Workout Strategy Tips: Men vs Women

Training or physical fitness can be a very personalized concept. Training one individual may be vastly different than another and often involve making customized workout strategies. While a fitness routine varies from a person to another, there are certain common elements that can be identified and classified for men and women as a broader category. Apart from apparent physiological differences, men and women differ in the bone density, muscle density, ability to lose fat, and even metabolism. All this can require specialized versions of basic exercises.

Let’s take a deeper look at some of the major differences between men and women and discuss the main workout differences: –

1. Ability to lose fat

Women can generally handle high-fat diets better in contrast to men despite the fact that men can lose weight easier than women. The reason is that due to differences in the hormonal systems, women rely less on carbs and proteins while burning fat more effectively. Since the reliance on carbs and proteins in women is lower, they switch to the next available source of energy due to their metabolism which works better on fats.

2. Need for protein

Protein is widely talked about in the fitness world and its significance is well-known. But protein requirements for women and men vary hugely. Various studies show that women require less protein compared to an average adult male. Women do not require as much protein as men because they generally burn and oxidize lesser protein during physical exercise. Also as women have less lean body mass compared to essential fat mass, the reliance on protein is fundamentally different, even from an evolutionary perspective from the times of the neanderthals.

3. Core strength is equally important for men

The core muscles are the ones that support our torso and their development is equally important for both sexes. A common popular workout seen in women is Pilates. It is considered exclusively for women to increase their core strength, which is a little off from the truth. A stronger core in men is also linked to numerous benefits such as improvement in erectile dysfunction, better libido, and improved muscle coordination.

4. Bulking up or building muscle

Men underweight training are generally built up in terms of muscle mass as most men go for weight training more than resistance training. There is a common misconception that intense weight training results in bulking up regardless of the gender and would inevitably lead to a huge increase in muscle mass. However, due to significant differences in hormonal levels (testosterone being the most important), men and women respond differently to different forms of exercise. Women would benefit more from resistance training exercises and are generally better at them compared to men. Another reason is that women don’t metabolize protein the same as men which has been discussed above.

5. Handling volume

On strength training, men develop Type II A fibers, whereas women develop type I muscle fibers. Type I fibers are also known as slow-twitch fibers and help in prolonged exercise while the type II fibers (also known as fast-twitch fibers) help in high-intensity activities that require more strength, but these fibers are prone to fatigue easily. Having a larger amount of type I fibers allows women to handle more training volume than men. Training volume is basically the total weight lifted, which can be calculated as sets x reps x weight. Another reason that women can handle higher volumes easily is the high concentration of estrogen which reduces protein-break down and aids muscle repair which enables women to train with high volumes without getting fatigued.