Dooley Noted: 4/16/2015
This week in practice, I picked up on a theme.
As patients waited to see me, they saw some of the finest trainers on the planet helping their clients in our Catalyst SPORT family.
Some of the girls admitted to me that they are worried.
They expressed concern that I would encourage them to lift weights.
They don’t talk of their fears of not being strong enough. (That was me.)
They don’t reminisce with me about junior high gym class, where they were picked last for a team. (That was me, too.)
They state they don’t want to get “bulky.”
I think many women still have the impression that lifting weights makes their arms and legs balloon out like Popeye eating spinach.
They talk about how they want a lean, long toned look.
So, I strive to enlighten them.
I had their mindset in my 20s. I wanted to look long and lean.
I’m an endomorph. I will never be long and lean. I’m 5’4″ and weigh 145.
But I used to starve myself to strive for that long and lean look that I would never get unless I grew 3 inches and chopped off 30 pounds.
But I got it down to under 120 – and I was the sickest lean-looking person you’d ever met.
In order to not literally kill myself, I had to give up that mindset. I started eating healthy foods and developing a healthy relationship with food.
That helped.
But then I started weight training.
I didn’t just become strong in body. My mind had no choice but to follow suit.
My body started changing.
I became more compact. My body fat dropped and my body morphed into a stronger, leaner version.
I held myself so high that people were shocked I was only 5’4″.
As the weight training became more consistent, I noticed my clothes felt looser and my butt sat higher.
I noticed my arms had small peaks, without any Popeye moments.
As my brain started to change, my goals of a leaner body started to matter less.
I finally had what I needed my whole life: confidence in the body I was currently inhabiting.
I didn’t look in the mirror and pick myself apart, pinching my fat and cursing my fate.
I looked at a strong, dedicated woman that can pistol squat and pull herself up to a bar.
I looked at a woman that doesn’t go a single day without being dedicated to her posture, fitness, and general health.
And I don’t see a girl who won’t lift weights because she’s afraid she will get bulky.
It never crosses my mind. I know what makes people bulky.
You get bulky clodhopping away on a treadmill, waiting for some tone to magically appear in your muscles.
You get bulky sitting on a couch.
And you get bulky eating unhealthy, copious foods, as your fears about lifting weights skew your mindset.
Here’s a tip.
Come hang out with us at Catalyst SPORT.
You’ll see lots of men and women of all ages, lifting heavy things. They look and feel the best they’ve ever been.
And not one of them looks bulky.
We are healthy, focused, and on our own health and fitness journeys.
We would love to help you change your mindset.
As always, it’s your call.
– Dr. Kathy Dooley