Beginner's Fitness Programs

Although your boyfriend may tell you to lift heavy weights to get more muscular and fit, there are many different weight training routines for women to achieve a great result. A recent study conducted at McMaster University confirmed this fact. The study found that it is not the heavy weight, but the level of muscle fatigue is important. You can use a light weight but you need to lift it until you cannot lift it anymore.

Many women say that they are already doing this but they cannot see any results. Do you know why? Yes, they are using lighter weights and performing high repetition workout, but they don’t push far enough to make the muscles to total fatigue level. For example, if you use 3 lb dumbbells to do bicep curls with 20 reps, you do get tired, but your muscles are still not in the state of “total failure.”

Here are a few ways to do weight training to achieve the total failure level.

Method 1:

Three set workout. This is the most commonly used method. You do three sets of the same exercise: one set to warm up, one set to max out, and one set to total burnout. For women, I recommend using 50 – 60 % of the maximum weight you can lift for safety, and aim for a higher number of repetitions. Let’s use the bicep curl as an example. Let’s say you can barely curl a 15lb dumbbell; this means that you want to use 7lb dumbbells for the workout. For the first set, you do 14 reps of bicep curls, and your muscles are really burning. After a 30-second to one minute break (yes, it should be short), you do the second set. Try to get to 14 reps, but probably you won’t get there — if you did, probably you did not push enough at the first set. After another 30-second break, do another set; if your biceps cannot curl more than 5 reps, use the light weight for this set.

Method 2:

One set workout. This one is very hard to do just by yourself, and you need someone to help you. Basically, you totally burn out your muscle in one set. Start by picking up a weight which is 70 – 80% of the maximum weight you can safely lift. Probably you can do 3 – 4 reps of bicep curls with this weight. Then your partner will assist you in lifting the weight to the top position. Probably you can slowly lower the weight for a couple more reps. Then probably you can’t even control the weight-lowering part of the bicep curl. Your partner needs to give you a couple more lifts so that you really burn the muscle.

Method 3:

This is the modification of Method 2. You may be able to do this method without assistance, but you will need to prepare at least dumbbells with three different weights. Start with 70 – 80% of the maximum weight, do the exercise until you cannot lift the dumbbells more than half-way to the top, then pick up a slightly lighter weight immediately and repeat the process. You can do one more of this, or skip to the last one. The last part will be done with a very light weight — you can probably use one pound dumbbells. Do the bicep curls at a faster pace until totally fatigued.

Method 4:

High-repetition, fast-pace training. For this you use lighter weight, probably 30 – 50 % of the maximum. Do the bicep curls as fast as you can until you cannot lift anymore. Then, after a 30-second break, repeat the set, and then do the third. The difference between this and Method 1 is the weight. Some people feel comfortable using the lighter weight, and for them, this method works better than Method 1. Note: This may not be safe for big muscle groups, if you don’t do it properly. Make sure that you get some on-site assistance from a professional trainer before doing it.

Method 5:

Low-repetition, slow-pace training. This is the opposite of Method 4. You do the lifting very slowly. Pick up a weight around 50% of the maximum weight you can lift. Start curling the weight, but very slowly. From the bottom position to the top position should take at least slow 10 counts (or if you have a clock, 10 seconds), and lower the weight more slowly, say 15 counts. Repeat the process until you cannot lift the weight at all. If you can lift the weight the half way, lift the weight up to there, and hold the position for the rest of the count (e.g., 5 seconds to lift half-way, then hold the weight there for another 5 seconds). You need only one set in this method if you do it properly.

Srouce:
Low-Load High Volume Resistance Exercise Stimulates Muscle Protein Synthesis More Than High-Load Low Volume Resistance Exercise in Young Men. PLoS ONE, 2010; 5 (8)

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