2120: 4 Reasons Women Should Train for Strength by Nia Shanks on Personal Growth and Empowerment

[00:00:00] Now before we start, you might want to check out our other podcasts covering topics like personal development and minimalism, money, health, relationships and more.

[00:00:09] So to optimize your life in other areas, just search for Optimal Living Daily in your podcast app.

[00:00:15] Now onto the show.

[00:00:17] This is Optimal Relationships Daily Episode 2120.

[00:00:22] Four reasons women should train for strength by Neashanks of Neashanks.com

[00:00:28] Hello everybody and welcome back to another Sunday bonus episode of ORD.

[00:00:33] I'm Greg Audino and this time we'll be sharing a previously aired episode from our sister show Optimal Health Daily.

[00:00:40] So I'll be handing it over to Dr. Neal, our host over on OHD.

[00:00:44] Let's hear his narration and commentary about why it's a good choice emotionally and physically for women to strength train as we optimize your life.

[00:00:53] Four reasons women should train for strength by Neashanks of Neashanks.com

[00:01:02] I'm grateful that encouraging women to strength train is no longer a new trend or uncommon suggestion.

[00:01:09] It's a well-established activity that more women than ever are already doing but just because it's not a groundbreaking recommendation to encourage women to lift weights,

[00:01:20] it still bears repeating that there are numerous benefits to focusing specifically on getting stronger.

[00:01:27] The reason is simple, many women will still strength train or work out in general for the sole purpose of losing fat,

[00:01:34] burning calories and trying to transform their physical appearance.

[00:01:38] And I think there's a better way.

[00:01:40] Focus on getting stronger and nothing else.

[00:01:44] Before we get to the four reasons women should train for strength,

[00:01:47] it's important to note that there are myriad ways to get stronger.

[00:01:51] Getting stronger doesn't mean you must focus on nothing but the power lifts like squats, dead lifts and bench press

[00:01:58] and increasing your one rep maximum.

[00:02:01] You can use any tool or combination thereof such as free weights, kettlebells, odd objects or even just your body weight.

[00:02:10] You can also use any rep range or combinations such as heavy singles, sets of five or even sets of 10 to 20 reps.

[00:02:20] The bottom line, there are a lot of different ways to get stronger.

[00:02:24] The important thing is that you do better when possible and beat your previous workouts.

[00:02:30] Strength comes in many different forms so use whatever tools are available to you

[00:02:36] and embrace all the different rep ranges if you like.

[00:02:40] Now, let's get to the four reasons women should train for strength.

[00:02:44] One, it's empowering.

[00:02:47] Don't brush this one off because it's important.

[00:02:50] Just glance at the cover of popular women's magazines or listen to the media talk about actresses

[00:02:55] or other prominent women.

[00:02:57] Practically everything is about how they look and we're flooded with tips, tricks and gimmicks

[00:03:03] to lose body fat and look more appealing.

[00:03:06] But training for strength is empowering.

[00:03:09] It'll show you what your body is capable of doing.

[00:03:12] It allows you to unleash your true potential

[00:03:15] and as opposed to trying to burn as many calories as possible

[00:03:18] and finish each workout completely exhausted, getting stronger is a way of becoming more, not less.

[00:03:26] Two, it's measurable.

[00:03:28] Cardiomachines that display the amount of calories you burn have been shown to be inaccurate.

[00:03:34] But as long as you record your workouts in a journal of some sort,

[00:03:37] you'll know how much you've improved over a period of time and you can't fudge those numbers.

[00:03:44] Perhaps this week you're performing goblet squats with a 30 pound dumbbell and doing 10 reps.

[00:03:50] A month or so from now you may be using a 50 pound dumbbell and squatting 10 reps.

[00:03:55] That's a measurable increase that shows you how much stronger you've gotten.

[00:04:00] And being able to see this consistent increase is a great way to stay motivated

[00:04:05] to keep training month after month.

[00:04:07] That brings us to number three, it's motivating.

[00:04:11] Some people use their workouts as a form of punishment.

[00:04:14] Maybe they or you go to the gym for a hard workout because you feel obligated to

[00:04:19] work off last night's dinner and dessert.

[00:04:22] But training for strength is certainly not punishment.

[00:04:25] Each time you return to the gym, your mission is clear.

[00:04:29] Do just a little better than last time.

[00:04:32] And each week or month you can look through your training journal and see how much

[00:04:35] stronger you've gotten.

[00:04:37] And you're always left wondering, I can do this.

[00:04:40] What else can I do?

[00:04:42] That is motivating in a way marathon workouts with the sole purpose of achieving as much fatigue as

[00:04:48] possible can't match.

[00:04:50] And for it's proven to work.

[00:04:53] It's my goal to encourage others to focus on and be proud of what their bodies can do

[00:04:59] and not to focus so much on how it looks.

[00:05:01] But who am I kidding?

[00:05:02] That doesn't change the fact that we all want to be confident and like how we look.

[00:05:07] So as a result some people do want to shed excess body fat or build some muscle.

[00:05:12] Getting stronger is a proven way to get the body transforming results you want.

[00:05:17] Want to lose fat and tone up?

[00:05:20] Want to completely change your body's shape and appearance?

[00:05:23] Get strong.

[00:05:24] And then get stronger.

[00:05:26] If your workouts have been stale lately or you've been focusing on burning as much fat as possible,

[00:05:31] change your focus to increasing your strength exclusively.

[00:05:35] Ready to train for strength but not sure where to start?

[00:05:39] There are lots of free and reputable resources available from credentialed or certified professionals.

[00:05:45] Choose one.

[00:05:46] And remember to focus on nothing but getting stronger and improving your performance when possible.

[00:05:51] And if you're currently following a workout program,

[00:05:54] make your sole focus each time you repeat a workout

[00:05:57] to beat your previous workouts performance.

[00:06:00] Do an extra rep, increase the weight a bit, rest less between sets.

[00:06:06] Just do a little better than before.

[00:06:08] No matter what program or equipment you use,

[00:06:11] make getting stronger in some way your only goal.

[00:06:15] And I believe you'll be ecstatic with the results.

[00:06:23] You just listen to the post titled,

[00:06:24] Four Reasons Women Should Train for Strength by Nia Shanks of NiaShanks.com

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[00:08:57] Dr. Neal here from my commentary. Nea mentioned something that's so important and applies to

[00:09:02] everyone. Keep a record of what you're doing. It makes what you're doing seem so much more real.

[00:09:09] You can go back and look at your accomplishments. That makes it real.

[00:09:14] Remember, Nea mentioned that strength training is empowering, measurable, and motivating.

[00:09:19] All of that is absolutely true. But think about how much more empowering,

[00:09:25] measurable, and motivating, strength training can be when we make a note of what we did.

[00:09:31] We can just simply keep track of our progress. Then, on days we need a little motivation or

[00:09:36] a boost of confidence. We can go back and look at some of our old workouts.

[00:09:41] This very clearly shows us how far we've come, how we've progressed over time.

[00:09:47] Keeping track of your progress is something you can incorporate into almost any aspect of your life.

[00:09:52] It could be managing your weight, managing your career, your salary. Really, almost anything you want to

[00:09:59] improve. Alright, that'll do it for today. I hope you have a wonderful weekend if you're listening

[00:10:04] in real time and I'll see you back here tomorrow for the Sunday show where you're optimal life.

[00:10:09] Oh wait!