Workout and Diet Advice for Women over 45

Just had the opportunity to be a guest on Internet Radio – “Superhuman Radio Show” with host Carl Lanore http://bit.ly/73Ew2s . The Topic was a Feminine Perspective of Bodybuilding, which turned out to be a broad subject and was an enjoyable hour’s discussion.

Toward the end of the hour Carl mentioned that women are at a disadvantage when first contemplating going to a gym to work out. And the reason he gave is that men are introduced to weight-training through other sports so have an advantage of at least recognizing machines and knowing what to do with the bar above the bench. Looking back at my own experience, this holds true; even though I had the advantage of three brothers and a mother who thought all types of exercise was beneficial, and I recall going to a gym to get instructed on sit-ups. (OK it was limited but at least I had entered a gym by the time I was 15.)

For many women entering a gym for the first time is more than overwhelming – and there is nothing intuitive about working with weights when you have not done it before. In fact it is likely dangerous. None of us likes to feel awkward and intimidated especially by a room full of iron and other hardware.

The number of exercise establishments with names like Curves, and the programs like Jazzercise, bear testament to the fact that there is a need for places that make women feel very comfortable, even when they have little or no knowledge of working out.
What I would like to see is that anyone (either a gym facility or trainer) catering to women just starting out, make a real effort to educate as they train their clients. I have friends who have worked with trainers on and off over a few years or go to facilities where they use the same machines week after week, and they cannot say with certainty what muscles they work with any particular exercise. This lack of knowledge may ensure a long term relationship with the trainer/facility, because it keeps the client dependent, but I think it does women a disservice. Knowledge is needed to allow women to train with weights well into their older years; and they are less likely to lapse completely if they have the knowledgebase to get back to it after a hiatus, without having to find a trainer or a special facility. If women become as comfortable as men in the gym, that is a great outcome. And remembering that women are more likely than men to stop and ask for directions when driving, I will infer that women who are comfortable in the gym, are more likely to ask for assistance with an unknown machine, rather than try to figure it out and maybe hurt themselves – as long as they don’t feel intimidated.

There are also the positive aspects of being a female new to the Gym culture. Women don’t have the pressure that some men have to show how strong and capable they are with heavy weights. Women have pressure to show they are capable of juggling a career, babies and a household. When it comes to weights the pressure is off. Very few women feel the need to show they can walk into the gym and immediately curl 50 lbs – even 20 lbs. There is no preconceived notion that we have to be as strong as the guy/gal who is showing us what to do. In fact there is a distinct advantage to not lifting a heavier bar than the cute guy on the adjacent bench….. We don’t want to bruise his ego – especially if we’d like him to chat and maybe ask us to go for a coffee….. OK back to the topic (but he was cute).

I recall in my early days of training, there was friendly competition among the other women I was friendly with. We were all fairly new to weight-training, and there was a buzz about competitions for women and a film-maker in town looking for women for an “Amazon-type” film. (I wasn’t tall enough.) We did discuss our progression and the amount of weight we were using; though as I recall any comparisons were more against our own personal best, than against the weight other women were using . And when we really impressed with someone’s ability, we let that person know. This was an all women’s section of the gym – there were no men to impress, it was a new endeavor for most of us, and perhaps that is one reason we were all so supportive.

To sum up this post – women have both advantages and disadvantages starting out weight-training/body-building. We can reduce the disadvantages by starting out where we are comfortable (whether with a personal trainer in a mainstream gym or a special program in a women’s only establishment), and we can augment our advantage by asking questions and getting as much advice as we need to build knowledge.