Well, this is theory of the author of the books. larger meaning heavier(I believe they are assuming thier audience for this book is overweight) . successful at lifting weights - as opposed to cardiovascular workouts. also I believe they subscribe to the theory that those that are naturally larger to begin with - tend to gain muscle faster. But really sucess vs. fail. Also - more muscle = higher metabolism. hence the strong women slim connection. and I believe that for those that haven't been active - building muscle helps. And they are talking about free weights - not machines. It is a beginner program concentrating on upperbody strength. when I was doing it I added things that worked on core muscles as well.

I haven't reviewed the book in a while...so I may be remembering only what spoke to me.they have a website

[link]

When you say weight lifting, beth, are you distinguishing it from doing weights? I mean, are you looking at it like the sport?

I'm confuzzled. "Weight lifting" /= "doing weights"? How is each one defined, then, if they're different?

The best way to deal with the positioning problem is to always have the treadmill at a .5 incline and run just a bit slower than you think you should, at least for the first few runs. As you adjust, you can start figuring out what works.

This and maybe starting out walking and building to a run. I hate running on a treadmill and will run outside in cold, dark, and/or rain before going to the gym to run. It would probably be less painful if I had one in my home though. I was always afraid I'd fall off the treadmill but it hasn't happened yet.

When I think of weight lifting, I think of the sport. Powerlifting and all that. When I think of doing weights, I'm not thinking sport at all.

I have no doubt it's a personal semantic distinction, which is why I threw sport in there to help clarify (though not well). I asked because I didn't understand what "better" meant in the context, but now I get that beth means that they do it better than the other options open to them, not better than other people do, it doesn't really matter.

That strongwomen website is wonderful! You don't need a big clear area to work in--useful in crowded houses--not a lot of equipment, plus the website tells you common errors and how to correct them. Time to consider some weights. Being strong appeals to me a whole lot more than being svelte.

In mememe news it seems I totally rock this morning. I don't usually have a lot of tech support to do, but in the first hour today I had 2 people call me with urgent needs. One was a simple restore from last night's tape of a screwed file. The other fun one was proving that a boss type did not route a file to the underling for action but had in fact signed off on it and took it out of workflow. Ha! Both people were all gushy and grateful. Decent start of the day.

(and I took 2 more calls while writing this, so probably lots of posts in between)

When I think of weight lifting, I think of the sport. Powerlifting and all that. When I think of doing weights, I'm not thinking sport at all.

I have no doubt it's a personal semantic distinction

Ah. I get it. I never really think of powerlifting as a "sport," per se. I always just think of it as a more extreme version of "doing weights."

While we're talking about running, any tips for running on a treadmill?

That's the time I use to catch up on taped programs or DVDs. The time goes by quickly.

I am doing weight lifting with the boys now. We have a big Nautilus machine thing. I printed out the various positions and then noted the 3 of us and what weight and reps we are on. When they are not on the machine they have to keep warm on the treadmill, bike, stepper, or tramp. Since I married an athlete and have these 2 sporty boys we have lots of great equipment. We are just getting started so we'll see how it goes.

The wonderful thing that has been sitting in my garage for a year or so unhung is a big heavy punching bag. The coach next door promises me if I get myself some good boxing gloves that working with the heavy bag will get rid of my arm flaps. And yet it sits unused.

I have a weight bench thing that we inherited from my FIL that needs to be assembled. It has been in the garage for a couple of years and I'd love to use it, but I need someone to show me what to do.

It has been in the garage for a couple of years and I'd love to use it, but I need someone to show me what to do.

Gimme a month and some, and I can show you, if you don't find someone in the meantime....