🏋🏻‍♀️ Strength Training for Bunnies: A Beginner's Guide

Hello reader.

It's Chloe. 💚

One of the most common myths I've heard is that strength training will make you "look like a man."

And to be completely honest...

It's one of my personal favourites because it always makes me laugh.

I don't think many people realise just how difficult it actually is to build a noticeably muscular physique. If you ask any guy friend, your boyfriend or anyone who's spent years lifting weights, they'll probably tell you it took far longer than they expected. Building muscle requires patience, consistency and a lot of hard work. 

You don't accidentally wake up one morning looking like a bodybuilder just because you decided to swap a few cardio sessions for some dumbbells. In fact, if building impressive muscles were really that easy, every gym would be packed with people who looked like superheroes.

Thankfully—or unfortunately, depending on your goals—it doesn't quite work that way.

Another popular belief is that cardio leads to better results.

I used to be one of those people, and speaking from experience, trust me when I tell you the results aren't necessarily better—they're just faster. If your only goal is to see a smaller number on the scale as quickly as possible, cardio might indeed be the better option in the short term. Yes, I said it, because it's true.

After all, how am I supposed to earn your trust if I spend this entire article praising strength training while pretending cardio has no benefits? There isn't necessarily a "bad" workout. Some simply serve different purposes, and the best approach usually combines the best of both worlds.

Cardio is fantastic for improving your cardiovascular health and helping you burn calories, but if your goal is to build a lean, toned physique, strength training is what makes the biggest difference.

Here's why.

When you only do cardio, you lose weight from your entire body. That includes fat, but it also includes muscle tissue. Since muscle helps give your body shape, losing too much of it can leave you looking smaller without necessarily looking more toned. This is one of the reasons why someone can lose several kilograms yet still feel disappointed when they look in the mirror.

Strength training helps preserve—and gradually build—that muscle while you're losing fat, allowing your body to look firmer and more defined over time.

Have you ever noticed how some people insist your strength training "doesn't count" unless you're lifting heavy?

Well... you can add that one to the myth list too.

Strength training has many different forms and can be incorporated into all kinds of workouts. Bodyweight exercises, dumbbells, resistance bands, kettlebells and gym machines all count. At the end of the day, they're simply different tools that help your muscles work a little harder than they're used to.

And that's exactly what strength training is.

As long as you're giving your muscles a challenge they aren't fully adapted to yet—bam! You're strength training.

The key is finding a weight that challenges you while still allowing you to complete your exercises with proper form. It's about building strength safely and consistently. This isn't the time to impress anyone by lifting the heaviest dumbbells in the gym. 

Believe it or not, there's actually a gym term for this: it’s called ego lifting. It basically means lifting weights your body isn't ready for just to impress other people.

Spoiler alert: the only person you'll end up impressing is your physiotherapist... and trust me, they won't be too happy to see you either. So take your time and don’t rush the process.

Eventually, that weight will start feeling easier. That's your cue to move up to the next one.

Progress usually comes quite quickly in the beginning, but don't be surprised if things slow down later. At some point you'll spend weeks—or even months—lifting the same weight before you're ready to increase it again.

And that's completely normal.

It doesn't mean you've stopped making progress. It simply means your body needs a little more time to adapt.

What happens inside your body in the meantime follows pretty much the same logic. At first, your muscles may feel a little grumpy because you shocked them with a brand-new workout. As a result, they'll probably make you "suffer" for a day or two by leaving you sore. Don't worry, it's all part of the process and it'll pass before you know it.

While you're busy wondering why walking up the stairs suddenly feels like climbing Mount Everest, your body has already started repairing the tiny muscle fibres you challenged during your workout. That's why staying hydrated and eating enough protein is so important, as both help support your recovery.

Whenever your body works overtime to repair those muscle fibres, they become a little stronger and better prepared for the next challenge.

Little by little, your body adapts, and you'll probably notice that the soreness becomes less frequent.

So, what are the benefits of strength training? I’m not even sure where to begin.

For starters, the toned look and stronger body you build will definitely turn a few heads. 

Not only that, you'll feel stronger and healthier, and I'd even go as far as saying happier. 

You'll notice improvements in your posture and energy levels as everyday tasks slowly start feeling a lot easier. 

Best of all, strength training supports healthy ageing. In other words, there's a good chance you'll age more gracefully than people who never exercise. And aren't we all secretly trying to look like we're still in our twenties?

Obviously, I'm not claiming strength training is perfect. You will feel sore. It won't happen after every workout, but it'll probably be quite common in the beginning. 

If you're an impatient person, you'll likely get frustrated when your progress isn't as fast as you expected. Sometimes you'll also feel a little embarrassed trying new exercises. You probably won't do them correctly on your first try.

Learning proper technique in front of other people can make anyone blush—but hey, we've all been there. Funny enough, not one of those downsides involved you suddenly looking like a man.

The best thing you can do is start small. Browse the internet for workout inspiration, watch a few videos and try lifting a couple of dumbbells to figure out a weight you're comfortable with. 

Don't start copying fitness influencers. Like it or not, you're a beginner, and beginner workouts are exactly where you should start. I have tried it all, and after nearly injuring myself a few times because of my ego, I discovered that there really isn't a fast-forward button here.

I'd also recommend looking into different workout apps and finding one that suits you best. I personally use Workout Women because I love the variety it offers. 

Their categories include Stretching, Cardio, Wall Pilates, HIIT and plenty of others that I genuinely enjoy. You can preview every workout before starting it, see the approximate number of calories it burns, track your weight, follow a 3–6-week programme based on your goals or even browse the meal-prep section for inspiration.

Personally, I usually pick a full-body workout that really challenges me and keep repeating it until it starts feeling easier. That's when I know it's time to add weights. It works perfectly for me.

I definitely recommend browsing through a few apps, asking your friends for recommendations or simply trying different ones until something clicks. But if you don't feel like spending hours searching, I'd genuinely encourage you to give Workout Women a try. 

They literally have a workout you can do from your bed. And I won't lie... I may have given it a shot once or twice on days when I really wasn't feeling up to going to the gym.

Hopefully I've managed to convince you that strength training isn't the big scary monster people sometimes make it out to be. It's challenging, yes. Sometimes frustrating? Absolutely. 

But it's also one of the most rewarding things you can do for your body.

So don't wait until Monday. Don't wait until you've bought the "perfect" gym outfit. And definitely don't wait until you feel confident enough—confidence usually comes after you start, not before.

Take that first step, pick up those dumbbells and see where they take you.

I'll be cheering you on from the sidelines.