Alright, ladies, I gotta be straight with ya: LIFTING WEIGHTS IS FEMME AS F***.
Now, I know what you’re all thinking: “Ahhhhhh noooooo! The patriarchy doesn’t want me to be super strong and buff!” or “But my arms!!! I need to avoid calories in order to keep them stick-thin and muscle free! “Not lifting dumbells!” or my personal favorite, “But I don’t want to look that manly! I can’t be expected to carry my handbags ALL BY MYSELF.”
Well, have I got some news for you. Lifting weights is an amazing source of exercise, no matter your gender identification!
The health benefits are super nifty! Doing a couple of weight-lifting exercises once or twice a week, will make your body stronger and healthier-looking, your mood will get a swanky boost, and let’s face it: Michelle Obama would be SO PROUD OF YOU.
Some other benefits include…
Your risk of getting Osteoporosis decreases! While weight training is commonly known for muscle-toning and strengthening, it also makes your bones stronger, and reduces risks of fractures and breaks! Hooray!!
Not to mention, it decreases your risk of getting other injuries too, because it strengthens your joints and tissues, and can also prevent (or decrease the pain of) osteoarthritis! As an additional bonus, it increases that sexy posture we all know you have. Which is honestly so exciting??
Also? You burn MORE calories!! Studies show that weight training will boost your metabolism up to 24 hours after you work out–this means that after you lift, you can literally burn calories while you sit and wait for the next season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (like I’ll be doing until that blessed program gets its second season)!
And speaking of burning calories, lifting weights will burn your fat like a MOFO. You’ll be getting those Jennifer Aniston biceps, and watch as your figure gets even tighter and hotter! And trust me, you’re not going to “bulk up”, in fact, it’s nearly impossible! Since women don’t have as much testosterone as men, it’s much more difficult to get muscle size from weight lifting for women, and it’s more likely that you’ll get definition and strength rather than muscle size.
But if you do want to get super buff? That’s ALSO SEXY AND FEMME AF. It’s super admirable for you to take on a challenge like that! Y’all should have whatever muscle tone you want, and buff women are way dedicated and also really hot!
And my favorite part of weight training? It’ll kick up your endorphins! And what do endorphins do, Elle Woods? That’s right! They make you HAPPY! And they reduce stress! So when you’re stressing about finals, heartbreak, or anything else that gets you down, just lift some weights. They’ll make you both hot and happy!!
I can’t think of any self-care practice that will help you out as much as weight-training. Remember, you are an amazing goddess, and you deserve to feel like one too!! So keep kicking a** and being the strong queens I know you are!