The secret benefits to lifting that most girls don't knowHow lifting can help you achieve the slim body you wantWith spring break a speed bump to getting that summer body, everyone is looking to get on the fast track to get back in shape. Traditionally, what you see is the weight room filled with guys looking to build muscle, while ladies are doing some form of cardio in order to get toned. Most girls are under the impression that lifting weights will make them big, but what most women don’t know is that they are cheating themselves. Lifting is a very effective fitness tool that can put them on the fast track to achieving the body that they want.

If you think about it, there are men who have an extremely difficult time building muscle, and men put on muscle significantly easier than women. This is because men naturally produce testosterone, which is a key element in building muscle. Just to bust that myth right away, ladies you will not get overly muscular just from lifting weights a few times per week. On the contrary, there are several benefits to lifting weights that will contribute not only to your fitness goals, but your overall quality of life as well.

Lifting weights correctly has been proven to increase the density of your bones, which leads to less of a chance of injury. In addition, it also helps correct and strengthen your posture, making it easier to do simple things like walk to class or make one trip from your car when carrying groceries instead of two. It also lowers the risk of acquiring nagging injuries such as tennis elbow, lower back pains and other small injuries.

Another benefit that women will find extremely appealing is the increased calorie burn that you get from lifting weights. Whenever you run on a cardio machine, more often than not, you will see a display of how many calories that you burn and a lot of people take that number into consideration when counting their calories. Not only is that number often false, but you burn the majority of your calories outside of the gym just living. Most people do not know that the body constantly burns calories.

When you lift weights, it causes an after burn effect. This increases the rate at which your body burns calories by a wide margin, more so than traditional cardio workouts do. This means that if you lift weights, you burn calories while you lift and, after the workout, your body is burning calories at a faster rate. On the other hand, doing cardio burns a lot of calories during the time that you are doing it, but that slows down once stop doing cardio.

What I would suggest girls do is experiment with lifting weights three to five times per week, whether it's on machines or with free weights. It will enhance your overall physique and get you closer to achieving your fitness goals.