Over the last several years I’ve really tried to emphasize women training and lifting. I’ll remind a lot of you that in 2008, it was taboo to suggest that something like CrossFit should include strength training, yet nowadays women who lift are a regular part of the “online training culture”. The functional fitness and strength training communities produce women who not only perform well, but also look very good. It’s important to note the aesthetics of women in these training methodologies since women’s fashion includes physical appearance as well as accessorizing (clothing in this case). It’d be naive to think that appearance wasn’t an issue in either gender, but more foolish to think that female society doesn’t revolve around looks and fashion — training communities are no different. However, the functional fitness and strength communities like to poke fun at the body building communities.
The only difference between a bodybuilding community and other training communities are the means to an end. Everyone here has seen girls running around in panties, sports bras, and knee-high socks while doing a workout. We’ve also seen figure competitors pose for photo shoots or get on stage in hardly a bikini. I’m not complaining about either scenario, but they aren’t very different from one another. Figure competitors aren’t in a dehydrated state constantly throughout the year, and in order to develop the musculature needed to win they have to lift weights, eat properly, and they are usually pretty damn strong.
Direct your focus to :44 seconds.
There’s a lot going on here, but I want to direct your attention to Trish Warren squatting 135 lbs for the photo shoot. It’s not that she’s squatting it, it’s that she’s just repping it out like it’s a fucking joke…because it is. Here’s a gal that is trying to be seductive in this photo shoot while also showing off the physique that she’s built. She’s probably trying to catch a pump in her quads for the pics Regardless of how she’s built this physique, she has definitely done it by using barbells and dumbbells and eating properly. Some may suggest various fake aspects of her — steroids, boobs, tan, etc. — but they aren’t any different than what other women use in other training communities (including the functional fitness community). Trish is definitely strong. She can probably hit an easy set of 40 full range of motion push-ups, then stand up and squat 225 for a set of five, then rack the bar and run 400 meters in 60 seconds. The specifics are irrelevant; what matters is that she trained differently yet has similar capabilities because she has established a good base of musculature by getting strong and vice versa. The functional fitness female is similar — she looks great on the account of developing strength and musculature while eating well. In either case, the results are the same.
Trish Warren
Regardless of whether narcissism is existant (in wanting to show off the newly crafted body in the gym, photos, or competition) women can get great results from busting their ass and training hard. Strength training can easily be programmed with up tempo barbell complexes, circuit training, or conditioning. To me, it seems like the best results stem from girls who are strong, yet also do high-rep lighter weight training on the side (I’m not suggesting this should be the case, it’s just my observation of seeing women in CF and globo gyms). Results won’t be quick for most girls and they should maintain their patience in a program. Most girls that have athletically appealing bodies have developed them over time, have a predisposition to that body type, or are using. Either way, training hard will be necessary.
With that being said, since being a girl and lifting weights is so en vogue, it almost seems like some women think that they get to stop there. “I do one strength lift before my conditioning workout and now I’m smug,” kind of seems to be the internet attitude. Reference the above video to see Trish smashing out about 40 reps with 135 (she also makes Marzia Prince look thin) and you’ll see that she’s not really impressed with doing one strength lift a day. Observe the following video:
Annie Moniqui clean and jerks 105 kg in that video. That’s 231 pounds that she’s pulling, front squatting, and then sticking overhead. Weighing 58kg, or a little less than 130 lbs. That’s pretty damn impressive.
Now that you are a female who trains, you no longer get a cookie just for doing the lifts. Instead, devote yourself into that training and consistently improve. Don’t just get stronger than the anorexic girl who rang you up at the super market, get strong for a woman that trains. Eat right, train hard, and do it consistently. The activity of lifting revolves around performance, not attendance. You are now held to higher standards. Do something about it.
And if you needed more motivation, here’s a Finnish girl who is doing a completely dead hang chin-up with 105.5kg total weight (including body weight). This should motivate some of you dudes, too.
Lifting weights really does the female body good. My wife has been on a linear progression for about 4 months now. She’s squating 80kg now (about 20 above body weight). Even though she’s probably consuming double the food she used too, her scale weight has stayed the same BUT her jeans have gone down 2 full sizes. Squats are real heavy now, so we’ll probably switch to singles with some lighter back off sets thrown in.
I think this is where we once again separate women (and men) who exercise from those who train.
Trish and Annie train.
There are lots of people out there who are just exercising but claim that they are training. Exercising is fine if it meets your goals, but it is NOT the same as training.
The “cookie for just doing the lifts” is lavished en masse by a chorus of lame dudes aka white knights, who shower these girls with praise when they so much as touch a barbell.
Lifting will enhance the typical girl’s appearance. But the returns can be negative at some point – where it makes the girl look worse. Same for guys. But when guys do it, they say “whatever, screw aesthetics, I’d rather be stronger.” When girls do it, they try and *redefine* aesthetics. Fat chicks do the same thing, eg “real beauty” campaigns. And then demand that everyone agree with them, and redefine beauty so as to be meaningless. If you want to lift, great, but realize it might involve some compromises.
