Tips to reduce cellulite and live healthier
Day 13 and here’s lucky Tip No. 13!Work out with weights.
This is probably going to be the hardest post to write. Not because I don’t like the subject or have much to say… in fact, it’s quite the opposite. It’s something I feel so strongly about, I know I’m going to have to use some restraint in my language so I don’t sound too ‘preachy’.
From my own perspective, I had never lifted a barbell, or anything too heavy in fact, until around 6 or 7 years ago. My hubby had caught the CrossFit bug and I used to hear him talking about his workouts and think that anything that sounded that hard couldn’t be good for him! However it didn’t take long for me to notice the changes to his body. He lost the ‘gut’ that had been gradually increasing in size over the years, (despite working out at least a few times a week), his muscles became more defined and for the first time in years, he stopped complaining about his sore knees!
So when my friend suggested I try CrossFit, I reluctantly agreed to give it a go, after all, I didn’t want to turn into a ‘He-Man’ (for the younger generation, that’s a big, muscular looking chappie who looks like he’s eaten all the steroids)!! Nearly 7 years later, I’m still far from a ‘He-Man’, but I can tell you, I feel stronger and fitter than ever before. And I absolutely credit weight lifting for that.
There seems to be a belief that people need to do heaps of cardio to maintain a healthy weight and look good, but the fact is while cardio burns calories and fat when you’re performing it, high-rep strength training will continue to boost your fat-burning (metabolism) for up to 38 hours after the workout. Of course, this happens because weight training is awesome at (first breaking and then) building muscle and muscles use up heaps of energy. Also, as weight training is usually done in more intensive ‘spurts’, your stress hormone (cortisol) won’t stay elevated for as long as an hour-long run for example, which usually means our oestrogen levels won’t stay as elevated either (again, making it easier for us to lose weight).
But here’s one really important thing to take note of, most women will have to work much harder than men to build an equivalent amount of muscle mass simply because we don’t usually have high enough testosterone levels required to build that much muscle. So, working out with weights 3 or 4 times a week will get you a lean, healthy, well-defined body, and I promise in most cases you won’t end up “looking like a man”. In fact, whenever I hear anyone saying this, I inwardly laugh as I know just how hard it is to build muscle mass and it sure isn’t going to happen overnight, if ever!
Dynamic weight lifting (i.e. using free weights/ barbell as opposed to machines) will tone all muscles including your core, so it’s great if you’ve had back problems after pregnancy/ kids. Also, weight lifting can also help with bone density, which is super-important for us girls to prevent osteoporosis.
Plus, studies suggest that it can also result in better cognitive function (improved memory, verbal reasoning and a longer attention span). Plus, being strong makes you feel like a badass and it comes in pretty handy when you’re trying to move furniture.
So, give it a go will you? Just for me?
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