Will Lifting Weights Make My Breasts Lift?

Will Lifting Weights Make My Breasts Lift?
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The female breasts are made up of primarily fat and connective tissue, and they can begin to sag because of a variety of issues. While lifting weights may make somewhat of an impact on your chest area, it will not cause sagging breasts to lift. Instead, efforts should be made toward decreasing body fat and developing the chest muscles.

Causes

The impact of gravity over time can cause the breasts to droop. According to MayoClinic.com, younger females typically have denser, less fatty breasts than post-menopausal women because of hormonal differences. Women who have larger breasts may suffer from sagging after pregnancy because of the stretching of ligaments that occurs when the breasts are full. Smoking, which increases skin elasticity, can also contribute to sagging breasts.

Fat Vs. Muscle

Fat tissue is completely independent of muscle. Breasts consist mostly of fat, and your chest muscles lie between the breasts and your rib cage. Lifting weights will only develop muscle. No amount of pushups or chest presses will have any impact on the amount of fat in your breasts or on lifting up any sagginess. To lose fat in your breasts, you should work to decrease overall body fat composition by creating a caloric deficit. As you decrease your body fat, you will see decreases throughout your entire body, including your breasts.

Considerations

While it won't make an impact on the lifting of your breasts, building your chest muscles with weight lifting can cause your chest to protrude slightly more. The chest muscles, which consist of the pectoralis major and minor, lie underneath your breasts and will increase in size with consistent weight training. To build your chest muscles, you need to follow a muscle building program.

Building Chest Muscles

To build the chest muscles, lift weights three days per week with a day of rest in between each session. Each workout should consist of pushups, chest press and the chest fly. Complete each exercise for three sets of six to 12 repetitions. For pushups, place your hands slightly outside your shoulders with your fingers pointed straight ahead. Lift up onto your hands and toes and keep your torso in a straight line. Bend your elbows and lower your chest down toward the floor until your elbows are slightly past 90 degrees, then return to the top. For the chest press, hold a dumbbell in each hand and lie on your back on a bench. Hold the dumbbells at your chest level. Push them up toward the ceiling and, as your elbows reach full extension, bring the dumbbells in close to meet at the top. For the chest fly, lie on your back on a bench with a set of dumbbells. Hold them up toward the ceiling with your palms facing each other. Keep your elbow straight and open your shoulders as if you were moving to hug someone.

References

Article reviewed by Alan Craig Last updated on: May 26, 2011

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