Compare Trish Warren with another lifter, http://tinyurl.com/3foj3y8 . And these are just faces – and faces speak volumes. Which woman would you want? The one scowling, stone-faced, or the one smiling sweetly, bright-eyed? Let women be women.
What you really meant to say is that the beta males comment on girls who are lifting and telling them how hot they are. I still am supportive of women lifting, but since it’s more common now (again, it was NOT 2 or 3 years ago, so this kind of support for lifting was necessary) and is jaded.
–Justin
Man, you go on vacation ONE WEEK and the place is all synchronized shirtless curls and sea creature fondling.
Plenty more where that came from.
–Justin
@Charles Martel, you are such a douche.
>>you no longer get a cookie just for doing the lifts. Instead, devote yourself into that training and consistently improve. Don’t just get stronger than the anorexic girl who rang you up at the super market, get strong for a woman that trains.
Thanks for the challenge. Love it!
sorry charles this is 2011 where it’s hip for women to try to be men
Somewhere in between MOBWOD’ing and masturbating, Brent Jim read this and thought, “unimpressed”.
400 meters in 60 seconds is sloooooooow, even after squatting
@A.K., tell me that I’m missing your sarcastic voice.
Lol, inb4 impending shitstorm on various fronts.
Good post, Justin.
Good post. It got me thinking, my near-wife is planning to get into lifting in the next year or so (once we have a place with a rack) and I’m in need of some new apparell. I’m not sure I’m ready to spring for those short short shorts, but I have been eyeing the Jeggings at Macy’s. I figure we can both get matching pairs of them to use for lifting hard and then jogging hard to the store to buy steaks and brisket afterwards. But before I spring for this new fashion, does anyone have any experience with these bad boys? I know they’re plenty stretchy, but are they stretchy enough for some deep squats?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeggings
But it’ll be more like this kind of a look on me: http://www.rock.co.za/rockofages/bonscott1.jpg
Discuss…
@Maslow.
All i know is that Jeggings enable me to continue looking at the well sculpted posteriors and legs of females even when the ambient temperature has dropped a bit…
Brilliant invention.
@TBone, Well I wasn’t being sarcastic, but I sure was trollin’.
All things being relative, it’s a question of standards.
Higher… standards…
@A.K. thanks for that. I needed a laugh. True story.
doubt that bitch could run a 400 in 60 seconds
bet she can’t fucking curl that much, either.
Curl what? I bet she could curl more than you. Probably has a higher APM too.
–Justin
I would bet $100 she can’t do a 400m in 60 without training for a while to get there; bodybuilders aren’t known for their running speed.
She’s not a bodybuilder.
–Justin
Fuck all this she can/she can’t. Someone find some fucking nudes of her.
Jesus christ, guys, the 400m run time was just a hypothetical situation.
But, it would be very difficult for a female who is over 30 years old (which she is) to run a 400m in 60 seconds without specifically training for it. That would be a pretty fast time even if she was training for it.
I bet she could do it under 65.
–Justin
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On a totally different note, I just saw this and wanted to share:
http://sports.yahoo.com/elite-athlete-workouts/dwight-freeney;_ylt=Ajh91tXF0h7npYzD5Pegk1E5nYcB?vid=25937426
This trainer should be slapped. How can he imply with a straight face that things like bench press and squat don’t translate to performance on the field? And swinging a sledgehammer does, asshole? You’re doing some conditioning, plyometrics, and a bunch of weird, crossfit-inspired bodyweight bullshit. Yeah, like six-time ProBowler Dwight Freeney got big, strong, and successful doing nothing but pushups in boxing gloves.
Let conditioning be conditioning, and strength training be strength training.
Oh shush, Justin. You’re just trying to irritate me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afKRndn5FKk
I hope the movie isn’t as gay as that trailer. I also hope there isn’t any shitty alternative music actually in the movie. God damn it I hate hollywood.
–Justin
Ron Perlman is in this movie. It’s going to suck.
–A.C.
If she’s not a bodybuilder, what is she? She most certainly looks like one to me. Very few people who train for performance in sport look like that. Regardless, my implied $100 bet stands.
Note that I am in fact implying that bodybuilding is not a sport. If it is, then so too are beauty pageants, because that’s all it is, pageantry.
Anyway, can’t tell if trolling or actually serious….
Figure competitors aren’t bodybuilders. Chicks who are top level bodybuilders look more like men from the drugs.
And since none of us a) know Trish and b) she couldn’t care less about a $100 bet with us, restating a $100 bet couldn’t be more irrelevant.
–Justin
Trish Warren is 130 pounds weight off-season. Really big and scary! I wish she’d smile more I’m all intimidated!
Check out Adriane Blewit a big strong feminine girl
lol apm
The new Conan better have a score worthy of the one Basil Poledouris did in the original. NO FRAKKING POP MUSIC!
Charles Martel is a fucking moron
Checked out the new Conan site. Comment from oldest son “skinny idiot with no beard”.
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