienating all my friends online.

It was a joke.[/quote]

Use emoticons please!!! I’m sitting here in a helmet and kevlar vest feeling a bit foolish right now.

94

[quote]pushmepullme wrote:

[quote]kpsnap wrote:
Mom-in-MD is right. I must use the emoticons or risk alienating all my friends online.

It was a joke.[/quote]

Fuck you, snaps.[/quote]

Oh wow! HAHA! smiley face x1000

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[quote]ouroboro_s wrote:

[quote]kpsnap wrote:
Mom-in-MD is right. I must use the emoticons or risk alienating all my friends online.

It was a joke.[/quote]

Use emoticons please!!! I’m sitting here in a helmet and kevlar vest feeling a bit foolish right now.[/quote]

I never expected to get sniped. I thought we’d have more of a ritualistic, gangland-style, up-against the wall, spit in your face before you spray me with bullets type of thing. Imagine my disapointment.

96

[quote]Yo Momma wrote:

[quote]dianab wrote:
If you disagree in the manner I stated it, it’s all good, but the fact remains that pushing oneself to lift heavier is not going to create such an overload of muscle that a woman will turn too “manish”. The average middle aged woman will tell you that she looked her best in her late teen/early 20’s, why, because that is when she carried the most muscle mass on her body. The years that follow, if she does not do something about it, result in a loss of muscle mass and a gain of fat. Not rocket science, lift weights, push yourself to do more, go “heavier”.

Jennifer Anniston is a lovely woman, she makes her age look good. Since most of us do not have access to live the lifestyle of a celebrity, we have to use what we can to keep our looks. Heavy weight and diet, more often than not, are the key to staying youthful and fit.
Don’t be afraid to use the term older here. As far as I know, most of the women in this forum are quite happy with their age (:[/quote]

Amen, sista!!!

I’m 56 years old, played team sports my whole life, but didn’t start lifting until I was 50. There is no way in hell that I will ever look like I did 30, 20 or even 10 years ago. I’m heavier now than I ever was (except for my last pregnancy, which was twins) but I’m strong and my bones aren’t crumbling into dust.

I really have no idea why there aren’t more women in the weight room. We pick up grocery bags and babies all the time, but have no idea that the bar across your shoulders is lighter (and steadier, because it doesn’t squirm all over the place) than your 5 year old. Picking up a loaded, laundry basket off the floor, stacked with towels that you have to use your chin to steady, is good form for deadlifting. Lying on the floor and grabbing your toddler under his arms and pressing him into the air over your chest is just about benching. So what’s the difference? Weights won’t laugh or giggle like your kid, but they also don’t kick you in the head or piss down your back either. (By accident, of course, all children are angels.)

I work out early in the morning, and I’m the only woman in the weight room. I wasn’t intimidated when I first started, because I’m used to being laughed at, what with playing onstage and looking weird with all my tatts. And besides, nobody really looks at a woman over 50 anymore, and that’s a blessing and comfort in the gym, at least. [/quote]

copy, paste, send to sister, click. Problem solved. Thank’s lady :slight_smile:

97

[quote]kimbakimba wrote:

[quote]kpsnap wrote:
Mom-in-MD is right. I must use the emoticons or risk alienating all my friends online.

[/quote]

Nah. To know you is to love you.

P.S. You are not an emoticon kind of chick.[/quote]

Actually, the idea of me using emoticons was an even bigger joke.

PMPM hit the nail on the head. Fuck me.

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