You are viewing a single comment's thread from:
RE: How much should workout programs for men and women differ?
This is very well explained, and very useful. :)
Me personally - I prefer going to organized activities for girls, such as yoga, aerobics or pilates, so I don't need to bother much about planning etc. I think every girl whose job is not related to beauty industry and who is not fat should do any type of physical activity to stay in shape, and to accept and get best of her unique shape, instead of trying to look like a model. :) (I know this is not maximum related to what you've written, but it should be relevant in general haha :D)
I believe that everyone (girl or boy, model or not) should spend at least some time performing anaerobic training too (whether it's weightlifting, doing body-weight exercises at home or in a park, or something else). For an average person, it doesn't have to be something serious, but a couple of months once every couple of years is something that I consider a minimum.
Unfortunately, the benefits of anaerobic training are commonly underestimated and people tend to believe that the same can be achieved by aerobic training, just in more time. This is not true. Water polo players have not built their muscles by swimming - they are regularly going to gyms to build their strength. Female fitness instructors who lead aerobics sessions and look great have not shaped their bodies at aerobics - they went to gyms too. Swimming, aerobic, and similar activities are very healthy, great for quick weight loss and stamina, but not enough to create a nice body shape (unless you naturally have a great body shape, of course). Cheers! : )
Are you sure about the minimum? I would say three times a week consistently for 30 min to feel your body moving and all your muscles engaging. :)
About your second passage - well, few evenings ago I went to a yoga class (after doing yoga with youtube at home for several years), and heard why after so many years I had pain in my knees when performing triangle pose - because of weak quadriceps. There was a girl who never done yoga before, but went to the gym for years, and triangle pose was very easy for her. So I agree with you that a good strength is really basics.
And again about me - as I am not any professional, and as I get stressed by maybe-not-perfect decisions easily, I believe that for us usual people is probably best to combine different recreative activities. So, some woman working full time could go to yoga for a few months, then aerobic for a few months, then pilates, then maybe gym, then yoga again, then dance, etc. and that is how all those components (aerobic, anaerbic, stamina, flexibility, etc) are developed, as well as all the muscle groups. :)
Well, there is no strict minimum, but with regards to strength training, I believe that the minimum for noticeable results is 2-3 times per week, at least 2-3 months in a streak. Anything below that is rather inefficient because you need some consistency in order to get in a good strength training form and effectively reap the benefits.
Thank you for sharing the example about the benefits of gym training for yoga. Yes, I agree that for ordinary people it is the best to engage in different types of workouts and change them every couple of months or years. Cross-training is often practiced even by professional athletes. : )