Drawing from years of experience, Dorian Yates, the 6-time Mr. Olympia, has the answer to challenges traditional assumptions while highlighting the science behind the difference.

Coach Amos Rae shared a short video on Instagram in which Dorian Yates explained that women don't need to train differently from men.

He said, “They're the same muscles in the same place. Same rules apply. The muscles are not gonna grow unless you overload them”.

However, Yates thinks that the muscle growth will be limited, “by the fact that you're female and you don't produce a lot of testosterone”. And for that, it is difficult for women to “build muscle”.

He addressed the myth in this sports surrounding the word “toned”. According to Yates, it is misleading. Yates continued by saying, “What you mean is you want to look firmer, right? It's called building muscle and losing body fat. So your arms might be the same size. It looks leaner.  It looks more shapely. It's the same thing”.

Yates also said that movements like Pilates and yoga can help boost core strength and mobility. But be explained that meaningful physical change mostly comes from resistance training or weight training.

Yates message for the women who are concerned about becoming excessively muscular is, “don't worry about building too much muscle unless you're a genetic outlier, that's genetically very muscular and maybe higher testosterone levels”.

In the end, he highlighted the principles of progress that are equally important for men and women:

• Stress
• Recovery
• Adaptation

Not only Dorian Yates, but bodybuilding legend Arnold Schwarzenegger echoed the same sentiment.

Arnold Schwarzenegger explains what happens to women who lift

Golden Era Bookworm shared a 1977 interview with Arnold, in which the female host asks him whether she can do bodybuilding.

In response, the 7-time Mr. Olympia winner said, “Any person can do it”. The Austrian Oak continued lifting weights, making no difference whether it was a man or a woman. However, he also highlighted the difference by saying, “A woman does not get muscles like a man because they have not the male hormones. Therefore, their body will get firm but not the muscle”.

The most vital components of muscle building are resistance training, proper diet, and progressive overload. It is true that men and women have some physiological differences, but this does not suggest different training approaches. Based on this perspective, Arnold explained in his newsletter, “Anyone who talks to women about toning or spot reduction is talking BS. That is made up”.

He thinks men and women should not be trained differently; instead, “we should tell everybody to train for a goal”.

So, what is your perspective on this?

Written by

Supradeep Dutta

Edited by

Joyita Das