Suggested book for weightlifting for females?

[catsrgods]

I'm not completely new to weight lifting, I am familiar with some of the basics. However I do not know enough and I certainly don't know enough weight based exercises to really make a difference in strength or weight loss. I am wondering if anyone has a book suggestion geared towards women for weight lifting? I don't need something that just argues against bulking up (I know that's not true) or uses 3lb weights. Is there anything out there for ladies who want to gain functional strength and weight loss without becoming even amateur bodybuilders? Any ideas?

[spezzy]

i don't like books geared towards women.

i like this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Starting-Strength-3rd-Mark-Rippetoe/dp/0982522738

[bigm141414]

As far as geared towards women there is New Rules of Lifting for Women. Some of the women on the boards follow it. Also, there really is no difference between women and men as far as weight training. You can also get the ever popular Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe, which is quite comprehensive for barbells.

[Grosby]

I'm reading New Rules Of LIfting For Women, it's a pretty good book (but bear in mind I'm a beginner and have no real other experience to say it's good or bad) But I like it. It explains a lot. Explains why you need to lift, why you need to eat more, suggested meals (but not a meal plan as such), in depth explanation about muscles and what-not. Pretty good, makes sense, isn't dumbed down or suggesting that women should do anything different to men (except lift heavier goes into how women tend to lift less than they're capable and focus on form, men lift more and let form slip ) but yeah. I'm finding it to be a good book and there are heaps of other women into it.. there's a facebook group which is really active and supportive. I don't know if that's what you're looking for though... There is a fair bit about why you need to eat more to grow muscles and then lose weight.

I start the actual workouts tomorrow, excited First exercise is squats.

[spezzy]

I personally dislike New rules of weightlifting for women.

[catsrgods]

I guess it doesn't NEED to be geared towards women. Perhaps an assumption I should get over is that things need to be geared towards women in order to be useful to women. Baby steps.

[spezzy]

[weirdquark]

In my opinion, New Rules of Lifting for Women is a good introduction to weightlifting with a lot of different dumbbell exercises, so you can start small and work your way towards heavier weights. I got myself a starter set of dumbbells and only bought myself a barbell when I had been lifting long enough to be sure I wanted to continue. I haven't looked at the original New Rules, but they say that the workouts for women are pretty much the same, except maybe a bit tougher because women tend to have better endurance and recovery time.

If you want to work with a barbell and do a lot of heavy lifts, NRoLfW is not for you -- they have a few things with barbells, but it's mostly dumbbell work. I took a look at New Rules of Lifting for Abs and liked the workouts in that better -- more opportunity for heavy lifts, some strange and fun dumbbell things like Turkish Get-ups, which I keep hearing that no one does but I see people talking about them all over the place, and I like the suggested metabolic training things that they want you to put on the end of the workouts. But if you like a lot of variety in your exercises and don't care about learning the power lifts, I'd actually go with NRoLfA over NRoLfW because while I appreciated NRoLfW telling me that women should lift heavy and eat food, I didn't need the reassurance; I was already sold on that bit, and the workouts look like more fun.

[Grosby]

I've heard NRoLfA is good too, I plan on following W and then going to A afterwards

[Hemi]

what is functional strength to you? if that's a goal for you, can you explain more what that means?

i'm a proponent of starting strength, by the way. heavy lifting, all body, and a focus on proper form and safety.

[weirdquark]

I've heard NRoLfA is good too, I plan on following W and then going to A afterwards

I'm not following NRoLfA, but I've stolen their dynamic warmup and metabolic training ideas and have been trying to level up my plank variations using some of their suggestions and I like a lot of their other core work suggestions too: Alligator drag is awesome and makes people look at you funny. Turkish Get-ups! Unbalanced farmers walk! (Hey, did you know those dumbbells aren't the same size? Why, yes, yes I did.)

[chammy]

I'm slogging my way through Starting Strength (reading wise) while still following my StrongLifts routine to get a better understanding of each lift.

If you're worried about only seeing pictures of men for demonstrations, SS has diagrams/illustrations/pictures of both sexes. Or at least, the 3rd edition does.

[concretecavewoman]

I've done both the NRoLFW and NRoL, MUCH preferred the men's version, but ultimately found the free material at Starting Strength to be the best out there, coupled with the Strong Lifts 5x5 plan (as many here have noted).

NRoLFW doesnt set you up for progression well enough, IMO.

[Waldo]

Is there anything out there for ladies who want to gain functional strength and weight loss without becoming even amateur bodybuilders? Any ideas?

Don't dismiss bodyweight exercises, which are very good for functional strength. While not geared specifically toward women, books like Convict Conditioning and Building the Gymnastic Body cover the whole body from beginner to very advanced with bodyweight exercises and progressions. I wouldn't worry too much about the amateur bodybuilder thing unless you plan on supplementing your gym workout with needles.

[NukeTheUnicorns]

Is there anything out there for ladies who want to gain functional strength and weight loss without becoming even amateur bodybuilders? Any ideas?

