You must lift to lose! No Skinny Fat!!!!!!

I originally wrote this back in 2011, but here we go again. Ladies you NEED to lift weights! Enough already..... aerobics has its' place ---yes it's Heart Healthy! The science behind this is everywhere now----If you want that lean sexy look and total body Transformation --please get a good program. Did you ever notice folks that just take certain classes or just run ---their bodies NEVER change --
Stop SKINNY FAT!! --------what is it? That lean appearance in clothes, but in reality the person has a high Bodyfat%---case in point --Nicole cut calories and just ran --so glad she picked up weights!

Just got back from the gym, place was packed. Well part of the gym, the weight room was almost empty besides two ladies doing curls. After they did their set a guy came in and did something. I don’t know what, it was hard to describe, but very interesting.

After my workout I decided to do some Intervals—but on a cardio machine. So I decided to join the masses, it must be great because everyone is here, all the cardio machines were taken, except 1 treadmill, so I jumped on -

NOOOOOO!!!!!

During my warm-up and cool-down I did notice a few things around me. It looks like more people are exercising, which is great. Especially women, I think they know how important cardio is for losing weight and keeping it off. They’re cardio queens! But weights are a different story.

After I finished I decided to go to the stretching area, while I stretched out I happened to over-hear two ladies talking about weight loss. One of the ladies lost 40 + pounds. Yes I’m curious. I had to find out how she did it, so I asked. She explained that she ate super healthy and she ran and did some classes a few times a week. That’s great, but when I asked her if she did any resistance training, she said no. Her main reason was because she wasn’t trying to gain muscles. At this point I was already tired and the trainer in me couldn’t find the energy to explain how it doesn’t work that way –so I went on my merry way. (I’ll straighten her out at a later date!).

Unfortunately, her reasoning is not out of the norm. Many women have a similar mentality toward resistance training. The main flaw in believing that weight training is only for people who want to build muscle is that EVERYONE needs to build muscle for several reasons.

Do you want to look great? Do you want to lose body fat? Then lifting moderate weights with a good program will get you there. Remember skinny-fat? If you don’t, think of someone like a distance runner who was skinny but has loose skin? Without muscle tone, your skin sags and gives you that flabby look. Muscle is what gives women that tight, smooth appearance because it holds everything together. If someone lost a ton of weight, especially if it’s too fast, chances are you could have loose skin and appear shapeless, it’s because you need to implement resistance exercises into your routine. No one ever got six-pack abs or slim triceps by running alone.

Laurie Lifts heavy/moderate Weights!!

Muscle is also crucial to keep your weight from yo-yo-ing. The more lean muscle you have, the faster your metabolism is, and the more fat you burn at rest. The key is Fast Metabolism, not endless running or hour long sessions on the treadmill just to maintain. And as we age it becomes more important. Your metabolism slows down every year after 30, and it’s unrealistic to keep increasing your cardio time to maintain your weight. Muscle is what will keep your metabolism running and keeping fat from making itself comfortable on your backside.

For women, it’s essential to build muscle for bone strength as well. As we age our bones naturally get thinner. Why’s that bad? When your bones are thin, even a minor fall can result in you breaking a bone. I’m not even referring to the nursing home population either. Over 50% of women have osteopenia-the precursor to osteoporosis- starting at age 50! That’s not good!

Lastly, muscle tone look’s great. A strong athletic build is sexy. No one has ever come to me and asked for the “Marathon Look”. And I’m not talking about working out to become the next “Miss Olympia”. And please not the PINK DUMBELLS---(that’s another article).

No Pink DB's

Great shape --but not what I'm talking about

Lean Muscle

If you train the right way, you won’t get bulky. You’ll have a body shape people envy, shapely lean muscle that makes you look curvy in all the right places!