5 Reasons Why Women Should Powerlift

 Powerlifting is taking the fitness world by storm, but sometimes it seems that women are skeptical about all of the benefits that the sport has to offer. This post is to let you know, it’s ok to kick all of your previous reservations to the curb, and convince you to get your hands on some chalk and wrap your fingers around a barbell!

1. Strong does not equal bulky

One of the most common criticisms of female lifters is the accumulation of muscle mass, and the sacrifice of the female form. However, it takes a tremendous amount of effort to start to pack on muscle mass like the pros – and if you’re just a recreational powerlifter, you might not even see those kind of muscle gains that some women would like to avoid. In fact, you might see the kind of change you like. Deadlifts grow your lats, which can make your waist look smaller, and there’s not one pair of glutes around that doesn’t benefit from some heavy squats. You might find that you really like the changes you see when you start building your physique for strength!

2. Improve your relationship with food

Building strength requires a LOT of food – and when you’re eating to perform well, you’ll find that the constant battle with restriction doesn’t matter much anymore. Low carb or calorie restriction is not often an issue because building muscle and recovering from long lifting sessions requires a lot of calories! It’s liberating to eat a piece and for once, be really happy that it’s going to your thighs- in the right way.

3. It helps strengthen all other sports

Women rarely do just one thing. If you’re a recreational athlete, or your type of exercise is chasing after your kids, powerlifting strengthens all sports. You’ll find you can carry laundry to the washing machine easier, catch the bus faster, or jump higher when it comes to playing some intramural basketball. Powerlifing is unique in that it’s a full body workout with a very efficient time – you’re only really training three movements – if you keep that up, you’ll be able to reap all the benefits!

4.You won’t need help opening jars (read: You will be empowered)

There’s nothing like a jar of salsa to make you feel weak. Maybe it’s not salsa – maybe it’s needing help rotating the mattress, putting storage in the attic, or doing whatever life throws at you. With strength, you know you’re able to handle any challenge, and you don’t need help from anyone. For women, accumulating strength allows them to go against the grain and find power and security in themselves, instead of relying on others to be strong for them.

5. The community is about building each other up

Strong women lift each other up – the female powerlifting community lives by these tenants, and the one you’ll find is no different. Whether you need a cheering team to get you through a deadlift PR, or a community to unwind with after a hard week at work, this community is one of the strongest, and fastest growing in any sport – you’ll never be alone again.

Powerlifting gives women benefits like these and more every day. With such strong positives, it’s amazing to think something as simple as looking muscular can hold a woman back. Who knows, you might like how much you can gain, when you’re making gains.