By CELESTE VILLANI
South Australian women are shunning the stick-thin ?ideal body? and are instead following intense exercise and nutrition plans to build toned and muscular physiques.
These plans, offered by many gyms and fitness groups across Adelaide, give women the opportunity to meet with professional trainers who devise nutrition and exercise regimes specifically tailored to their body?s needs.
Award winning fitness model and member of women?s fitness support group ?Muscle Sorority?, Simone Versace, embarked on her health and fitness journey about four months ago and has since undergone a complete body transformation.
The once petite 22-year-old says she has never aspired to look like a stick-thin model and is no longer fazed by people who tell her she looks too muscular.
?I couldn?t care less if some people find my physique too muscular because I wake up every morning feeling amazing ?and knowing that I love my body.
?I?ve never felt healthier and I?ve never been happier [and that?s all that matters to me],? Simone explained.
To achieve her successful body transformation, Simone?s coach, Grace Tohl, created an exercise and nutrition program directly related to her health and fitness goals.
Rather than eating three large meals each day, she now eats six small meals, each incorporating some form of protein to assist muscle growth.
?You can still eat the foods you love, it?s simply about knowing the ratio of macronutrients, the energy from fats, protein and carbohydrates, you should be having per meal and controlling your portion sizes,? Simone said.
Exercise, especially weights training, is another element that saw Simone transform her body into that of a fitness model.
Simone says that when Grace told her the benefits of weights training, her outlook on exercise completely changed.
?She said that the higher level of muscle mass one has, the faster your metabolism [and therefore, the more fat your burn].
?So once you have that high level of muscle mass, the need to do gruelling cardio sessions are almost mute [sic].
?I remember her saying, ?It?s so simple, I don?t know why more girls do it?,? Simone said.
Lecturer of sport and exercise psychology at the University of South Australia, Dr Amber Mosewich, says that training programs, like ?Muscle Sorority?, can help women develop ?drives for muscularity.?
In her research titled Men?s and women?s drive for muscularity: Gender differences and cognitive and behavioural correlates, Dr Mosewich found that women identified muscularity as an important element of their personal physique.
She says that there is sufficient academic research to suggest that many women are concerned about their own muscularity and will use programs, like ?Muscle Sorority?, to achieve a leaned and toned appearance.
?We are seeing this shift in body ideal?and research has shown that women too have a drive for muscularity- a trait that was typically attributed to men.
?Women are now just as concerned?and many strive to have lean and toned bodies, as opposed to just being very, very thin,? Dr Mosewich said.
However, Dr Mosewich also explains that sometimes there is too much of a good thing and women need to ensure they do not become too infatuated by their desire to build muscle.
Fitness obsessions can cause individuals to become obsessive and compulsive about their fitness schedules and some will even develop more serious psychological disorders.
?There can be a point where striving for muscle, fitness and things that are perceived as ?healthy and active? can become a bit too much, whether this be in a psychological or physical respect.
?Psychologically, some people feel like they are never toned enough and physically, some people believe they are not living up to exercise expectations, some will even push through injury.
?We need to consider the point when exercise endeavours become detrimental and know when we are crossing that line,? Dr Mosewich said.
Simone will compete in the Fitness Model Under 30 Section of the Adelaide Muscle Fitness Mania competition on Sunday 2 June at the Norwood Town Hall.
Tags: Adelaide Fitness Mania competition, Fitness, fitness models, muscle, tonedSource: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=4876
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