In Defense of Pink Dumbbells

It seems that it should be getting old now, but I continue to see bodybuilding and fitness sites publish articles and blogs about the fact that women need to “put down the pink dumbbells (iight weights)” and pick up the heavy weights. “You’re wasting your time with the ‘pink dumbbells.’”

It is true: lifting heavy weights will not make women huge and bulky…unless, of course, you combine the heavy lifting with a surplus of calories, then you may gain some fat with that muscle. But lifting heavy builds muscle and muscle is much leaner and sleeker than fat. So that’s a good thing.

In the spirit of transparency, I must admit that there was a time when I, too, came down hard on the women who lifted “pink dumbbells”. Go big or go home, for crying out loud. The reality is, while we are belittling women who are not lifting heavy enough (by our standards) in the gym, we are missing the point of educating them on how to lift heavy and how to make the progression from the pink dumbbells to the big weights.

In one article, one of the suggested exercises to replace your pink dumbbells with was handstand push ups - along with deadlifts and squats. Okay now, I can’t even do a handstand push up and I would never be caught dead attempting my first one in the gym for everyone to observe…and capture on video only to go viral on social media. Because that would be my luck.

Deadlifts and squats and bench press and pull ups - all of those are great for women to learn to do. But we can’t really expect women to go from being afraid to set foot in the weight room to deadlifting and squatting next to the big boys.

As a fitness professional, it’s often difficult for me to watch people struggling in the gym or doing exercises that are entirely useless. It’s not my place to walk up to them and correct them or offer a better exercise. Usually, these people will not seek out the help of a professional and if they do seek help it’s often online and there is no one to watch them actually perform the exercise in the gym. Many of these exercises, if performed incorrectly or with the wrong weight, could cause serious injury.

So how do you make this transition?

First of all, decide what your goal is - do you want to gain strength, gain lean muscle, lose body fat? Once you have decided what your goal is you can begin the process of seeking professionals and resources to help you reach your goal.

Second, find someone in your local gym that can help you to make sure you are using correct form and proper weight if you are not working with a trainer. Make sure the person you are asking for help actually has experience. A lot of really good fitness professionals work out in your local gym but do not train clients there and most of them would be more than happy to watch and critique your form to help you.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to ask for help. You’re not alone in not knowing what exercises are best in getting the results you want. Most credible fitness professionals would be happy to give you a few tips and suggestions at no charge just to get you pointed in the right direction.

You might be thinking: “Well, I don’t need to put on a lot of muscle, I just want to be more toned/fit/lean.” I get you. It takes a lot of time, hard work in the gym and intentionally eating right to put on muscle. It is not an easy feat. And as we get older, we need to fight for each ounce of muscle we have. Strength training is important and since you’re going to do it, you might as well make it worth the effort and do it right, with the right weights.