Weight Training helps to build muscle, tone and strengthen your body. However, for a strength training regimen to be effective, it is important that you understand the basic components to a workout.
Free Weights vs. Machine Weights
Free weights are better for weight training than machine weight exercises. Free weight exercises provide the fastest results because you use more of the muscle you are working as well as other secondary muscles. Further, you will be working three-dimensionally, as compared to two dimensionally with machines, relying on strenght AND balance during the exercise. When you work two-dimensionally, you do not have the added benefit of needing to balance the weight, which will limit the amount of muscles you exercise.
Components of a Strength Training Workout
To strengthen your muscles, you have to put them under a certain amount of stress. To do so, you repeat an exercise a certain number of times, with a certain amount of weight, a certain number of cycles. It is also important that you give your muscles time to rest. To understand more, look at the chart below.
- Repetitions (Reps): The number of times that you perform an exercise. One repetition occurs when you lift a weight up once and bring it back to the starting point. If you perform that same movement a second time, it is your second rep. Most regimens require you do 8 to 15 repetitions.
- 8 – 10 repetitions: Helps build muscle.
- 10 – 12 repetitions: Good for strength building.
- 12 – 15 repetitions: Good for toning muscle. This will help to shape the muscles more than anything.
- Sets: The number of times you complete a collection of repetitions. Each set should end with the muscle reaching ‘failure’ or when you can’t complete another repetition in good form. Most regimens should include 2 to 4 sets of each exercise per workout, with a rest interval between each set. There are different types of super sets. Each one has a different purpose:
- Single Sets: One muscle and one exercise of that muscle at a time. For instance, a set of bicep curls incorporating 8 to 15 repetitions.
- Compound Sets: Combines opposite muscle groups together, back to back, with no rest in between.
- Super Sets: Combination of exercises back to back, with no rest in between. There are two ways of doing this:
- Same Muscle Group (E.g., two types of bicep exercises back to back)
- Opposing Muscle Groups (E.g., a set of a back exercise and then a set of a chest exercise)
- Giant Sets: Groups four exercises together with no rest between. You can either focus on the same muscle group for all four exercises or opposing muscle groups.
- Rest Interval The rest interval refers to the amount of time you rest between sets. Rest intervals can vary between 60 and 90 seconds maximum.
- Weight and Weight Progression When you do an exercise, you use weights to stress the muscle. How much weight you use depends on your level of strength.When choosing the weight you should use for an exercise, consider this:
- I should be heavy enough that it is challenging to lift, but light enough so you can lift it several times (8 to 15)
- Whatever number of times you lift the weight, the last one or two times should be almost too difficult to complete the rep.
- Every time you work out, you want to either do at least one more repetition or use heavier weight than the last time you worked out.
- Variation Varying the exercises you do when you train is important in ensuring that you see continuous gains in strength and muscle tone, and to prevent boredom. Variation can occur in a number of ways:
- Using different techniques to stimulate the muscle
- Changing the number of repetitions and sets
- Changing the exercises you do
- Changing the rest in-between sets
- Changing grips and positioning of your hands during the exercises
- Order of Muscle Groups Whether you work all your muscle groups in one day, or divide them up into sub-groups, it is best to work larger muscle groups before smaller muscle groups. This is because even when you work out the larger muscles, you will be engaging the smaller muscles. If you were to start with the smaller muscles, you would fatigue them, making it difficult to maintain your form and strength for the larger muscles.
Order for Upper Body Exercises: - Back
- Chest
- Shoulders
- Biceps
- Triceps
Order for Lower Body Exercises: - Buttocks
- Quadriceps
- Inner Thighs
- Outer Thighs
- Hamstrings
- Calves
- Tibia
- Frequency and Rest Frequency refers to the number of times in a week that you exercise. You should exercise your muscles ideally, twice a week to ensure you are getting the benefit. Make sure that you rest any muscle that you work, for at least 48 hours (except for the abdominal muscles) before strength training that muscle again.
