Confidence isn’t something you wake up with one day.
It isn’t a personality trait you either have or don’t.
For most women, confidence is built through experiences that prove to us we are capable.
And for me, that confidence was forged under a barbell.
Strength training didn’t just change my body.
It changed the way I saw myself.
It gave me something deeper than aesthetics or achievement.
It gave me ownership.
It gave me voice.
It gave me strength from the inside out.
This is both the science behind why strength training builds confidence… and the story of how it did it for me.
My Story: From Self-Doubt to Strength
Growing up, I struggled with self-confidence and self-worth.
I was one of the bigger girls in my class, and I learned early that my body was something to be judged, not celebrated.
When I was only 11 years old, my dad asked me:
“When was the last time you went to the gym?”
That moment hit like a blow.
It was the kind of question an 11-year-old should never have to carry.
And while the deeper wounds went beyond that one comment, I internalized a message that stayed with me for years:
If I could just change myself enough… maybe I could finally be worthy.
I became determined to “win” affection.
To prove my value.
To earn love through achievement.
That pressure only compounded as I got older.
In high school, I remember begging my dad to show up for my last JV basketball game.
I knew it would be my last game ever.
I wanted him there, just once.
He finally “gave in,” as if it were an inconvenience.
And I remember realizing, even then, how deeply I wanted to matter.
When Health Became About More Than Approval
It wasn’t until college that I began to care about my health in a different way.
Some sorority sisters encouraged me to run a half-marathon with them, and I did.
For the first time, movement wasn’t about shrinking.
It was about doing something hard.
But after college, that community faded.
The accountability disappeared.
And I felt that familiar loneliness again.
Then I started lifting with my fiancé.
I enjoyed it, but something was still missing.
I didn’t just want workouts.
I wanted belonging.
The Moment Strength Training Changed Everything
My local YMCA offered an intro CrossFit class, and that’s where my strength journey truly began.
And something unexpected happened:
I found out I was good at something.
I was strong.
I could move weight fast.
I could push.
I could endure.
And over time, the scale mattered less.
I stopped obsessing over taking up less space…
…and started becoming proud of what my body could do.
For the first time, confidence wasn’t something I was chasing.
It was something I was building.
Rep by rep.
Lift by lift.
The Science: Why Strength Training Builds Confidence
What I experienced personally is also backed by research.
Strength training builds confidence because it changes both your brain and your identity.
Here’s how:
1. Strength Training Increases Self-Efficacy
Self-efficacy is the belief that you can do hard things.
And nothing builds that faster than watching yourself progress.
When you lift a weight you didn’t think you could…
Your brain learns:
I am capable.
That belief spills into every part of life.
2. Resistance Training Reduces Anxiety and Depression
Studies show strength training can significantly improve mental health by reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression.
Movement is medicine. Not because it fixes everything, but because it reminds your body that you are not powerless.
3. Strength Training Improves Body Image
Confidence doesn’t come from loving how you look every day.
It comes from respecting what your body can do.
Strength shifts the focus from appearance to ability.
4. Strength Builds Resilience Through Stress Adaptation
Lifting weights teaches your nervous system how to tolerate stress and recover.
You learn:
This is hard… and I can handle it.
That’s resilience.
5. Strength Training Helps Women Take Up Space
Historically and culturally, women have been taught that smaller = better.
But strength training flips that script.
It teaches women:
You were never meant to disappear.
You were meant to be powerful.
Confidence Is Built in the Doing
Confidence isn’t built by waiting until you feel ready.
It’s built when you do something you didn’t think you could.
That’s what lifting gave me.
And now, nearly 15 years later, it’s what I help other women find.
Not just physical strength…
But confidence.
Voice.
Presence.
A sense of identity rooted in something deeper than approval.
We are not made to look the same.
We are uniquely created; body, mind, and spirit.
And God doesn’t make mistakes.
The Mission of Refinery Strength Collective
This is why I do what I do.
I coach women to:
- Take up space
- Build strength through life’s transitions
- Use their voice even when it shakes
- Train for longevity, not punishment
- Discover confidence through capability
Strength training is refining.
It transforms more than muscle.
It transforms the way you see yourself.
If You’re Ready to Build Confidence Through Strength…
You don’t need to be confident to start.
You just need to start.
Confidence will come.
One rep at a time.
If you’re a woman in Altoona or eastern Polk County looking for strength training that is supportive, empowering, and rooted in purpose…
I’d love to help you begin.
Sign up for a free consultation or join Refinery Foundations, our free 2-week training program.
You are stronger than you think.
And you were made for more.
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