Let’s look at some facts:

First of all, women have about 15 – 20 times less testosterone than men do which means they can never gain the muscle mass of men (short of juicing). So when you lift heavy weight, you aren’t able to gain a large amount of mass. The toned or sculpted appearance comes because you are replacing the fat that is covering a well-developed muscle.

Tons of research has proven that higher resistance with fewer reps does not produce “bulk” and actually burns more calories and boosts metabolism more than lower resistance with higher reps. In a New York Times article, science writer Anahad O’Connor analyzed the data and concluded that producing bulky muscles requires exceptionally high calorie consumption, much over 2000 a day. So it seems it always comes down to diet. High calorie intake = bulk.

In my personal experience, I have found that using heavier hand weights or bands in class builds more lean muscle and boosts my metabolism so that my body is continuing to burn calories long after I work out. My heart rate is also increased with heavier weights along with HSM’s complex movement so that I’m getting enough cardio within the hour. Efficiency is key. Seriously, who has time to workout more than an hour a day?! We get it done at HSM safely and efficiently with a challenging series of upper and lower body combinations that keeps the body working to its edge and producing long lean physiques!