The Definitive Guide to Weight Lifting

What is Weight Lifting? Lifting barbells or dumbbells with the goal of increasing your strength and/or muscle size. Weight lifting can take several forms:

• Weightlifting Sport. The sport of Weightlifting is part of the Olympic Games. It consists of 2 lifts: the Snatch and the Clean & Jerk. The goal is to lift more weight than competitors in the same weight class.
• Strength Training. Lifting weights to increase your physical strength. More muscle & a lower body fat are byproducts of strength training.
• Bodybuilding. Weight lifting with the goal of increasing your muscle mass. Strength increases too, but isn't the primary goal.

Benefits of Weight Lifting. Lifting weights has several advantages over machines & body-weight exercises.

• Accessible. Pull-ups & Dips force you to lift your own body-weight. Weight lifting is easier: start with an empty bar, increase the weight by 2.5kg/5lbs each workout. You'll get stronger as the weight increases.
• Versatile. You can do plenty of exercises with only one barbell. No need for expensive machines.
• Builds Strength. You get stronger as the weight on the bar increases. Weight lifting also teaches you to balance the weight.
• Builds Muscle. The stronger you become, the more muscles you’ll have. Your muscle mass increases as the weight on the bar gets heavier.
• Burns Fat. Muscle burn calories. The more muscles you build, the more calories you’ll burn. Your body fat will decrease.
• Increases Health. Increased testosterone levels, increased flexibility, increased cardiovascular fitness, stronger joints, etc.
• Safe. Weight lifting is the safest sports. Machines are not safe: they force you into a fixed, unnatural movement pattern. Couple that with heavy weights & you risk injuries.

Weight Lifting Safety. Weight Lifting is the safest sport. Unlike soccer, rugby or football, no one will get you injured. You'll injure yourself. Statistics from Sports Injury Rates (Hamill 1994)

Injuries in weight lifting happen for 3 reasons:

• Bad Technique. Learn how to do the exercises correctly before adding weight. Start with an empty barbell & add weight gradually.
• Pre-existent Problems. Lack of flexibility & bad posture can prevent proper technique. Past injuries can rise up if not treaten correctly.
• Ego. Correct technique is hard to maintain with heavier weights. Learn correct exercise technique first, then add weight.

Weight Lifting. Image credit: Dehwang

Weight Lifting Exercises. Barbells are versatile: plenty of exercises you can do with 1 barbell. Most exercises can be done with dumbbells too. Here's a non definite list of weight lifting exercises:

• Squat. Should be part of any routine. Squats work your legs, but also the rest of your body. They are key to building strength & muscle.
• Front Squats. Variation of the Squat. Front Squats start with the bar on the front shoulders instead of on the back.
• Bench Press. The most popular exercise in the gym. The Bench Pressworks your chest & triceps muscles.
• Overhead Press. Push weight overhead while standing. The Overhead Press works your shoulders, triceps, back & abs.
• Deadlift. Besides working the legs, the Deadlift builds a strong back by teaching you to keep your spine rigid against a load.
• Barbell Row. Pulling weight from the floor against your lower chest. The Barbell Row works your back & biceps.
• Pendlay Row. Variation of the Barbell Row. Pendlay Row involve arching of the upper-back on the way up.
• Power Clean. Olympic Lift. The Power Clean is done by cleaning the barbell from the floor & putting it on your front shoulders.
• Jerk. Olympic Lift. The Jerk is done by lifting the weight from the front shoulders overhead while dipping under the weight.

Weight Lifting Equipment. Gyms like Fitness First don’t have the equipment you need for weight lifting. Build a home gym if you don't have access to:

• Barbells. Olympic barbells are 2m20 long, weigh 20kg, have knurling & 50mm sleeves. Barbells of 15kg exist for women with smaller hands.
• Dumbbells. Dumbbells with steel handles & knurling work best. Stay away from dumbbells with plastic handles.
• Plates. Plates have 50mm holes to fit the bar. Metric plates are 1.25, 2.5, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 & even 45kg. Smaller plates of 0.5kg exist.
• Squat Rack. Power Cage or Squat Rack or Squat Stands. Facilitate getting the barbell into proper position for the Squat & Front Squat.
• Bench. Necessary for the Bench Press. Standard upright support bench or one you can use in the Power Cage.

Weight Lifting Apparel. You don't need fancy stuff for weight lifting. Only a good pair of shoes, cotton t-shirt, stretchy pants & a notebook.

