The Cat & Mouse Fight

Women Show Greater Aerobic Fitness Ability than Men

Women are weaker of the two sexes-this feeling has been instilled among women since ages and ages by our forefathers and fathers. Society too treats a man with more respect than a woman as he is proudly called the ‘head of the family’. But now, women are breaking all barriers and setting their successful footsteps onto all domains-we have the first Indian woman pilot, Ms. Avani Chaturvedi flying the fighter jet to Dr. Soumya Swaminathan who is the deputy director general of the World Health Organization (WHO), the highest post held by an India in the WHO.
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All these bring about a new question-who really is the weaker sex? Science and logic are fervently working together to produce a clearer picture on a woman’s physical fitness levels on all fields, especially in ones that require greater physical stamina as in athletic training. A new study suggests that when it comes to getting fitter and maintaining it, women have an aerobic edge over men. Though a small study, it compared the oxygen uptake of 18 young men and women while they worked out on a treadmill. An important criterion that determines aerobic fitness is oxygen uptake. Results proved that women consistently processed oxygen about 30% faster than men which is contradicting the common belief that men have a stronger and more naturally athletic body. One researcher involved in the small study exclaimed that a woman’s muscles extract oxygen from the blood faster and this indicates a much more powerful aerobic system. One point to note is that, all participants in the study were around the same age, fitness level, weight and highly active people.

While men may have higher fitness peaks than women, the study clearly shows that women show clearly more aerobic fitness ability than men at the same level. The reason for this faster oxygen uptake is not clear, but one thing is-the way we differentiate women and the way in which we approach assessment and training might all change forever in a few years’ time.

Be it a man or a woman, the ability to perform, to process and prove results matter more than anything- be it the person’s sex, caste, creed, height or weight! If you are a sports person or someone looking to enhance your athletic performance with a healthy diet plan and physical activity, you can get in touch with acclaimed registered dietitian nutritionists at www.firsteatright.com.