Female Bodybuilding Tips and Guide for Beginners and Advanced!
Fitness is intimidating because it may be a fearful endeavor by not knowing what you are getting into, and if you were looking to gain muscle mass, that’s a different thing. It is because you might have always been told that male bodybuilding is different from yours, and perhaps, it is true in a sense you’re your testosterone levels are only a fraction than that of men. Now, what about female bodybuilders, who look muscular and appear somehow similar to that of men’s physical appearance, and why do they look like that?
The truth is that they may be using exogenous testosterone injections, which in return make them appear like men with hair on the chest and face, redistributed body fat and increased muscle mass, among other effects of anabolic steroids. Sometimes, these women also have a deep voice, all because of higher testosterone levels due to exogenous testosterone. So if you were not into these steroids, you might have been thinking you cannot gain muscle mass. Wrong because the truth is that, you will become bulky if you start lifting weight, but hey, it is not as you should begin weightlifting now without knowing what to do to maximize your results. Check out this guide to start with female bodybuilding and end up all the confusion from being told the wrong advice.
If you were new to bodybuilding and you were feeling overwhelmed watching over people doing so well in their workouts while you were stuck on an elliptical trainer not knowing what to do next and eventually not knowing where your workout would lead. You don’t have to end up silently watching other women exercising or to get started with weightlifting to shut the boredom you might be feeling by now. Do not end up just making your way into the dumbbell rack and starting with weights, which may be too light or too heavy to help you with muscle gaining, and then, leaving the gym and heading home, you do not want to fill in with food thinking you would compromise your workouts. Again, wrong.
Finally, female bodybuilding does not mean you are going to turn yourself with a hulk-like appearance, although an increase in testosterone lead to larger muscle mass, but by saying that does not also mean you imitate a pro’s bodybuilding routine, as she already has devoted years of dedication and applied a specific lifestyle to achieve and keep that physique. Here’s a guide for you.
Focus on Diet and Nutrition:
Although men and women are much the same in terms of metabolism, you can burn a greater amount of carbohydrates than men do, one of the reasons you will do better in low-carb diets. On one hand, what you need to focus and adjust is your total caloric intake because you need fewer calories than men do because the latter have less fat but more muscle mass than you have. Therefore, the total amount of carbohydrates, fats and proteins you consume is dictated by your very own caloric intake.
Go Heavy and Focus on Compound as You Progress:
By that does not mean you go too quickly in increasing weights when you just get started. Remember that strength is built slowly. Although your muscles grow as stress builds up and during the recovery, you will be able to develop leaner and stronger curves if you were brave enough to add challenge into your workouts, but do it slowly. When you do, you will have greater control over how big the muscles you want to develop as you progress. Speaking of going heavy slowly as you go, you should also give more emphasis to compound and not on isolation movements because compound heavy weights can help speed up the process of gaining muscle mass than doing lower weight isolation movements. Work out more frequently and harder, too.
Challenge your body as you add curve and build muscles. Do not spend much time on isolation routines, but start with compound movements for faster fitness results. Here are some suggested movements for you:
- Lunges for targeting the hamstrings, glutes and quadriceps and for tightening and developing the curves of the butt and legs
- Dips are perfect for engaging the shoulders, chest, triceps and upper body
- Squats for a full body workout and for stimulating virtually all muscles in your body, including the abs, traps and back
- Pull-ups are used for working the biceps, back and forearms, done either using body weight or through assisted pull-up machines
Resistance training does not only build muscles but also improves muscle tone and strength, controls weight, manages pain, stabilizes balance and improves total muscle coordination aside from boosting metabolism, decreasing injury risk and reducing total body fat.
Lessen the Cardio:
While aerobic exercises are beneficial for improving overall heart health, women who engage in too much cardio do not develop muscle mass fast because their body become catabolic, a state when it starts eating muscle for energy rather than it gets fuel from food. Do not end up overdoing cardio to prevent your body from eating the muscle instead of growing it. To include cardio, do HIIT or high intensity interval training than low interval aerobic workouts on the treadmill. Instead of focusing on cardio day by day, you should consider achieving balance by approaching your health and fitness from a wide range of angles and changing your routines for at least once a month.
Female bodybuilding is not as hard as you think because it is all about getting started correctly and sticking with a fitness program until you gain muscle mass and power and lastly keeping yourself motivated and determined to keep that fitness you have achieved. You should know that female bodybuilding is about balance in nutrition, strength and cardio, so try to come up with the perfect combination for meeting your fitness goals that are achievable and manageable.
Seriously, you don’t have to become a female version of the Incredible Hulk, but you just have to keep that same level of motivation and determination in reaching your fitness goals through resistance training, proper nutrition and cardio workouts, and then living in the same healthy lifestyle even after the bodybuilding goals have been achieved.
