I've been coaching CrossFit since 2014, and one thing I've always encouraged women to understand is that strength training offers so much more than changes in appearance.
We spend a lot of time talking about exercise in terms of calories burned or weight lost, but building and maintaining muscle has benefits that extend throughout our bodies, including our metabolic and hormonal health.
Muscle Does More Than Make Us Stronger
Skeletal muscle plays an important role in regulating blood sugar. When we exercise, our muscles use glucose for energy, and regular resistance training can improve insulin sensitivity.
This is particularly relevant for women with insulin resistance or conditions like PCOS, where metabolic health can influence reproductive function.
Our muscles also release signaling molecules called myokines during exercise, which communicate with other tissues and participate in processes involving metabolism and inflammation.
So when we're building muscle, we're doing more than improving our strength.
What About Cortisol and Other Hormones?
One thing I hear frequently is that intense exercise is bad for women's hormones because it raises cortisol.
But cortisol is supposed to increase in response to physical demands. Exercise is a form of stress, and that stress helps stimulate the adaptations we're training for.
What matters is whether we're eating enough, sleeping adequately, and allowing time for recovery.
Resistance training can also produce temporary changes in hormones like testosterone and growth hormone, although these increases aren't the primary reason we build muscle.
And while strength training doesn't necessarily increase progesterone or correct a specific hormonal imbalance, it supports several physiological systems that contribute to overall health.
Why Strength Training Matters as We Age
This is probably one of the biggest reasons I'm passionate about encouraging women to lift weights.
As we age, maintaining muscle mass, strength, and bone density becomes increasingly important. During menopause, declining estrogen levels can accelerate bone loss and contribute to changes in body composition.
Resistance training helps us preserve muscle, improve physical function, and support bone health.
It can also help maintain lean mass during weight loss, especially when combined with adequate protein intake.
And these benefits aren't limited to women approaching menopause. Building strength earlier in life gives us a foundation to carry into the decades ahead.
Getting Stronger Is a Goal Worth Having
You don't need to follow a complicated program to benefit from resistance training. Whether you're using barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, or your own body weight, what matters is challenging your muscles consistently and gradually increasing the demands as you get stronger.
Training your major muscle groups at least twice a week is a reasonable place to start, alongside aerobic activity and adequate recovery.
After more than a decade of coaching, I still think one of the most important things we can do is change how women think about exercise.
It doesn't always need to be about losing weight, burning calories, or changing how we look.
Sometimes the goal can simply be getting stronger, maintaining our independence as we age, and supporting our long-term health.
And I think those are pretty good reasons to keep lifting.
