(1) Being skinny-fat as a woman is “normal” in the sense that most women carry more fat and less muscle mass than men.
(2) As a woman you cannot get bulky from training since you produce 12-17 times less testosterone than men (the main muscle building hormone), and most men struggle putting on muscle mass. Just think about it… The average guy struggles building a muscular physique and some never get to have one despite trying. At best, training will add a small amount of mass on your frame (over a long period of time), and “you will lose it if you don’t use it” so theres’ nothing to worry about.
(3) To get toned, you need to go through 2 processes: build a small amount of muscle mass in your desired areas (e.g. thighs) and lose overall body-fat (you cannot spot-reduce fat). The muscle gains combined with the fat loss will tighten up your body.
(4) Getting a 6-pack is an unhealthy obsession. When you diet down to a low body-fat percentage that is unnatural for you, your endocrine system will go out of whack and you will feel terrible.
(5) As a woman you are more prone to experience blood sugar drops than men. This is often seen when you start getting irritable and tired in the late morning or an hour or 2 before dinner. The solution is to always carry an apple or another piece of low-calorie fruit in your bag… When your blood sugar drops, eat that apple.
(6) Training for men and women is very different. Women want glutes, thighs, a flat waist and defined arms. Men want big arms, wide shoulders and chest. Also, most women want to avoid building wider shoulders and a bigger neck, therefore the exercise selection differs a lot.
(7) Women can’t build as much strength and muscle mass from training as men, but that doesn’t mean training should be ignored. A woman who works out and has the right amount of muscle tone looks much better than she would without it. Also, posture improves a lot when you train correctly (good posture increases attractiveness), you become happier as a person from regular exercise (people love being around happy people) and you prevent future pains in your back, hips and knees (provided you train correctly). Finally, there’s nothing more bad-ass than a busy career woman or mother of a baby who can knock out a few push ups or pull ups or run a mile without getting out-of-breath.
Be proud but stay hungry,
– Oskar Faarkrog
Other Parts
- Part 1: Training
- Part 2: Muscle Gains
- Part 3: Diet
- Part 4: Weight Loss
- Part 5: Aesthetics
- Part 6: Expectations and Body Image
- Part 7: Skinny-Fat Men
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Hi Oskar,
I have read your articles for a while now and have to say you’ve got some good stuff here.
I have started to trying to get a better body according to your instructions, but nothing much hasn’t happened yet. Maybe that’s because I’m so new to training and maybe I’m not in my best age anymore (47 yrs AND a woman :-)) and done this only for a couple of months now.
I’m doing bodyweight exercises 3-4 times a week, negative chin-ups, push-ups (still knee-type), squats and abs. I’ve made some progression all other fields but chin-ups, which are very hard. I feel that my arms are pure pasta when trying to lower my body with control. But I’m not going to give up since I’ve noticed to got a little bit better posture than in the past. Maybe I will have some more visible results if I just keep going.
Being a woman isn’t very easy, at least I feel so. If I exercise even a little bit too much or if I eat even a little bit in a wrong way, I feel exhausted, cold and can’t sleep very well. It has been very difficult to find the right balance with everything. I’m prone to get excited of things and usually then I start to overdo things. Have to work on that somehow.
In this article you wrote that exercise selection between men and women differs a lot. Could you be more specific about how. Should I continue doing what I do or change something?
Thank you Outi.
You need to give it more time, and stay motivated by tracking progress weekly. Visual changes often take much more time than we would like to.
What I meant about exercise selection is that women generally want to do more sets for glutes and abs compared to muscle groups such as the traps and shoulders.
I can’t say whether you should continue to do what you’re doing now, that really depends on YOUR goals and how it’s working for you.
This is an interesting read given that most women are super conscious about their appearance and are practically obsessed with being fat (even if they aren’t). You also address their fear of becoming ‘bulky’.. I know a lot of women who do not commit to training for this very reason.
I’d also like to add and encourage women to go and lift weights, even if they may be intimidated by the larger guys curling 20 kg of course. I am saying this because countless women do way too much cardio in comparison with lifting weights. In my opinion, the latter is crucial for women to achieve both a toned look and a flat waist.
I’d definitely recommend this to my gf
Definitely recommend it and I agree with your points.