Dear Fun and Fit: Why do some strength training exercises with equipment — i.e., core board, tubes, large balls — appear to be easier for females than males? — Brad, UCSB
Alexandra: Oh, Brad, there is a part of me that just wants to say, “because women are so totally A) awesome, B) super awesome, C) completely awesome, and D) all of the above,” but that’s more of a Twitter word than a fitness word, so I’ll just have to exhale and move along …
Kymberly: And a part of me wants to agree with Alexandra, but just a rare part, mind you.
Some of the seeming ease women have with the equipment you list has to do with coordination. Coordination is learned and adaptable. By college age (which I assume you are or your signature needs parental permission), women have more experience, on average, than men with these specific types of balance and exercises. I am referring not only to specific equipment, but also to general activities such as dance and gymnastics that require good balance, and torso and hip coordination.
The good news about coordination is that with practice, you and other men about town can achieve similar comfort and neuromuscular adaptation (a fancy way to say “coordination”).
A: I’ll speak from my experience working with thousands and thousands of exercisers over the years, many of them university students. Lots of men, especially the more broad-shouldered ones, tend to work the areas of their body they care most about, which is chest, arms and shoulders. These “mirror muscles” can look “hot” and “buff” fairly quickly, which is exactly why men care so much about them!
Take a brief moment to yourself and see if you can figure out which area of the body women most care about. Well? I hope you didn’t come up with “booty” because that’s only in the top five. No. 1 is abs.
So, while women are getting strong in their core, men can bench-press their best friend (even the burly ones) yet have the strength of 37 butterflies in the midsection. Stability balls (see the word “stability” there? It is just another way to say “ab strength”) and core boards (“core” is another way to say, “Dang, it’s ab strength again, isn’t it?) are all about the midsection (anywhere the belt touches, unless your belly hangs out and causes your belt to be lower in front than in back, but that’s a story for another day).
K: One more technical point about men and crunch-type exercises in the supine position (lying down on your back): On average, men have more mass distributed waist-up than women. Given men’s heavier and larger heads, wider shoulders and relatively heavier upper body mass, they are lifting slightly more weight than women. Add a destabilizing force, such as balls or boards, and men simply have to work harder and get used to it.
As for a bias with elastic resistance/tubing, I have not seen a big gender difference. If there is one, I am tempted to say that women tend to follow directions better than men, and tubing use is usually taught by a fitness teacher or trainer giving instruction. Let the wild rumpus controversy begin!
A: I’ll leave you with some heartening information — men tend to lose weight faster than women. Does that cheer you up at all?
Dear men and women readers: Why do you think core training is easier for women? Or do you?
— Identical twins and fitness pros Kymberly Williams-Evans and Alexandra Williams have been in the fitness industry since the first aerobics studio opened on the European continent. They teach, write, edit, emcee and present their programs worldwide on land, sea and airwaves. They co-write Fun and Fit: Q and A with K and A. You can currently find them in action leading classes in Santa Barbara and Goleta. Kymberly is the former faculty minor adviser at UCSB for its fitness instruction degree offered through the Department of Exercise & Sport Studies; Alexandra serves as an instructor and master teacher for the program. Fun and Fit answers real questions from real people, so please send your comments and questions to info@funandfit.org.