• No Gloves. Let grow calluses. Once you have calluses your hands won't hurt anymore. If grip is a problem use chalk.
• No Belts. Only useful for maximal attempts with heavy weights. Belts add abdominal support but are unnecessary for sub-maximal weights.
• Shoes. Running shoes with air/gel filling impair stability & cause power loss. Wear shoes with an incompressible sole, like Chuck Taylor's.
• Clothes. Cotton t-shirts & stretchy pants like gray sweats work best. Clothes can not restrict movement & mess with your technique.
• Training Journal. Necessary to track progress. Get a A4 notebook & start a training journal. Take it with you to the gym.

Getting Started into Weight Lifting. StrongLifts 5x5 is a strength training program that uses barbell exercises. It will help you build strength & muscle while decreasing your body fat.

 

Reference: http://stronglifts.com/weight-lifting-101-the-definitive-guide-to-weight-lifting/

Weightlifting Nutrition Program for Fast Muscle Gain

• Quality eating is crucial part of training
• It is good to have extra supplements part of your weightlifting nutrition program.
• Eat 4-6 times a day
• Many nutritionists recommend one gram of protein and 15 calories for every pound of weight each day when muscle gain is the goal.

I think my weightlifting nutrition program and training plans are really good but why aren't I getting any bigger? I used to wonder that too until I gained 10 pounds in 6 weeks. I always trained hard and drank protein shakes as a part of my weightlifting nutrition program to gain muscle mass but never got really amazing results. Until after I altered my routine. I was able to see big results in a few weeks.

Now I'm going to share one of the secrets that is really critical if you want to build any muscle. So, are you ready to see a sample day from my weightlifting nutrition program and hear how one change in the  nutrition program allowed me to gain 10 pounds of muscle in 6 weeks?

BASICS OF NUTRITION YOU NEED TO KNOW

When you are training to gain muscle, eating is one of the biggest factors. You need to eat at the right times and the right kind of foods. Make sure the food you eat is full of quality nutrition for your muscles to grow.

Now, you might think how much do I need to eat and what? Do I need to use supplements and what kind to get amazing muscle growth? I used to ask the same questions. I will show you one day from my weightlifting nutrition program as an example.

Nowadays every magazine has several supplement ads. All those ads can be confusing and you are not sure which one is right for you. Myself, I use whey protein and maltodextrine which is carbohydrates.

WEIGHTLIFTING NUTRITION PROGRAM

My one day sample

Break fast, 7:30am: 20g protein powder mixed in Oatmeal with berries and one banana.

Breakfast is when you should eat a lot of slow carbohydrates and protein. Your brain needs carbs to function and you’ll have energy for the day. Oatmeal is high in fiber and good for your stomach and metabolism.

Snack, 10am: protein shake (30g protein, 10g carbs) or a sandwich and cottage cheese

A protein shake is really good to have this time of day. Make sure it doesn’t have over 30 grams of carbohydrates because those carbs are sugar. It raises your blood sugar level really high and then it drops fast. That makes you tired.

Lunch, 12 am: Spaghetti with meat or sea food and a big salad

Lunch should be your biggest meal.

Snack, 3pm: Sandwich (2 slices multi grain bread, ham, cheese, fresh spinach and tomato)

Personally, I get really hungry in the afternoon. Sometimes I'm too busy to make food, so I just grab a protein shake.

Optional snack before exercise: Yogurt, toast or banana, milk

Usually, I go to the gym around 6pm so I like to have a light snack an hour before I workout. That gives me extra energy so I can push myself harder.

Protein shake after training: 30g protein, 30-50g carbs

I drink my shake right after my workout. This is most beneficial since it is the recovery time. (To replace a protein shake you can eat a banana and drink chocolate milk.)

Supper, 8pm or after exercise: Chicken breast, potato, salad and cottage cheese or lunch left over

Supper should be a big meal since it is still recovery time. 1-2 hours after training is a good time to eat.

Night time snack: Protein shake (30 grams) or omelet

This varies from day to day depending on what time I train.

Drinks during the day a lot of water

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING ABOUT DIET FOR MUSCLE GAIN

Now you have seen my one day meal plan from my weightlifting nutrition program. I try to get one gram of protein and 15 calories for every pound of weight each day. That is the most important guideline to follow when building size because protein is the major nutrition which builds muscle and you need carbs for fuel to train hard. I couldn't do that without extra supplements.

Reference: http://www.athleticforce.com/weightlifting_nutrition_program.htm

Avoid these weightlifting mistakes

Looking out for these warning signs in your weights workout will lead to impressive results.

Lack of concentration
It's easy to let your mind wander when you are resting after a hard set. But relaxing for too long will see you lose your mental focus and let your muscles go off the boil, compromising your efforts to achieve muscle exhaustion.

