Girls, Get Your Guns

Lifting weights.  Just typing those words makes me feel anxious. Not because lifting weights makes me anxious, but because I know what so many woman are thinking when they hear (or read in this case) someone bring up the subject.  So, I want to start by asking you a question.  Have you ever noticed the women at the gym who do nothing but hit the aerobics classes?  Now, I have nothing against aerobics classes.  They have their place in the fitness world.  But have you ever noticed that the cardio addicted women never really seem to change all that much?  At the gym I go to I've seen the same people going in and out of those classes for 8 years.  Guess what?  They look exactly the same as they did 8 years ago.  And that's okay.  If your plan is simply to eat like a bird and then do mad amounts of cardio to burn off that piece of cheesecake you hoovered last night (sound familiar?), I'm cool with that.  Please. Continue.  And be sure to let me know how it pans out as you age and your metabolism slows down.  There's a good chance you'll have to up the cardio and cut the calories even MORE just to maintain.  And my guess is that even that wont work.  But good luck.  

I might be overstepping just a scoche here, but I'm willing to bet that if you're reading this blog post, you can probably relate to the cardio/calorie battle from Hell.  Okay, maybe some of you throw in a little resistance training from time to time, but answer me this; are the weights you use pink?  Purple?  Blue?  Yeah, that's what I thought.  I know.  I've been there.  I used to think that anything besides the colorful rubbery weights would turn me into ah-nold.  I still shudder at the thought.  But girls, I can absolutely positively guarantee that that wont happen.  It wont.  It can't.  It's not even possible.  And at this point, sometimes I laugh at the fact that I was ever worried about it.  Seriously, oh what I wouldn't give to just be able to gain that last few pounds of muscle I so desperately want.  

If you haven't guessed already, I'm not into the skinny look.  It's not the body I aspire to achieve.  I spent so many years cardio-ing myself to death because I thought it was the only way I could continue to fit into my clothes.  And, you know, I guess my clothes did fit.  But my body never changed.  I would gain a pound here and lose a pound there, but there was never any substantial change.  In fact, after I discovered what REAL fitness (not endless step classes, zumba classes, and 60 minute jogs on the treadmill) could do for me, I was actually mad at myself for buying into the idea that anything else could whip my body into it's best shape!  So much time and energy working off excess calories.  Gah!!!  Why?  Well, because...skinny, I guess.  

You guys, I'm here to tell you that there's a better way.  Leave looking like a 12 year old girl to the 12 year old girls.  And if you're one of the people sitting there thinking, "this doesn't apply to me because if I lift weights I only bulk up."  You're lying to yourself and you're finding yet another reason to NOT get the results you know you want.  But it's up to you.  And I know I've said it before but it's worth repeating, you have to be ready to face the numbers.  You have to be ready to re-think everything you ever thought you knew about getting and staying fit.  You have to be willing to throw the restrictions you've always placed on yourself out the window.  I can't tell you how both empowering and freeing it is to discover what you're actually capable of.  Physically AND Mentally.  It's incredible.  Here, let me show you what I mean...

            

These are average moms who discovered what happens when you get over the fear of "getting bulky" and hit the weight room.  I'm sorry, but you simply can NOT argue with those results.  Unless of course you don't like lean sexy curves and rockin' abs.  In that case, argue away.  And I would bet my life that they don't spend more than an hour or so in the gym every day.  When it comes to weights, it's all about the quality of your workouts.  You do NOT need to spend hours and hours in the gym every day to get that lean athletic look. 

Here's a good example of what I believe women fear about lifting heavy weights.  

That gal on the left there?  She took MASSIVE amounts of steroids and male hormones to get looking like that.  Not to mention that she was seriously starving and dehydrated when that picture was taken.  Trust me.  She was.  I'm not saying that she didn't work hard (body builders are probably some of the most dedicated and disciplined athletes in the world), but that whole package was absolutely by design.  Most people aren't aiming to win a professional body building competition.  The gal on right?  Beautiful, lean muscles that are the result of lifting more than 5 pounds on a regular basis.  Does that look bulky to you?  Yeah, me neither.  I could do without the "I'm about to make out with this punching bag" look though.  

So here we are.  I think I've made my point.  But aside from attempting to convince you to step away from the cardio machines and pick up something that weighs more than 5 pounds, I want to give you some general tips towards achieving the body you know you want.  And let me say it again, LET GO of the techniques you've clung to for so long thinking that they would maybe possibly work for you at some point.  They won't.  But here's what will (I stole this bullet point list from one of my favorite websites).  We'll dig much deeper into several of these points in the future.  But this will give you a good idea of what I FIRMLY believe to be the best way to achieve that fit, athletic look.

• *You do not need to do 3 hours of cardio a day and in fact doing so can be VERY unhealthy and metabolically   damaging.
• *You do not need to live off of tilapia and asparagus
• *There are no aerobics classes
• *You do not need to avoid dietary fat
• *You do not need to opt for the “low cal”, “low fat”, “no fat” or “sugar free” versions of things.
• *You do not need the colored weights. You do NOT need to lift light!
• *Special K is not a breakfast
• *Diet Coke does not count for hyrdration
• *You do not need to live off lettuce
• *You do not need to under eat all the time
• * You do not need to “no carb”, “low carb” or “carb free” it
• *You do not need expensive gadgets, heart rate monitors, fancy computer programs or the latest Dr Oz detox to get the body you want
• 
  

INSTEAD, you need to

• *Eat at levels to support your activity but not promote bodyfat
• *Eat carbs (the RIGHT kinds)
• *Eat fat (the RIGHT kinds)
• *Eat lean proteins
• *Hydrate with water
• *Pick up a barbell. A kettlebell. A sandbag. A tire. A dumbbell. I don’t care, but PICK UP HEAVY WEIGHT
• *Master the basics. The pushup. The pullup. The  squat. The deadlift.
• *Don’t think of “cardio” as being confined to the elliptical. Think of plyometrics, sprint drills, hill runs, prowler pushes, sled drags, tire flips
• *Get intense. IF you’re training heavy GO HEAVY. If you’re doing sprints pound them out!
• *Abandon long duration cardio and try to rely mostly on plyometrics and HIIT for the “cardio” component of your training. Or use a barbell. Clean a barbell 50x. You’ll sweat trust me.
• *Do burpees.
• *Reduce or eliminate refined sugars completely (not fruit but doughnuts and the like)
• *Rely on whole natural foods for your primary source of fuel (no bars, pre packaged items etc)
• *Stick to the outer isles of the grocery store
• *Think lean meats, veggies, fruits, nuts, seeds, etc
• *EAT! Resist the urge to reduce calories, cut macronutrients from your diet or resort to other drastic measures.
• *Until you master solid nutrition and proper training don’t waste your hard earned money on a bazillion different supplements or other “get fit quick” fixes
• *Train for YOU, at YOUR level, for YOUR goals. What works for your neighbor works for them, great. You need to do what works for you.

  

It works.  Believe me.