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Posts Tagged ‘Weight Loss’

When it comes to exercise equipment, with the possible exception of the jump rope you really cant get much more basic then the gear you need for weight lifting. The first body builders probably just used very big rocks! But seriously, one of the nice thing about weight lifting is not only is it a great way to get in shape, and build strength and self confidence – it does not really require any real fancy or expensive equipment.

Now you can join a gym and have access to all the weight lifting gear you can imagine, both free weights and machines. But you can also accomplish many of the benefits of weight lifting with a basic set of barbells, dumbbells, and a good home work out regimen. Dumbbells usually are the familiar one-piece bone-shaped hand weights. Barbells are usually used for the more advanced workouts and longer muscle groups. This is the long bar with adjustable weight by adding or subtracting weighted plates. Although you can purchase a dumbbell-sized bar, and effectively use plates to make a dumbbell, generally speaking Dumbbells are fixed weights.

For basic weight lifting most pros recommend a 5-50lb Hex Dumbbell set. The hex refers to the shape of the weights – they are hexagonal rather then round, so they will not roll when you put them down. You walls and your toes will thank you. 5- 50lbHex sets can be purchased for under 500.00 complete with racks. As far as a Barbell set goes it depends on how much weight you want to have available to you in terms of the plates. And the nice thing about barbells is of course you can always purchase additional weight plates as you lift and increase you abilities. But a decent starter set of Barbells and plates is definitely under 200.00. Garage sales are a great place to find barbells and plates – unfortunately people do not always stick with their commitment to lift weights. A curling bar is also a good idea. Basically a curved barbell (you can use the same plates as on your straight bar) that makes the action of doing curls easier. You also may want to pick up a weight bench. This too can often be found used. A weight bench is essential for doing many weight lifting exercises for the back and chest – and it also can be used for ab crunches, and triceps dips with your dumbbells.

Other accessories you may want to consider are a good pair of weight lifting gloves to protect your hands while lifting. Unless you have a back problem you already are aware of weight belts for additional support are usually not necessary for basic weight lifting workouts. In fact some trainers so they do more harm then good because they allow a lifter to lift more then they really are physically capable of, and cause certain muscles in the forearms and lower back to receive less of a work out and less of a benefit from your weight lift routine. Don’t forget that the basic physics of weight lifting is to apply force against muscle contraction to overcome the force of gravity – that same feat can be accomplished by lifting your body weight – and if you are really on a tight budget or pressed for space a simple chin-up bar can be installed in any doorway to get in some lifting and strength training.

We all know that lifting weights leads to bigger muscles, harder muscles, and more definition. But just how does weight lifting do that? What is the physiology of weight lifting?

Basically weight lifting is a method of strength training. Lifting weights uses the force of gravity to oppose muscle contraction. Overcoming that opposition increases strength and builds muscle. The concept was simply and elegantly summed up by Hippocrates centuries ago – “That which is used develops, and that which is unused wastes away”. He was correct – and his contemporaries while not sure of the anatomical science behind it, also understood the basic weight lifting and strength-training concept of progressive resistance. Its been said that ancient Greek wrestlers when training for the early Olympic Games carried a new born calf on their back everyday until it was grown. While that may not go over very well at your gym, the concept is sound. Weight lifting builds strength and muscle mass through progressive resistance. The reasons our muscles grow and become stronger when we workout with weights is due to the bodies response to injury. Muscle growth from weight lifting is basically a healing process. When we lift weights, we do (when done correctly) a small amount of microtrauma to our muscle tissue. The body’s response to the trauma is to rebuild the weakened or torn muscle fibers, and in doing so build them even bigger and stronger then they were prior to the microtrauma so as to prevent repeat of the injury. So that is how progressive resistance works in weight lifting and weight training. We add more weight do more reps, and teardown more muscle fiber – the body keeps responding by healing the muscle eventually pushing the muscle to its ultimate limit, which is genetically determined.

Professional power lifters, other athletes, and experienced weightlifters will use this concept when training or working with weights by adding weight to the point they cannot lift – and then backing off just a bit and then push the maximum weight possible. This is called progressive overload and it forces the muscles to grow stronger and larger to lift the heavier weight. However working out by lifting weights at the ultimate limit of your strength is not recommended for novice weight lifters. Professionals say beginners can achieve the same results a lot safer, by progressively adding repetitions to the workout, and not lifting heavier weights. This will still fatigue muscles, wear down fibers, and result in the progressive microtrauma required to build muscle, strength and stamina.

So what does all this mean? In order for weight lifting to result in building muscle and increasing strength, you must allow the body some down time to “heal”. Because it is this “healing” that is really the process of building renewed and strengthened muscle tissue. What that means is that you should not lift everyday – especially in the beginning of your weight lifting regimen. Muscle growth can take anywhere from 2 to 4 days. So beginners generally will workout out every other day. The more experienced you are the longer the recovery period actually can be. Professional or very experienced weight lifters require more strength to push the limit, and cause more damage when they do, and therefore require longer time to build and repair muscles to greater strength. The pros will use a weight lifting routine that works any given specific muscle group only every 4 days.