Get it right: 'It's very important to time your rest periods with a stopwatch,' says Tom Crudgington, director of the Body Development Strength And Performance Centre. 'Aim to rest for 60-90 seconds, depending on the type of exercise.' Single-joint moves such as biceps curls require less time for recovery, while big whole-body moves such as deadlifts take longer.

Always doing the same
Grabbing the same set of dumb-bells each workout means that your programme is standing still. Eventually you'll lose ground and become less strong because you're always inside your comfort zone.

Get it right: 'Master the movement first to avoid muscle and ligament damage - for instance, do squats with an unloaded bar to learn the exercise and increase flexibility,' says James Wild of fitness company Premier Training. 'Then work up to lifting a bigger weight with an increased range of movement.' For muscle growth, you should work your way up to lifting 70 per cent of your one-rep maximum in a set.

Wrong warm-up
Jumping on the treadmill for a ten-minute blast before you hit the weights room might sound like an easy one-stop warm-up, but at best it's an inefficient way to heat up your core and at worst it leaves key muscles unprepared for action.

Get it right: 'Spending four to five minutes on a treadmill or rower to bring up your core temperature is OK, as long as you then warm up specific muscles by lifting a light load for warm-up sets of the exercises that you're actually about to do,' says Crudgington. 'This will help you to avoid injury and achieve the full range of motion.'

Machine obsession
Machines are useful for those new to lifting or returning from injury because their control lets you exercise safely. But spending too long on them will hold you back.

Get it right: 'There's a point on the machine's pulley where it takes over from you, so that you're not working 100 per cent of the muscle 100 per cent of the time,' says Lee Archer, director of Pro Fitness gym. 'Using free weights such as dumb-bells will keep both sides of your body under constant tension to develop your joint stabilisers and bigger muscles evenly.'

Doing too much
Extra workouts or 30 minutes longer in the gym 'just to make sure' won't make you stronger, fitter or leaner. Exercise breaks you down then builds you back up, so overdoing it puts your health and your fitness at risk.

Get it right: 'You get stronger while you're resting rather than when you're working out, so you need to allow time for repair,' says Wild. 'These days, we suggest that 45 minutes per workout is optimal for resistance training and the maximum is one hour.' Leave 48 hours between heavy workouts and every four to six weeks, have a "reduced training week" in which you cut the volume of your workouts by 50 per cent.'

Overdoing the crunches
Squeezing out hundreds of abs crunches won't get you a six-pack, and is more likely to give you neck or back problems than chiselled abs. Apart from that, crunches work the abs from only one angle and they won't burn fat.

Get it right: 'The abs are mostly made up of fast-twitch muscle fibres, so they need to be trained with added weight to make them grow,' says Wild. 'Doing exercises such as deadlifts, squats and multi-directional exercises on two feet activates your abdominals and core as much as a crunch.'

Too much standing around
We know queuing is the quintessential British pastime, but joining the line for the most popular weight station in the gym does more than rob you of time. It allows your muscles to cool, as well as eroding your focus, therefore making the exercise you're about to do an injury minefield.

Get it right: 'Always have alternative exercises in mind so that you can choose a different bit of equipment to achieve the same effect,' says Wild. For instance, a gym ball makes a good replacement bench while dumb-bells can safely stand in for a barbell.

Incorrect form
Pushing your head forwards, wobbling unsteadily from side to side, and lifting your feet off the floor to finish a rep all increase your risk of tearing something or you suffering long-term posture problems.

Get it right: 'You may not have the postural strength to hold a good position in bent-over rows and other exercises, especially if you're sitting behind a desk all day,' says Wild. 'Don't try to lift too much too early. If you work on getting your form right, you'll be able to lift more in the long run and avoid injury.'

Not getting off your arse
Sitting down to do a single-joint isolation exercise sometimes helps you to maximise the weight you're lifting. But if you do it all the time you're actually missing out on a chance to train your core and lower body to stabilise your torso, which is vital for bigger whole-body moves such as the clean and press.

Get it right: 'When you stand up to do exercises such as lateral raises or biceps curls, stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your knees slightly bent,' says Archer. 'If your feet are too far apart you can't bend your knees and when the exercise gets hard you'll lean back and sway your hips, which will increase the risk of straining your lower back.'

Rushing your workout
Flying through your sets in double-quick time may make you feel like Superman, but if you're lifting for muscle growth you're not saving time - you're wasting it.

Get it right: 'Sets need to last between 40 and 70 seconds for muscle growth,' says Crudgington. 'Using a repetition tempo of lifting for one second, lowering for three seconds, pausing for one second at the bottom and doing at least eight reps will easily help you achieve this.'

Reference: http://www.mensfitness.co.uk/exercise/exercise_tips/2142/perfect_your_weights_workout_to_build_muscle.html