Women and Weightlifting: What positive effects have you noticed?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes a million times. I lose fat, I look fit, I feel powerful, and everything fits better. It’s the fountain of youth IMO.

Agreed - i haven’t lost weight but I’ve lost fat and am way more toned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

The change is BMR from added muscle is minimal — something on the order of 10 calories per hour for 25 pounds of additional muscle.

[Anonymous]

Biggest benefits I've noticed have been improvements in my posture, arms, waistline, and balance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

Adding muscle mass when you are lean absolutely required a calorie surplus, and the added mass is never all muscle. For young people with very high testosterone, the percentage of muscle can be high, but for everybody else it’s much closer to 50/50 at best. That’s why body builders run bulk cut cycles.

Personally, I went from squatting 115 to squatting 295 over the course of a couple years, and my butt got much bigger but my waist shrank. I had visible abs and everything was tighter, so my waist measured smaller. I’ve never heard of anyone’s waist getting larger except as a result of added fat during a bulk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

If you're "bulking up" that means you're eating too much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

If you're "bulking up" that means you're eating too much.

Thanks for the mansplaining. I don’t look fat when I bulk up, I look muscular. Like, random guys stop you on the street and ask what you bench muscular. It’s annoying AF.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

If you're "bulking up" that means you're eating too much.

Thanks for the mansplaining. I don’t look fat when I bulk up, I look muscular. Like, random guys stop you on the street and ask what you bench muscular. It’s annoying AF.

PP I can understand why this would be annoying. That said I think you're an outlier when it comes to woman and the effects of weight lifting. It is really hard to bulk up as a woman, but clearly it has happened to you and I 100% believe you. Nothing is absolute and there will always be those who have opposite reactions to things - and when this happens it's your genetics that play a huge roll.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I’m 10:21, I do think part of it may have been general weight gain, but I can also tell that I’ve bulked up due to muscle. Since I started during quarantine, I stopped doing any spin but I did pick up outdoor running as an alternative. I was doing about 30 miles a week, so I was getting decent cardio. I went on a diet while still lifting and dropped a few pounds, which gave me great muscle definition (I had abs!) but also made clear that weightlifting wasn’t helping. Unfortunately, I think I’m just one of those women who tend to build a lot of muscle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

If you're "bulking up" that means you're eating too much.

Thanks for the mansplaining. I don’t look fat when I bulk up, I look muscular. Like, random guys stop you on the street and ask what you bench muscular. It’s annoying AF.

NP here. I get the same thing. I never lift heavy anymore but I do enough to feel fit and strong.

[Anonymous]

I like knowing I have physical power. I like being able to handle 40lb boxes of cat litter by myself. I like how my shoulders filled out which made my pear-shaped body more shapely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

If you're "bulking up" that means you're eating too much.

Thanks for the mansplaining. I don’t look fat when I bulk up, I look muscular. Like, random guys stop you on the street and ask what you bench muscular. It’s annoying AF.

PP I can understand why this would be annoying. That said I think you're an outlier when it comes to woman and the effects of weight lifting. It is really hard to bulk up as a woman, but clearly it has happened to you and I 100% believe you. Nothing is absolute and there will always be those who have opposite reactions to things - and when this happens it's your genetics that play a huge roll.

Thanks, PP - I really appreciate the support (and you, too, 16;43 - solidarity!).

I know I’m an outlier. I’ve been around enough other women who lift as much or more than me to see the varying impacts. The only thing that bothers me is when other people don’t believe me, tell me it’s not possible, I’m just eating too much, blah blah.

Anyway, thanks again

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

10:21 again. My waist got thicker from building up my obliques and my back muscles, for the most part. I always had decent ab definition, but going from a 4-pack to an 8-pack (after my diet while still lifting) didn’t make my abs any bigger.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

Adding muscle mass when you are lean absolutely required a calorie surplus, and the added mass is never all muscle. For young people with very high testosterone, the percentage of muscle can be high, but for everybody else it’s much closer to 50/50 at best. That’s why body builders run bulk cut cycles.

Personally, I went from squatting 115 to squatting 295 over the course of a couple years, and my butt got much bigger but my waist shrank. I had visible abs and everything was tighter, so my waist measured smaller. I’ve never heard of anyone’s waist getting larger except as a result of added fat during a bulk.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started lifting heavy during quarantine. Before that, I was primarily doing pilates, yoga, HIIT (Barry's) and spin. I enjoy some aspects of it, and I think it's much easier than my HIIT routine so it's easier to convince myself to actually get up and do it. The negative is that I started bulking up much more than I wanted to, so I've abandoned it and gone back to pilates. My shoulders got broader and my thighs and rear got bigger, which I wasn't a fan of. My stomach stayed flat, but building up core muscles also made me somewhat thick in the waist. I started quarantine as a size 0/2 and over the course of about 2.5 years got up to a size 6, so I decided to quit weights and go back to my old routine.

Have you considered that you got bigger because of added weight as opposed to the weightlifting? If you're replacing HIIT workouts with just weights then you're doing less cardio. I'm assuming you didn't give up spin or any of the other non-weights workouts?

I've lifted heavy since my late 20s (mid-40s now) and I do tend to show muscle really fast and can bulk up, but even when I've lived way heavier than I do now, my weight stayed the same. I'm also a size 0 and at most, I'll go up to sz 2 for example if my shoulders/arms were broader or my thighs/butt got bigger from muscle. But any size bigger than that would be from weight gain.

I'm the 11:34 PP, who also bulks up from heavy lifting (even when I'm also doing cardio) - even if what you suggest happened, i.e., doing less cardio, theoretically the added muscle mass should increase BMR, right? I mean, that's what everyone considers the magic of heavy lifting: build muscle, increase your resting metabolism and presto, you're a fat burning machine.

As a woman who bulks up fairly easily with heavy lifting, I'm so tired of being told that can't happen to women. It can.

If you're "bulking up" that means you're eating too much.

Thanks for the mansplaining. I don’t look fat when I bulk up, I look muscular. Like, random guys stop you on the street and ask what you bench muscular. It’s annoying AF.

PP I can understand why this would be annoying. That said I think you're an outlier when it comes to woman and the effects of weight lifting. It is really hard to bulk up as a woman, but clearly it has happened to you and I 100% believe you. Nothing is absolute and there will always be those who have opposite reactions to things - and when this happens it's your genetics that play a huge roll.

Thanks, PP - I really appreciate the support (and you, too, 16;43 - solidarity!).

I know I’m an outlier. I’ve been around enough other women who lift as much or more than me to see the varying impacts. The only thing that bothers me is when other people don’t believe me, tell me it’s not possible, I’m just eating too much, blah blah.

Anyway, thanks again

I think there's a high percentage of cranky people on DCUM....just ignore them You know your body better than anyone, do what works for you.

[Anonymous]

I started lifting two years ago working with a trainer 3 times a week. I’m
54 years old and deadlift 225. I think more than anything, it’s been great for my self confidence.
I do look firmer although I haven’t lost weight. Also, I no longer have knee pain from mild arthritis.