Improving or maintaining health should be a primary goal of an exercise program. Health not only refers to the absence of disease or illness but may include the way a person feels about their body, their confidence about participating in a variety of activities, and their overall attitude towards life. For many people feeling physically fit and strong is part of being a well-rounded, confident person. Resistance training (weight training) can play an important role in the development of self-confidence and body satisfaction by increasing strength, building and toning muscles, and increasing muscular endurance. It can also help maintain lean body mass (important for individuals attempting weight loss), decrease the risk of osteoporosis, develop coordination and balance, and prevent injuries resulting from weak muscles.

Is Weight Training For You?
The degree of muscularity considered physically attractive can vary greatly from person to person and between sexes. Men many times desire more muscular “bulk” whereas women may be more concerned with “toning” muscles. Even though weight training has many health benefits, the way it will affect a person’s body shape is usually very important. Understanding how your body will respond to a training program can eliminate many of the myths associated with lifting weights and will enable you to design a program specific to your needs. A common fear among women is that weight training will cause them to look excessively muscular or masculine.

It is important to understand that a woman's body will respond differently to weight training than a man's because of hormonal differences. The hormone testosterone plays a major role in muscular development. Because women have very little of this hormone, they tend not to “bulk-up” with weight training. Although illegal and potentially very harmful, many professional bodybuilders (men and women) take performance enhancing drugs which upset their hormonal balance and build more muscle. The risks associated with taking these drugs (anabolic androgenic steroids) include testicular atrophy in men, the development of male characteristics in women, acne, liver damage, and mood swings. People interested in weight training should understand that their bodies will not respond to lifting weights in the same way as someone taking anabolic steroids. Every individual also has genetic characteristics that will affect the way they develop strength and change their body shape in response to weight training.

Principles of Weight Training:

1. The Overload Principle states that muscle size, strength and endurance will only improve when the stress (weight or repetitions) is greater than that usually encountered.
2. The Progressive Resistance Principle demonstrates that as muscle strength and endurance increase, the resistance (weight used) must be periodically increased if further gains are desired.
3. The Principle of Specificity shows that the development of muscular fitness is specific to the muscles trained. Weight training for sport is most beneficial to performance when the intensity and movement of the exercise closely resembles the action of the sport.

Getting started
Entering a weight room or a gym full of hard bodies can be intimidating for a beginner. Therefore, the right frame of mind and a realistic attitude is essential to a successful weight training program. It is important to remember that everyone has at some time been a beginner.

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