I'm not here to tell you all the science-based evidence proving how beneficial it is for women to lift weights. For one - there are tons of articles you can read about that and they are written by much better writers than me (seriously - way, way better) and for two - I know that halfway through reading your eyes will glaze over and you'll be thinking about what you can eat for lunch ( I get it, I'm also always thinking about what to eat next - no judgement zone here!).
Instead, I decided to tell you like it is - the real reasons that you should, at the very least, consider lifting weights.
You Get to Eat More That's right, more. Not more junk, but more food. Lifting weights means saying forever goodbye to suffocating and spirit crushing diets and hello to more protein, fats and glorious carbs! Muscles need a whole heck of a lot of fuel to function and be maintained, so if you lift weights then you need to be feeding them properly and that means no dainty portions, no meals made only of leaves and no weird, chemical created shakes. It means REAL food full of flavour and nutrition.
You'll Be a Shape Shifter Cardio is great and it can help you lose weight but it does not create definition on your body. Lifting weights will change the shape of your body! You'll develop all the right curves in all the right places. Want nice, defined arms? Lift heavy! Want a shaped booty? Lift heavy! Weight lifting adds all the finishes touches to your masterpiece, all the fine details - it's your tool and you have full control!
Build Armour For Your Bones Frailty and mobility loss are not an actual part of aging - they are the side effects of muscle loss. Your body literally needs muscle to be strong and move itself. Weight training gives you the power to build an armour for your bones and helps prevent bone loss as well as keep balance and stability. This means you can age gracefully as a warrior!
You'll Have Super Powers With muscles comes a super power - your body can burn more calories and fat while you sit around doing nothing! Holy Metabolism, Batman! This is the "afterburn" effect where calories are burned at a higher rate after you've stopped exercising and it can last up to 72 hours after you've ended your workout.
It's Pretty Bad-Ass Last but not least - it's just frigging bad-ass! Weight lifting can raise your self-esteem and confidence just from the sheer act of doing things you were always told you couldn't! It's like drinking a can of whoop ass - groceries from the car in one trip, no problem....two kids - two arms, no problem! It let's you appreciate your body for what it can do instead of just what it looks like. Your goals DO NOT have to just be about fat loss just because you're a woman - it can be about building some serious strength!
For me - weight lifting allowed me to stop thinking of fitness as a punishment...as something I hated and as something I forced myself to do. It sparked a fire within me that allows me to now view fitness as a testament to my strength, my body's abilities and actually enjoy my workouts. Now that's a super power!!!