Back again with…ANOTHA ONE (DJ Khaled voice)
You know the drill, let’s get straight to the point.
Strength training aka weightlifting aka resistance training has been around for years and years. There is a plethora of benefits for lifting weights and highly recommended when starting your fitness journey.
But why is it important?
I always tell people, “You want to lose weight, you have to build muscle.”
Muscle burns fat.
The one way to build muscle is to strength train. Strength training is also a key factor to overall health and fitness. But…if you want to lose weight, you will have to pick up some weights and get to it. Overall, I think we all know the benefits of lifting weights, but if not, here are a few; increased muscle mass, stronger bones, improved heart health, etc.
One of the biggest fitness myths around strength training is that it makes you “bulky”, especially with women. This is not true at all! For women, there isn’t enough testosterone in your body to produce the ability to make your muscles “bulky”. It’ll take pills, steroids, and a lot of food to make that happen, just ask some body builders. Even for men, you will only get big muscles if you are eating heavy and lifting heavy, and your focus is to be “buff”.
Muscle burns fat.
Don’t be afraid to pick up some weights, especially early on in your fitness journey. I know if you are someone that is just starting out, it may be hard to go straight to weightlifting because you aren’t sure how or what to do. That’s OK. You can lose weight just by getting up and moving each day, which consist of walking, running and other cardio moves. BUT to truly get the results you want and have more sustainable progress; strength training is the way to go! I would do research, use YouTube and other social media platforms, and reach out to a personal trainer (like myself 😊) for help. Be careful with some of the things you see on social media and some of the “fitness influencers” that post things. Most of them don’t care about your goals. They will have you doing workouts that make no sense and just want clicks and your money.
That is one of the reasons why I want to right these articles and want to help people. I feel social media trainers are ruining the training experience and suck as people. They don’t care about the person reaching out for help. Hopefully these blogs help you and if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me!
Ok, now back to it, I digress…
So, I outlined “WHY” strength training is important, and in summary, ill say it again, MUSCLE BURNS FAT.
Now let’s talk about how many days a week you should lift weights.
You may see all over social media different workout splits that people use. They range from 1 day a week to 7 days a week. For someone just starting out with their journey, the best method is to do 2-3 times a week with strength training. If you are a beginner, don’t let anyone tell you that you need 5-7 days a week. That is too much for someone just starting, and you will fail right away. 5-7 days a week are really for people who have been working out for a while, want to switch up the routine, and have specific goals.
2-3 times a week is a great way to start, and even if you are an expert, it’s still a great routine to do.
Workout Time
Now let’s talk about time. You don’t need hours and hours of working out, especially if you are short on time. 20-45 minutes is perfect and more than enough time to have an effective workout. You can see major improvement in your strength and results with just two or three 20- or 30-minute strength training sessions a week. I’ll say it again, you don’t need to spend 2 hours in the gym.
Workout Splits
With a 2-3 day a week workout plan, these can be many different splits. For 2 days a week, a great split is Full Body workouts for both days. You could do 1 lower and 1 upper, but I recommend doing Full body for both days. For a 3-day split, you can do either full body workouts for all 3 days, or you can do 1 lower, 1 upper and 1 full body. Both splits are effective, but my favorite is lower, upper and full body splits.
Routine
For beginners, doing a full body workout will consist of doing an exercise for each muscle and breaking it up between the days. Each exercise you should be doing at least 8-12 reps with 1-2 sets. Do some research and checkout resources like YouTube, fitness apps and Instagram. But be careful, because like I said, some of these fitness trainers/influencers will have you doing exercise moves that don’t make sense. The best thing you can do is research different trainers in your area and ask them questions. Or reach out to me for your fitness questions!
Picking Your Weights
Finding the right weight for you is key when starting. You don’t want to go heavy right away because that will cause injury to your body and muscles. You also don’t want to go too light. So how do you find that happy medium. Choose a weight where you can do 80-90% of the reps and the last 10-20% will be somewhat difficult for you. For example, if you need to do 10 reps, pick a weight where the first 7-8 reps are manageable and the last few you have a difficult time completing.
In summary, MUSCLE BURNS FAT…. I’ll say it again…MUSCLE. BURNS. FAT.
Don’t be afraid to pick up some weights. The fitness myth of getting “bulky” when weightlifting is FALSE!
Here is a gift for you!
Here is a FREE 1-week workout plan for you!
All fitness levels.
2-day full body workout split.
Day 1
Workout | Sets x Reps | Notes |
Barbell or Dumbbell (DB) Squats | 3 x 8 | For modification: use body weight and less Range of Motion (ROM). If using weights and need modification: Just use less ROM and lessen the weight. Rest Period: 90 – 120 seconds after each set |
Romanian Deadlift | 3 x 8 | Slow and control Rest Period: 90 – 120 seconds after each set |
Superset 1: DB Curl to Press DB Tricep Kickbacks | 3 x 10 3 x 12 | Superset: Do first exercise and then go into next exercise with 5-10 second rest. Bent over Row: Use DBs Rest Period: 60 seconds after each set |
Superset 2: Pushups Plank | 3 x 10 3 x 30 seconds | Modification: Pushups – use knees or wall pushups. Or incline pushups on bar or bench Rest Period: 60 seconds after each set |
Day 2
Workout | Sets x Reps | Notes |
Dumbbell Thrusters | 3 x 10 | Rest Period: 90 – 120 seconds after each set |
Barbell or DB Hip Thrust | 3 x 10 w/pause at top | Use bench – for mods: do glute bridge from the floor Rest Period: 90 – 120 seconds after each set |
Superset 1: Reverse Lunge to Curl DB Row | 3 x 8/leg 3 x 10/arm | For Mod: Limit ROM DB Row: Use Bench Rest Period: 60 seconds after each set |
Superset 1 Bench Dips Dead Bugs | 3x12 3x10/leg | Rest Period: 60 seconds after each set Modification: Heel to floor |
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