WHY WOMEN SHOULD NOT BE AFRAID OF GROWING “BIG”?

It is a well acknowledged fact that a superbly muscled male, with a toned body to boot, might be considered the very epitome of masculine physique, and is even perceived as such, by both male and female alike. Equally true is the fact that overly muscular bodied females lose much of their femininity not only in the eyes of males but also of fellow females. While these commonly held beliefs on either side of the gender divide cannot be doubted or found fault with, the tendency of women at times to overdo or over express their apprehensions, results in misplaced assumptions and insinuations.

The presence of muscles in the female body is not detrimental to their femininity nor takes away from their soft looks or glamor in any way. The world of tennis provides enough evidence of female players who not only have the muscles in adequate measure where they need it most to pursue their sports, but at the same time have the bodily wherewithal to walk down any ramp without batting an eyelid. Sometimes these players can even put paid to the efforts of professional models to steal the limelight in their presence.

 So coming back to the central question of why women should be afraid of growing big - meaning having more muscles on their bodies? As a general reply, substantiated with the examples narrated above, the answer pure and simply is that they need not be afraid at all. Having said that, one would, however, hasten to add that most normal females are really not going to grow that big, and the scientific reason for this is that most females do not have that much of testosterone in their bodies to make them look like a muscled guy after putting in the same amount of weight training and exercise.

 Another related point to bear in mind is the fact that females typically do develop muscles at about half the rate of men. This again further proves that a female should not be concerned about the thought that she may suddenly end up with Hercules type muscles just by getting into weight training. To further assuage the fears of females about getting “big” let it be said that it is a fact, and also well supported by statistics, for both men and women, the same general principles apply for weight training, namely: heavy lifting, a proper diet, and enough rest to prevent over straining.

 Summarizing therefore, any doubts and misconceptions in the common female’s mind about growing “big” and muscular and thereby losing femininity through weight training should be laid to rest. Also, any aspersions that a female needs special circumstances for her own training are a myth. Purely because a female trains in the same way as a male, does not mean she ends up looking like a muscular male. The general principles of training apply equally to both sexes, but the essential differentiators between the sexes is the levels of testosterone in their bodies. This being much lower amongst females tempers the development of muscles in them, and thereby forever crashing a myth amongst many about the fear of growing “big”.

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