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Closing the Gender Gap at Work

More and more, women are doing physically demanding jobs typically held by men. But women don't normally have the same muscle mass or strength as men, so how can they do these demanding jobs safely? To help answer this question, researchers compared the effects of resistance training on women's muscle performance and their ability to do typical on-the-job tasks.

Untrained women in their early to mid-twenties were placed in one of several six-month training groups. The main comparison was between aerobic forms of training (running, stretching, and light strengthening), field training with bounding and jumping drills, and resistance exercise (weight lifting).

Participants in the resistance-exercise groups worked either their upper body or total body, and they either did heavy and explosive lifts or lifted lighter loads slowly with more repetitions. At zero, three, and six months, performance measures were taken including lifting, running, high pulls, and bench press. These measures were also compared with the performance of untrained men.

All forms of exercise yielded improvements. Upper body resistance training greatly improved the ability of the women to do tasks requiring upper body strength. Field training improved performance moderately, though these gains leveled off at three months. Aerobic training improved distance running and the ability to do general physical tasks, such as lifting a box.

Remarkably, resistance training improved nearly every aspect of physical performance, including day-to-day tasks that require extra strength. This form of training effectively closed the gender gap by reducing the differences in physical abilities between men and women.

How can women keep up in physically demanding jobs? They'll benefit by taking part in resistance training programs that match the physical demands of their jobs.

References: William J. Kraemer, PhD. et al. Effect of Resistance Training on Women's Strength/Power and Occupational Performances. In Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. June 2001. Vol. 33. No. 6. Pp. 1011-1025.

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