Women can build muscle without bulking up

If you're a woman who exercises, the fear of bulking up may have crossed your mind. But regardless of what your fitness goals are, muscle can help you get there.

Why women need to build muscle:

Increase strength. Building muscle makes it easier to do everything from carrying groceries to keeping your balance to preventing injury to the joints while running, power walking, or bike riding.

Rev up metabolism. Resting metabolic rate - the amount of calories burned while doing nothing - is determined by lean muscle mass. The more you have, the more you burn. Lean muscle can also help control blood sugar, important for weight maintenance and long-term disease prevention.

Stronger bones. Women reach peak bone mass at age 30, then can lose 3 percent to 5 percent of bone every decade. Just like muscle, bone is living tissue, and it responds well to exercise. Both weight-bearing and muscle-strengthening exercise also help build bone mass, strengthen the joints and connective tissues, and reduce bone deterioration. All of this helps reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis later in life.

How to build muscle:

Lift with intention. Choose challenging weights and use exercises that work multiple muscle groups at once. Focus on short, challenging workouts instead of longer ones. When lifting, reach the point of failure, where the muscle burns and you feel out of breath. Rest muscle groups for up to 48 hours between workouts so they have ample time to repair. This is when they become stronger. Up to a 60-second rest between sets is also important.

Focus. Just going through the motions won't cut it. Contract the muscle, squeezing at the point of contraction, then release with control. Working this way creates micro-tears that, when repaired, result in muscle growth.

Don't fear bulk. Even with heavy weights, women won't bulk up because they produce 20 percent to 30 percent less testosterone than men do. Mix up the movements to build well-rounded muscles.