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Author of New Rules of Lifting for Women Cassandra Forsythe is blogging about her pregnancy. Her post on her blog at 30 weeks reports that she’s feeling good and strong! In this post, she explains why training relatively intensely is good for you. If you missed Cassandra’s excellent podcast on training and pregnancy (and other woman-related issues), see here.

If there’s a woman in your life who’s considering weight training (or a man in your life who trains women), The New Rules of Lifting for Women is an excellent introduction to the field of women and weight training.

NROL is written by a kickass trifecta of three major names in the business, including women’s nutrition and fitness expert Cassandra Forsythe. I review her book and chat with her for nearly an hour about women’s strength training, working out while pregnant, the dirty little secret of disordered eating in the fitness biz, and lots of other good stuff.

“Having experienced the joys of being pregnant three times over for a total of 839 days (who’s counting), it’s clear just from watching Lauren Brooks’ latest DVD, Baby Bells: Fit Pregnancy Workout With (Optional) Kettlebells that it would have been a great addition to my training regimen as I aimed to stay fit and strong as each of my babies grew…”

Reviewed by guest author Erin Weiss-Trainor

Just as you’ve probably heard all kinds of terms for breasts — jugs, tits, knockers, the girls, funbags, sweater meat — you’ve probably also heard all kinds of horror stories about breasts and exercise. Here’s the truth about breasts and exercise.

Normal female bodily functions have been pathologized as “conditions” or “diseases”, which affects the way we think about them. The truth is, these functions and processes have been around for quite some time and are showing no signs of disappearing. While some, like pregnancy, may require a little extra planning and exercise modification, in general there is no reason whatsoever to believe that weight training and other exercise, done in moderation, are problematic.

Now that women are weight training seriously in ever-greater numbers, it is inevitable that many will become pregnant and worry about how best to adapt their training to its demands. The general good news is that active women with normal, low-risk pregnancies do not have to give up their beloved weight training in order to keep themselves and baby healthy.

Butch up even while ballooning up and throwing up!

No matter how joyful an event it is, in physiological terms the later stages of pregnancy and birth are a trauma to the body. Connective tissues are forced beyond their normal limits, the body’s weight distribution shifts wildly, and delicate parts are damaged. Contemplating a postpartum workout must take into account that the mother, especially if this is her first child, probably feels as if she has just spent thirty hours excreting a watermelon (Krista’s note: I had an expectant first-time mother email me after reading this article to complain about my choice of language.

If you’ve learned anything from this site, it should be that weight training won’t make women into huge muscle-beasts. Why not? It has to do with a little molecule called testosterone. You have it, just not lots of it. Learn more about how it works with guest biochemistress OMGBFFA.

In the words of every sleazy comedian, “Men and women, they’re so different. Back me up on this, ladies.” I’ll spare you the crappy jokes about the toilet seat (hyuk hyuk) whose “Best Before” dates, like the milk in the back of my fridge, have long expired.

Nevertheless if you’ve been paying attention, you may have noticed that boys and girls’ bodies are at least distinguishable from one other. Here are a few tips for accommodating our unique girly shapes.