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Originally Posted On: https://crazymass.com/the-ultimate-female-training-guide/

 

If you are at the start of your training journey, it can sometimes feel intimidating. There are lots of specialized pieces of equipment. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and think that you are out of your depth.

Thankfully, this doesn’t have to be the case. With a few basic exercise tips, you should have the confidence to expand your workout repertoire. Here are the things you need to know to start building your ideal body.

Start Weight Training

This is an area that many women are hesitant to take on. They don’t want to gain huge muscles, leaving them looking like the Hulk.  Thankfully, this isn’t something you need to be worried about. Because females don’t have the same testosterone levels as men, you won’t grow huge biceps.

But that doesn’t mean that your time with the weights will be wasted. You will be putting on lean muscle mass. This is one of the best ways to boost your metabolism, making it easier for your body to burn fat. As a result, it will be easy to maintain your lean, feminine figure.

There are plenty of weight training exercises you can try. If you are just getting started, you might want to focus on bicep curls. As you gain more experience, you will be able to take on things like the dumbbell row. You can also use cable machines, medicine balls, or barbells as part of your weight training process. There are a few types of weight training exercises you can do.

 Compound Movements

These are designed to work on multiple muscle groups. These won’t just help you build lean muscle; they will also help you improve your cardio. There are plenty of examples of these types of exercises, including:

• At first, you can do this without any weights, using your body mass as resistance. As you improve, you can use a medicine ball or dumbbells to add additional weight.
• Push-ups. This is a classic exercise, allowing you to use your own body weight as the resistance.
• These also don’t require any specialized equipment, as you will be using your body weight for resistance.
• Like the other suggestions on this list, it’s best to start with a light weight. Once you know the technique, add more weight to the bar.

Accessory Lifts

These are designed to focus on one specific muscle group. For example, you might want to do some exercises that are designed to help you build strong calves. They are often used in combination with, instead of as a replacement for, compound movements.

There are plenty of examples of these types of accessory lifts, depending on the type of muscle groups you want to target. This includes:

• Calf raises
• Bicep curls
• Triceps extensions
• Leg extensions

Building a Training Program

Now that you know the importance of weight training, let’s look at how you can apply this to your own training program. Here are a few exercises that you will need to incorporate into your routine.

Warm-up

Each of your workout sessions should begin with a good warm-up. This is a chance to get your body used to moving. It also helps you start the blood flowing around your system, which reduces the chance that you will pull a muscle.

There are many types of warm-ups that you can do. A good option is to use a foam roller. Which part of your body you are rolling will depend on the type of workout you plan on doing.

Speed and Mobility

Start with some exercises that are designed to help you improve your speed and mobility.  You should aim to do around 20 reps. If you are struggling with this, you can break it up into multiple sets, with a break in between each one.

Compound Movement

Next, it’s time to get into a compound movement exercise. Now that you are prepared, it’s time to start lifting heavier weights. Because of this, you will need to reduce the reps, doing five per set. Aim to do five sets. Make sure to give yourself a few minutes break between each one.

Accessory Lift

Now it’s time to focus on your accessory lift. During the sets, you want to reduce the weights a little, though it should still be a challenge. Aim for 15 reps of this movement.

Customizing Your Workout

Remember, this was just a suggested workout. Feel free to adjust it to suit your needs. For example, you might want to spend more time on accessory lifts, targeting a different part of the body each session.

You can also adjust the difficulty. One of the easiest ways of doing this is by adding more weight. You can also increase the number of reps. Many exercises will allow you to make alterations to increase the difficulty. For example, you can go from a regular sit-up to a declined sit-up, forcing you to work against gravity.

Cardio

While using weights is an important part of your routine, you should still add some cardio into your workouts. This serves several important roles like increasing endurance and burning fat. There are plenty of cardio options that you can explore, some of the most popular are:

• High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). This is one of the best ways of burning through fat. You will need to go flat out for 30 seconds, then give yourself a one-minute period to recover. Repeat for around 20 to 30 minutes.
• Endurance Training. If you like working towards a goal, this might be the right option for you. You can set yourself a challenge of running a half-marathon. Then you can spend your time on the treadmill building up your stamina to achieve this goal.
• Low-Intensity Steady State (LISS). This is where you continue at the same pace for a long time. For example, spending half an hour on the elliptical. This is one of the least effective ways of training and will burn the least number of calories.

Nutritional Needs

The final element that you need to consider is your nutritional needs and how you can meet them. The first thing that you need to consider is the number of calories you are eating each day. There is a minimum number of calories you require each day. This is based on your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). The number of calories you require will vary from person to person. Three basic elements make up your total caloric intake, these are:

• This is needed for building muscle. You need one gram of protein for every pound of bodyweight.
• This plays an important biological role, helping provide a cushion around organs and maintaining brain function. You just need to be careful about the types of fats you are using. Look for essential fatty acids and try to avoid trans fats.
• These are designed to help you fuel your body. Try to get complex carbs, these will release energy over a long time.

A general breakdown will be 40 percent carbs, 30 percent fats, and 30 percent protein. Though if you are trying to lose weight, you can reduce the number of carbs you are eating. The most important thing is that you are eating based on your body type. Getting a balanced diet will give you the energy you need to fuel your fitness targets.

Conclusion

If you are a woman, getting into fitness can be a little tricky. It’s important to take this one step at a time. First, get a workout plan that you feel comfortable sticking to. The next thing you need is a nutritional plan, to make sure that you are eating properly. Once these elements are in place, you just need to have the resolve to stick to it. It will often be a few months before you start seeing the physical changes. But the change to your mental health will be instant.