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Women and strength training: Part III

Should or could men and women train the same way? Just how similar or different are we, really?

In the first part of this article series we introduced the topic, in Part II we listed the first 20 points that set female trainees apart from male trainees, and in this third part we list the next 26 differences.

21. Women don’t learn exercises or link them to muscles as well as men do. For example, the names of exercises and which exercises target which muscles tend not to stick in women’s memory as well.

22. The average body fat percentage for women is 25-31%, while for men the figure is 18-24%.

23. It is common for women’s menstrual cycle to be delayed or to stop altogether during intensive training periods (this should not be confused with amenorrhea, which occurs when body fat percentage drops too low).

24. The size of a woman’s breasts, and even glutes, can change or vary noticeably over the course of a month.

25. A great many women cannot feel or even move their pelvic floor muscles.

26. At the gym, women often prefer different music than men do.

27. Most women feel very insecure when training with weights. Many want to do it in front of few people and in private.

28. Many women stay away from free-weight exercises (barbell and dumbbells); they seem like a “men’s thing,” and women tend to fear and avoid free-weight exercises, which is why many choose only between machines and cardio equipment.

29. Women tend to overestimate the importance and share of aerobic training.

30. Women also overestimate the importance of stretching and stretching exercises.

31. Most women underestimate strength training and free-weight exercises.

32. Women overestimate direct, isolated abdominal training.

33. A classic: most women fear becoming too muscular from strength training, and this fear is mostly unfounded.

34. Compared with men, most of a woman’s body weight is located in the lower body. Proportionally, a significantly larger share of body mass sits in the lower body than in the upper body.

35. Compared with men, women tend to chat more while performing a set, even during sets with maximum weights and record attempts. During maximal efforts, men tend to instinctively fall silent and focus.

36. Most women who train at the gym feel that all upper-body exercises are essentially arm exercises (it is assumed that exercises done for the back, chest and shoulders are all directly aimed at the arms).

37. Women’s protein intake is usually inadequate, because foods such as yogurts and nuts are believed to be rich in protein and eating them is thought to be enough to meet protein needs.

38. A large part of the strength difference between women and men also comes from the general difference in skeleton size. Skeleton size significantly determines muscle mass potential, especially in the upper body. Women’s absolute upper-body strength is about 55% of men’s upper-body strength, and for the lower body the corresponding ratio is 72% (women’s lower-body strength is on average 72% of men’s lower-body strength). Women’s world records are 60.4% of men’s records in the bench press, 65.7% in the squat and 77.1% in the deadlift.

39. Women’s power output in the basic exercises (both absolute and relative) is also lower than men’s. Women’s maximum vertical jump is on average 54-79% of men’s maximum, and their long jump is on average 75% of men’s maximum. Likewise, women’s best result in the clean and jerk in classic weightlifting is 73% of the men’s world record, and in the snatch the corresponding figure is 72% of men’s result.

40. When following a similar training program with the same parameters, women’s muscle mass development and gains (both absolute and relative) are generally almost always smaller than men’s.

41. One peculiarity of women compared with men is that, on average, women can perform longer sets at a higher percentage of their record than men can. For example, while a set of 10 repetitions at 70% of your record is relatively hard and intense for men, for women it is usually only a moderate-intensity effort. So if the goal is to build muscle mass, women can also use somewhat more training volume when training at high intensities.

42. Women have a higher average body fat percentage than men, largely because women have higher estrogen levels. Even the leanest female marathon runners have an average body fat percentage of 8, while for elite male marathon runners the figure is on average 4–5%.

43. Women’s joint mobility is on average greater than men’s. This is largely due to lower muscle mass as well. In gymnastics this is an advantage.

44. In addition to greater muscle mass, men also have a larger heart than women. Men also have on average more fast-twitch muscle fibers, which gives an advantage in activities and movements that demand strength, speed and power.

45. Men’s higher testosterone level also promotes greater red blood cell production. This in turn gives men an advantage in prolonged, endurance-type activity.

46. Compared with men, women are more susceptible to knee and shoulder injuries. Weaker shoulder muscles and weaker ligaments around the joint make women’s shoulder joints considerably less stable than men’s. Because of a larger Q-angle, as well as weaker leg muscles and knee ligaments, women’s knee joints are also more vulnerable to injury than men’s.

To be continued…