The Reasons Why Most Women Won't Get Arms Like Madonna Exercising With Weights :

Most women who want to get in shape will normally stay clear from doing any resistance type exercises involving weights because they believe training with weights will turn them into muscle freaks. I hear this exercise myth all the time from women; it's probably the most common myth out of all the misunderstandings about training with weights to improve appearances in females. Many women think if they touch a weight they will end up with arms looking of sinew and bulging veins.

Images of the pop singer Madonna everywhere don't help to reassure women's confidence to train with weights for a better body. The misconceptions women have of training with weights have driven them to cardiovascular type exercises and away from the many benefits training with weights can have. Instead they prefer activities like running, biking or any piece of CV equipment that takes their liking in the hope it will transform the way they look.

There are some things to consider before running away from dumbbells and barbells and why they won't turn you into the next Miss Universe.

1 - Big muscles or a ripped physique don't happen overnight. It isn't a case of going to the gym and lifting a few weights and waking up the next day with irreversible big muscles that you are stuck with for life.

2 - Someone with a body that has bulging muscles and looks toned and distinguished has attained it with years and years of hard training and strict nutritional control or with performance drugs or both.

3 - Women have less muscle building hormones then men and it is rare for a woman to develop big muscles even with a strict bodybuilding-training regime and strict diet.

4 - I always reassure a women's misconception of training with weights by telling them that if they were able to easily build big muscles they would just as easily be able to decrease the size of the muscles by resorting back to doing nothing.

The advantage of resistance training over traditional cardio training is significant. Done properly, resistance training will create a cardiovascular response; killing two birds with one stone and saving heaps of time. One of the numerous benefits includes the functional benefit, which has a carry over effect to daily living, and most sports. But more importantly for most women is that it will shape the body making it more aesthetically pleasing at the same time as toning muscle tissue. As soon the muscles begin to work frequently under resistance it speeds up the rate you burn calories and it makes it easier to reduce body fat levels.