Powerlifting

The Benefits of Powerlifting for Women

The strength sport is growing rapidly in popularity amongst women and we, for one, couldn’t be happier. The benefits of powerlifting go way beyond just making you stronger.

From you bones to your mental health, there are so many ways powerlifting can positively impact your life.

Check out these benefits of powerlifting before you get started.

The benefits of powerlifting

Strength

benefits of powerlifting for women as strength

While this may sound obvious, it’s still one of the best benefits of powerlifting.

The big three lifts of powerlifting provide a full body workout, hitting your legs, arms, chest and core. They’ll make your body stronger and more powerful, which is extremely beneficial for your overall health [1].

Read on to find out how increased strength can benefit your mind and body.

Fat reduction

Powerlifting training will add more muscle to your frame. Simply maintaining muscle burns more calories than fat does.

One study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that those who performed resistance training increased their caloric expenditure by 15% during a 24-hour period [2].

Because powerlifting uses compound movements, it also increases your calorie burn during the workout [3].

Another study found that resistance training helps to conserve fat free mass and increase your overall energy expenditure when at rest [4].

What’s more, it’s been shown to keep fat off for around a year after weight is lost [5].

[Related Article: The Best Fat Burners for Women

Mental health benefits

woman smiling with a barbell

A review of recent research found that exercise is strongly linked to improved mental health [6].

Strength training in particular has been shown to help combat depression by significant amount [7], along with quality of life and social functioning [6].

Another study found similar results and discovered it can play a part in maintaining healthy brain function [8].

Longer life

One key benefit of strength training is that it can help to improve your overall wellbeing, including your heart health.

It’s been proven to reduce your blood pressure [9] and, when studying older people, it reduced the symptoms of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and arthritis [10].

With a healthier heart and a lower risk of certain diseases, you should be able to lead a longer life, and even improve your quality of life too.

Stronger Skeleton

woman pushing a prowler

Aside from shoring up your body with additional muscle, the benefits of powerlifting include increased bone density [10].

This is not only better for your body overall, it can also help to reduce the risk of osteoporosis as you age by increasing strength and bone mass [10].

A stronger skeletal structure has a huge number of benefits. Not only will our body be more powerful, you’ll reduce your risk of injury and of breaks.

What’s more, stronger muscles around your joints will heighten the security of these weaker areas. Joints are often points where you body is prone to injury, however additional muscle can ensure they’re sturdy when under pressure.

Increased athleticism

Powerlifting creates a stronger, more powerful physique, that can translate into other exercises.

For example, the squat has been linked to higher speeds in both sprints and jumping [11].

With more explosive power under your belt, you can accelerate far more quickly and maintain higher speeds.

This lends itself to a number of different sports, like soccer, tennis and just straight forward sprints. So if you practise a particular sport or if you’re thinking about taking one up, the benefits of powerlifting can complement your chosen discipline.

More confidence

woman powerlifting

Although this one is harder to measure, all of these elements add up to one thing, increased confidence.

This is a very important factor for women. We’re not just talking about confidence in the weights room either, which has traditionally been a predominantly male area.

Think a better posture, more confidence in your clothes and out of them.

On top of all that, the positivity you feel from all those ‘feel good’ hormones coursing through your body will give you a much stronger sense of confidence and a better outlook.

The Final Word

The benefits of powerlifting can stretch across your whole life. From a more powerful body to lower fat levels, better mental health to increased athleticism, this sport has a huge array of positive perks.

Why waste any time?

Start your love affair with powerlifting today, and check out our beginner program right here

 

References

[1] Paoli, Antonio et al. “Resistance Training with Single vs. Multi-joint Exercises at Equal Total Load Volume: Effects on Body Composition, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Muscle Strength.” Frontiers in physiology vol. 8 1105. 22 Dec. 2017

[2] American Journal of Clinical Nutrition; Increased Energy Requirements and Changes in Body Composition with Resistance Training in Older Adults; W.W. Campbell, et al.; August 1994

[3] Paoli, Antonio et al. “Resistance Training with Single vs. Multi-joint Exercises at Equal Total Load Volume: Effects on Body Composition, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Muscle Strength.” Frontiers in physiology vol. 8 1105. 22 Dec. 2017

[4] Hunter, G. R., Byrne, N. M., Sirikul, B. , Fernández, J. R., Zuckerman, P. A., Darnell, B. E. and Gower, B. A. (2008), Resistance Training Conserves Fat‐free Mass and Resting Energy Expenditure Following Weight Loss. Obesity, 16: 1045-1051. doi:10.1038/oby.2008.38

[5] Hunter, G. R., Brock, D. W., Byrne, N. M., Chandler‐Laney, P. C., Corral, P. and Gower, B. A. (2010), Exercise Training Prevents Regain of Visceral Fat for 1 Year Following Weight Loss. Obesity, 18: 690-695. doi:10.1038/oby.2009.316

[6] Penedo, Frank J; Dahn, Jason R, Exercise and well-being: a review of mental and physical health benefits associated with physical activity. Current Opinion in Psychiatry: March 2005 – Volume 18 – Issue 2 – p 189–193

[7] Nalin A. Singh, Karen M. Clements, Maria A. Fiatarone, A Randomized Controlled Trial of Progressive Resistance Training in Depressed Elders, The Journals of Gerontology: Series A, Volume 52A, Issue 1, January 1997,

[8] Deslandes A, e. (2009). Exercise and mental health: many reasons to move. – PubMed – NCBI. [online] [9] Kraemer, W.J., Ratamess, N.A. & French, D.N. Curr Sports Med Rep (2002) 1: 165. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11932-002-0017-7

[10] Rebecca Seguin, Miriam E Nelson. The benefits of strength training for older adults. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Volume 25, Issue 3, Supplement 2. 2003

[11] British Journal of Sports Medicine”; Strong Correlation of Maximal Squat Strength with Sprint Performance and Vertical Jump Height in Elite Soccer Players; U. Wisloff, et al.; June 2004

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