The stories I used to tell myself about resistance training…
“I don’t know WHAT I’m doing… ”
“I don’t know HOW to lift and don’t want to look stupid doing it…”
“My friend said I would look BULKY if I lifted…”
“It’s easier to just jump on a treadmill and sweat…”
“Weight lifting is only for men.”
After I graduated college, I moved from Oregon to California for a job opportunity. I was always fairly thin from years of ballet and being on dance teams. Upon arriving in California, I was working overtime, socially eating and drinking, and did virtually no exercise. Within a year, I racked up a whopping 60lbs of fat going from about 140lbs to 200lbs. I’m not sure the exact day I decided, enough was enough, but continually buying bigger and bigger clothes was absolutely devastating for me.
I was done buying bigger clothes. Most people know inherently what they need to do to lose weight. Eat less and move more. Though my diet was not ideal I thought working out would at least help. I decided to get a gym membership and started by walking as quickly past all the guys lifting weights, and straight to the treadmills for a good old run. (Why I couldn’t do this outside in nice Sunny California?) I followed the hours of running by doing tons of crunches. I realized quickly I hated running. My knees always hurt, I hated the way it made me feel and I was slow as hell. I tried this once a week, walk by all the weight lifting machines and dumbbells, run on the treadmill, do some sort of ab workout, leave, repeat. I was neither consistent nor in love with this training style. I also noticed I was extremely hungry after these types of workouts and would binge afterward. I was basically back at square one having lost no weight.
I then tried taking classes at these gyms, spin, zumba, and other various bootcamp style classes. Still, I couldn’t stick with it. I even tried those at home P90X workouts, but was never consistent. The one thing I hadn’t tried was weight lifting though I had seen others have a lot of success with it. Especially men, they seem to always be super lean and barely ever set foot on a cardio machine. Why do women think their bodies work so differently?
It wasn’t until I found OC Trainer that my idea of weight training and fears surrounding it faded away. I now understand that building muscle has a direct effect on metabolism and the overall shape of your muscle and body composition. The best way to build muscle is through resistance training and eating enough food. I’d always been curious about weight lifting but thought hiring a personal trainer was completely out of my price range. Though, when I really looked at all the money I was spending on all the other things that weren’t working, I thought I might as well spend money on an expert.
From that point on I dedicated myself to lifting weights with him a minimum of 3 days a week and followed everything he told me to eat and how much. I spent less than 30 minutes on cardio a week and learned proper form and technique for lifting weights. I became completely obsessed and realized everything he had told me was true.
The more muscle I started gaining the more calories I was burning throughout the day. I was educated that I could build muscle and lose fat simultaneously through resistance training and eating a higher protein diet. I stopped looking for ‘miracles’, I stopped bingeing and starving myself. I really fell in love with this style of training and because I loved it I was extremely consistent. Each time I was mastering the same movements and going heavier and heavier in weight. I watched as the fat melted off and my strength continued to improve.
I realized the key to my success was learning the art of proper resistance training and having someone there to hold me accountable, educate me on resistance training, and teach me proper nutrition. In 6 months I went from as size 12 at 200 lbs and 40% body fat, to a size 0-2 at 120lbs and 17% body fat. I was way leaner and in better shape than I had been in my entire life and not from hours and hours of endless cardio. I spent more time enjoying my life and less time worrying about my weight.
The new stories I tell myself about resisitance training:
“Resistnace training makes you strong both mentally and physically.”
“Resistnace training should be a part of every fat loss effort.”
“Resistance training builds muscle.”
“Resistance training is for everyone!”
