Does Lifting Weights Make Women Bulky?
I almost didn't write this post. You see so many women lifting weights on social media that I thought to myself Daniel, this is a waste of your time. EVERYONE knows by now that women don't get bulky from lifting weights.
But then I had a conversation with someone on Instagram. She told me that SHE knew lifting weights wouldn't make her bulky, but her entire family was telling her NOT to work out because she would get big, bulky muscles.
Then I remembered: social media is a bubble. It's a pretty damn big bubble, but it's still a bubble where we follow things that we like and agree with. So of course I see people promoting weightlifting for all, regardless of gender. That's what I believe in, therefore I follow people who promote this idea, and that's all I see.
Those of us who know that women need to strength train are in the minority. Most people still think that lifting weights will make women bulky. So I went ahead and wrote this post.
Does Lifting Weights Make Women Bulky?
I don't like this question.
Because “bulky” doesn't actually mean anything.
So let's define the word before we continue.
Bulky: large muscles, usually with little-to-no definition.
As a personal trainer with thousands of hours of experience working with women, I've never met a women who got bulky while strength training with me.
Having said that… if a woman follows a bodybuilding-style program and eats a TON of food - putting her in a large caloric surplus - then she WILL build muscle and put on a few pounds of fat.
And so will men.
But that's only because the above training style and nutrition habits are conducive to BODYBUILDING.
Here’s the confusion: most people think that the only reason to lift weights is to build muscle.
This is wrong.
If you change your nutrition habits and modify HOW you strength train, you can lose weight, get the “toned and defined” look that many women are looking for, and you'll also get CRAZY strong.
Without building any muscle at all.
Here's what you need to do…
First, eat at a calorie deficit. Not sure how many calories you need? Use my weight loss calorie calculator.
Why a calorie deficit? Because building muscle is essentially IMPOSSIBLE while eating at a calorie deficit. Lifting weights while eating at a calorie deficit simply helps you maintain the muscle you already have while losing weight, and ensures all weight loss is purely fat.
Which means you'll end up looking toned and defined (because you didn't lose any muscle) instead of skinny-fat (which is what happens when people don't strength train while losing weight).
As for your training: lift weights 2-3x per week, making sure you train your FULL body every time. Forget “leg day”, “chest and abs day” etc. That's bodybuilding.
Instead, make sure your workouts consist of:
Hip hinges (deadlift, hip thrust etc.)
Squats and lunges
Presses (bench press, push ups, shoulder press etc.)
Rows (cable row, pull ups, lat pulldown etc.)
Core work (planks, dead bugs, kettlebell carries etc.)
This way of working out is more conducive to maintaining muscle while losing fat and building serious strength.
In summary:
eat at a calorie deficit
lift weights, full body, 2-3x per week
you won’t get bulky
If you have a question, drop it in the comments below.