WEIGHT TRAINING 101

Why Strength Train/Weight Train?
To lose fat and really change your physique, you must be willing to begin a strength training program along with proper diet and cardio training. Think of losing fat like a three-legged stool, you take one leg away and the whole thing falls down. Most women ignore the strength training leg of the stool and lose their weight slowly, find they have to starve to get past plateaus, and end up with a flabby, loose body at their goal weight.

By incorporating a solid strength schedule into your weekly plan, you will increase your metabolism, sculpt lean muscle, and burn through fat faster than your cardio-queen counterparts.

Getting Started
Before you do anything, be sure to

1. Speak with a physician before starting any exercise program.
2. Choose a PNP exercise schedule that is right for your fitness level, knowledge level, and goals. You can always advance to another week or program if you start too easy.
3. Ask questions regarding which program is best for you in the forums if you are unsure where to begin. The Beginner Forum is a great place to get help choosing the right schedule for your needs.
4. Start out SLOW. Think about your technique and form only for the first two weeks. You want to learn to do it right straight from day one.

Basic Lifting Information
 

Overload. To build muscle you must use enough weight to fatigue your muscles while maintaining good form. You want to always use enough weight during your sets to reach fatigue by the last repetition (rep) of your set WHILE MAINTAINING GOOD FORM. If you need to compromise your form you need to lower your starting weight or skip the reps that are not of good quality. Poor form to eek out some extra reps is a way to injure yourself.

Progression. By using the PNP Exercise Schedules, progression is built into your program. By changing the reps, weight, or exercises on a frequent basis you consistently challenge the body to grow and develop. Progression is important in cardio training, too. Your body works hard to adapt to the demands you place on it so you must constantly challenge it with frequent changes.

Specificity. Your exercise program should be focused on your goals. If you want lose fat, you want higher intensity cardio and circuit style programs. The same applies if you are training for a race or event. If your schedule demands lots of cardio training, running a marathon for example, you want a lighter strength schedule to support your running. 

Rest and Recovery. This is just as important as the exercises. Rest is when your body repairs the muscles you work hard to breakdown all week long. You want to be sure you do not work the same two muscle groups two days in a row. Schedules are designed to avoid this, but if you make changes to your workout be sure that you always work a different muscle group the following day, do cardio only, or take a rest day.

Before Starting Your Routine

1. Always do a warm-up for five to ten minutes of walking or other cardio before beginning any session. This sends blood to the working muscles and prepares you mentally for the task at hand.
2. Lift and lower weights for a count of two: Up for two seconds and down for two seconds unless otherwise indicated. You get more benefit when you control the weights versus swinging the weights around.
3. Always breathe while lifting. You should breathe out on the exertion of a move and breathe in during the easier portion of the move.
4. Pay attention to your posture. Maintain form at all times keeping your body movements focused and targeted. If you lose your posture you are lifting too heavy or you doing too many reps.
5. Layout all of your equipment. Before starting, review your schedule and gather the materials you need: water, mat, towel, appropriate weights, and station yourself in a place that is easy to move to any machines or equipment you need.
6. Use headphones if you need to lessen your distractions. Your workout is your time and should be void of chatting and banter with the gym buds.

How Much Weight Do I Use?
The best way to find an appropriate beginning weight is to guess by going too light and slowly increasing the weight to find the right level.

1. Pick up a light weight and do set one, aiming for about 10 to 16 repetitions.
2. For set 2, increase your weight by 5 or more pounds and perform your goal number of repetitions. If you can do more than your desired number of reps, heavy up again for your 3rd set.
3. In general, you should be lifting enough weight that you can ONLY do the desired reps. You should be struggling by the last rep, but still able to finish it with good form.
4. It may take awhile to find the right amount of weight for each exercise.
5. In general, you can use heavier weights with larger muscle groups such as chest, back and legs. You'll need smaller weights for the shoulders and arms.

Rest and Recovery
Your muscles need rest in order to repair and burn fat. Without proper rest you will injure yourself and experience limited or negative gains. The rule of thumb is to rest a body part 48 hours before working it again. For example, if you do an upper body workout on Monday, do not do it again until at least Wednesday. Most cardio can be done daily without worry.

Home or Gym?
You can get a good workout regardless of where you exercise. Gyms offer classes, machines, and unlimited resources that do give you more flexibility. Homes offer convenience, cost savings, and less social pressure.

If you choose the gym, your workout schedules will include machine and dumbbell exercises. Home workouts require some equipment. At minimum you will need:

Resistance Bands. These are inexpensive and are great for beginners to use. You can also get a good workout in while you travel by using bands.

Dumbbells. Begin with 5, 8, and 10 pound dumbbells to start.

Step Bench. This is an excellent tool for you to use for your weights and some cardio options.

Stability Ball. You can use a Stability Ball for your abs, legs, and as an unstable support to challenge your core during your strength training.

Gym Safety!
Before you start any exercise training program, you should always have a physical check-up with your doctor. You also may need to modify some programs if you have muscular or joint problems, seizure disorders, heart disease, high blood pressure, previous injuries, or any other physical condition with potential for danger. Remember, you exercise at your own risk.

Always begin any exercise with a gentle warm-up like slow walking for five to ten minutes. Conclude your exercise sessions with stretches and cool-down cardio...again walking is a great choice. By warming up and cooling down you lessen your risk of injury due to cold muscles are stopping suddenly.

When exercising, be sure to study your exercise directories to understand the proper forms and techniques. Use slow and controlled movements and go through the full range of motions.

When starting with weights, start with light weights. It's best to start with light weights to figure out how to do the moves. Each week you can add more weight until your technique and your strength mesh.

Proper breathing is key when lifting. Never hold your breath when exercising. You run the risk of raising your blood pressure and starving your brain of oxygen. Exhale on the positive portion of the move, or the main exertion, and inhale on the negative portion of the move, or the resist and come back portion of the move. If you have a tough time with that, just remember to keep breathing and don't hold your breath.

Don't leave equipment lying around. If you use it, put it back. Some gyms ask you wipe down machines when finished. Be careful and if you need help with a piece of equipment, ask the staff. That's what you pay membership for.

Technique
Technique is so important to building muscle and getting shapely definition. When someone starts to build muscles, it is important to keep proper form so that tissues move in the right direction and grow correctly. Use the following pointers to safely and properly learn how to do your exercises:

• Start with a lower weight and make sure that the form is perfect. Progressively increase the weight until you can still press the weight without cheating. Jerking the weight will only result in potential injuries and bad muscle formation.
• When completing your reps, don't cheat on the last one or two by using momentum or bending your body in a strange way. It is better to stop the reps or reduce your weight than to cheat by using poor form.
• Learning how to perform the exercise is a prerequisite. Strive to become a technical perfectionist and respect the basic motion of each body part. No twisting, turning or contorting should result when pushing or pulling weight. Concentrate on the movement and feel the muscle working. If you're distracted, preoccupied or nonchalant when working out, you're inviting injury and poor results. Use your exercise directory or ask Corinne for more instruction if you are unsure about how to do any exercise.
• Use a mirror as often as possible. Many bodybuilders and exercise enthusiasts use a mirror to gauge their technique and form...not just to admire themselves lovingly in the mirror. The mirror is like any other tool in the gym so use it!

Finding the Right Intensity...

http://phit-n-phat.com/blogs/phit-n-phat/archive/2008/01/29/more-workout-intensity-talk-making-ugly-faces.aspx