Wednesday 15 October 2014

Ladies can lift! Busting Myths :)

Start getting some muscle tone and you will start to hear a lot of things out of a lot of peoples mouths! There are SO many misconceptions surrounding ladies and weight lighting. ...one of the reasons most women focus on the treadmill.  Here are my top 5 womens lifting myths and why they just aren't true!

1- weight training will make you look like a man - 100% not true!!! Women physically do not have enough testosterone to really bulk up.  It is absolutly impossible to see muscle gains like men do. When I say "weight lifting" and if the first thing that comes to mind is the professional level womens body building.. huge mass, square jaw, manly faces.. these ladies are taking synthetic hormones (known as anabolic steroids)  to give them this look. While I admire their commitment and tenacity to the sport, that is not the look im going for and not the norm when it comes to ladies pumping iron. Personally, my natural body shape does allow me to gain and keep decent size muscles, but even at my "biggest" in terms if muscles, I was my smallest in terms of measurments (see first blog post "walking the stage" for a picture of me at my biggest!   women dont get large by lifting weights.. women get large by eating donuts.

2- Weight training will make you Exhausted . WRONG AGAIN! Exercise and weight training gives you energy! Think of Tuesday after the long thanksgiving weekend.. too much food, not enough exercise, the last thing I wanted to do was go to the gym... compare that with regular gym visits and you will be dying to get there! I love being fit and healthy enough to wrestle with my son, play other team sports, help my husband cut and pile wood, and keep up to my daughter on roller skates :) . Do I get sore muscles. Absolutly!!! Do I have energy.. you bet! 

I have known people who overtrain (marathon running with many othe physical activities and little sleep). and/or dont follow a proper diet and are caloric deficit and therefor do get quite exhausted...but this is a diet issue, not a weight training issue. You lift weights, you need to eat.

3-as soon as you stop your muscle will turn to fat . How is this even possible?  That is like saying gold will turn into iron, or blue eyes will turn brown..it is physically not possible as they are two completely different things. If you stop lifting weights, continue the same eating plan and dont replace that exercise yes..100% you will lose your muscle and definition and gain fat..but this is simply becasue you are ingesting more calories then what you are burning and your metabolism is getting kicked in the gut. People..can you expect beautiful clear skin if you dont wash your face? No.. what about if you wash your face for a year..have incredible results..no acne..no wrinkles.. and then stop. .. a year from stopping would you still expect the same glowing healthy skin? I hope not..or you will be leading a life of disappointment. YOU GET WHAT YOU WORK FOR!

4-I Cant work out..I have no time. B.S.. first..we all have time for things we really WANT to do..why? Becasue we make them a priority in our lives and other things have to work around them. Period. 10min warmup, 20min HIIT workout, 30 minutes of weights and cool down or split the cardio and weights.. 30min brisk walk at lunch time and after kids go to bed do some weights...the dishwasher can wait.. One hour a day. You cant squeeze 1 hour a day for your health, wellbeing and sanity? The average canadian spends between 4-6hours a day in front of the TV. Whhhaaatttt????? Prioritize your life. Imagine your body a year from today if you committed to one hour a day.. the days will pass away whether you hit the gym or not so Get. It. Done!

5- The kids are my priority right now. AWESOME. Your kids should be your prioity..but is this your excuse for not hitting the gym?  I cant tell you how many times I hear this as an excuse for so many things!  What exactly are you teaching your kids if you run for them and dont ever put yourself first? Have you noticed that we are slowly creating a world of spoiled brats? Why? Becasue the world has and always does revolve around them. My kids know that I am there for them. They know that I have changed careers to be able to be with them more. But..friends, they also know that I am fiercely independant. .that I am not their maid or servant and that being healthy is of the utmost importance for all of us...not just them. Dont just talk the talk! My daughter came home from school with the student of the month award for... confidence and self esteem... woop woop!! Parent WIN!!! If I can teach her to take care of herself, help lift others up and be exactly who she wants to be..no excuses, then im on the right path. Honestly..I am a much better mom when I can hit the gym..I can handle meltdowns, I can calmly look at situations with an open mind becasue I have worked on myself and my own brain while running my butt off on the treadmill.  There is a reason when on a plane if the oxygen masks come down -you put yours on first.. then your childs...  you are no good to them if you are not healthy or in a state of mind to help. Take care of yourself, set the example, find a sitter for an hour, throw them in the stroller, do sports togther..whatever it takes to get active and show your kid how important it truly is and how you can and should be exercising throughout your entire life.

Activities we do togther: golf, roller derby/scooter/skate park, baseball, soccer,  frisbe, biking, swimming,  dirt bike, living room dancing, road hockey, yoga, park play


Be the example!!! 

Xo Kara

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