Key Structural Differences Between Men and Women

Given the same goal, should men and women exercise the same way? Or are there some fundamental differences between the two that need to be addressed? While some uneducated punks (unfortunately, that also includes probably over 80% of personal trainers) will tell you “there are no differences. Men and women should train the same”, that’s just not true.

There are certain differences between men and women, that smart, savvy personal trainers, and trainees themselves should address in the training.

I wanted to write about both the biomechanical and the biochemical differences between men and women, but the article turned out to be too long, so I split it up into two.

So in this article, you will learn:

• The 3 key biomechanical differences between men and women
• How those differences affect exercise

And in a few weeks, you’ll get the second part: biochemical differences between men and women.

BIOMECHANICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN

Difference #1: Pelvis Width

One of the most obvious differences between men and women is that women have a wider pelvis. Of course, the legs originate from the pelvis, but because the pelvis is wider, the thigh bones (femurs) go down at a steeper angle than they do in men (for the geeks, this angle is called the “Q angle” or “quadriceps angle”).