It's much easier for men to lose fat and keep it off than it is for women.

While some of this challenge is genetic (women require higher fat ratios in their bodies due to their natural role as child bearers), some of this difficulty also results from the fears that women have about how their bodies will look if they train with weights.

In order to lose the fat fast and enjoy a firm, shapely physique, it's imperative that women include a significant amount of intense weight training in their workout routine. Muscle, a metabolically active tissue, actually helps to burn fat.

The more muscle you have on your body, the higher your resting metabolic rate will be and the more calories you will burn even when you are not exercising. Building and maintaining lean muscle is a smart and strategic way to lose the fat fast.

When you incorporate an intense weight lifting and resistance training routine into your exercise plan, you increase the mitochondria in your muscle fibers. Converting nutrients into energy, mitochondria are the "powerhouses" of the muscle cells. Having more mitochondria means you'll be better able to lose the fat fast.

Fears of adding bulk or looking masculine keep many women from trying weight training. In truth, this fear is completely unfounded.

While muscle growth is a slow and gradual process for anyone, female hormones ensure that the process is even slower for women than for men. Even unusually extreme responses to weight training can be noticed in time to modify the training routine and prevent further muscle gain.

Your best choice to lose the fat fast and obtain the most desirable female form is weight training. To lose the fat fast, women must overcome their fear of bulking up and place a higher priority on weight and resistance training.

Weight training helps build and maintain muscle mass and also burns fat on its own as well. Although carbohydrates are the main source of fuel the body uses during a weightlifting session, the intense nature of this training actually ends up "spiking" your metabolism.

This basically means that for as much as 24 hours after you leave the gym, the body burns more calories at rest as it attempts to recover from the training session. This is one more way in which weight training helps you to lose the fat fast.

Sometimes, male and female athletes worry that weight training will interfere with their agility, speed, and flexibility. This is just not true.

In addition to helping you lose the fat fast, weight training improves athletic ability by boosting speed, agility, and flexibility, and protects the body from injury. The lean and muscular physiques of sprinters and football running backs are proof of this rule.

Osteoporosis, a major issue among women as they grow older, can also be prevented through weight training.