This is a very common misconception. Lifting weights, even if you train like a bodybuilder, will not turn you into some massive female gladiator. After all, people don't become bodybuilders by accident! It takes the exact right training plan, diet, and hormonal balance to achieve that sort of look. You can be strong and awesome without losing femininity. Take this girl for example. She lifts weights and she's not some massive Hulkster, she's just awesome.

[catsrgods]

I'm not worried about turning into a bodybuilder physically, I know that as a female I don't have the genetics for that without a ton of determination and time spent in the gym. I think I meant a boo more geared towards someone who understands the concepts of weightlifting and can do squats and is interested in lifting heavy weight but isn't going to spend 5 days a week in the gym with a spotter drinking protein shakes and groaning during exercise =)

I found a copy online of Starting Strength and I think it's exactly what I was looking for! I also got my hands on a copy of Convict Conditioning for some body weight stuff. Thanks for the input, folks! Now, to just start doing it....

[spezzy]

I'm not worried about turning into a bodybuilder physically, I know that as a female I don't have the genetics for that without a ton of determination and time spent in the gym. I think I meant a boo more geared towards someone who understands the concepts of weightlifting and can do squats and is interested in lifting heavy weight but isn't going to spend 5 days a week in the gym with a spotter drinking protein shakes and groaning during exercise =)

I found a copy online of Starting Strength and I think it's exactly what I was looking for! I also got my hands on a copy of Convict Conditioning for some body weight stuff. Thanks for the input, folks! Now, to just start doing it....

Spending 5 days a week in a gym with a spotter and drinking protein shakes is actually smart training, not going to turn you into a bodybuilder.

[catsrgods]

Perhaps, though not feasible for me currently. For one, I have not a single friend that is interested in going to the gym to lift real weights *sigh* though I am actively trying to change this and/or meet new friends. I can do three days a week of dedicated time spent in the gym lifting but I don't have the proper facilities for lifting at home nor the space to set something like this up either. Someday, maybe =)

Til' then I can do three days a week working on just weights, 3 days at Crossfit (because it's fun!) and the rest of the week working on a master's thesis, studying Latin, other silliness for school and doing all the single mom duties that I can't shirk. Juggling other things in life is sometimes a pain but so far I have really enjoyed getting into a regular workout routine and I feel really great, even without protein shakes! Though since that's been brought up, I'm def interested in suggestions for a Paleo friendly protein shake. Thanks for all the suggestions, I really appreciate the input from everyone!

[Waldo]

I don't have the proper facilities for lifting at home nor the space to set something like this up either. Someday, maybe =)!

Small area (preferably carpeted)

Nearby Wall

Door mounted pullup bar (~$20)

Chair or two

Everything you need for a very effective full body bodyweight strength training workout.

[catsrgods]

Yes, body weight exercises are totally doable, and being done, in my small available space =) I would like to buy a pull-up bar this week for my doorway, already on the "to-do list"! I also have a kettlebell and have used it in the past. I brushed the dust off it today and did a short workout to get back into it.

So nice to be able to do things from the comfort of my own home without juggling childcare.

[Cookie]

I personally dislike New rules of weightlifting for women.

Can I ask why? Grosby had me convinced

[spezzy]

Perhaps, though not feasible for me currently. For one, I have not a single friend that is interested in going to the gym to lift real weights *sigh* though I am actively trying to change this and/or meet new friends. I can do three days a week of dedicated time spent in the gym lifting but I don't have the proper facilities for lifting at home nor the space to set something like this up either. Someday, maybe =)

Til' then I can do three days a week working on just weights, 3 days at Crossfit (because it's fun!) and the rest of the week working on a master's thesis, studying Latin, other silliness for school and doing all the single mom duties that I can't shirk. Juggling other things in life is sometimes a pain but so far I have really enjoyed getting into a regular workout routine and I feel really great, even without protein shakes! Though since that's been brought up, I'm def interested in suggestions for a Paleo friendly protein shake. Thanks for all the suggestions, I really appreciate the input from everyone!

You were just speaking about those things as if they were negatives. They're not, they're smart.

Every 'paleo' protein shake I've had is disgusting. I just drink whey

So I'm trying to understand exactly what you're looking for here - you want to do lifting in addition to CrossFit. Are you not doing strength at CrossFit? And If you're doing CrossFit, haven't you been taught how to do the movements correctly?

Also, 3 days at crossfit + 3 days of weights = 6 days a week, when you said you couldn't do 5?

Maybe its the insane amount of benadryl, but I'm confused.

What exactly are you looking for in the book?

[Grosby]

Can I ask why? Grosby had me convinced

My guess on why people don't like it is because some people don't like the programs that call for lots of reps as it means, generally, using less weight. The first two weeks involves 2 sets of 15 reps (but there's less and less reps as it progresses) I think that could be one of the reasons why some people don't like it.

[spezzy]

Can I ask why? Grosby had me convinced

Maybe my specific dataset is poor, but I have found working with people who have worked through new rules of weightlifting for women are generally more confused, have more questions, and their form isn't as good as the people I've worked with who have gone through other books.

[Cookie]

Interesting, thanks. I might get the one you suggested also, have a read of both and compare