There are several ways to workout your muscles. One way is through weight training. Weight training involves lifting heavy and light weights to beef up and define the muscles. It uses sets and repetitions.
Sets are composed of repetitive motions. Repetitions are the number of times you repeat a motion. One set may be composed of ten or more repetitions. For example, one set of biceps curls may consist of one to thirty repetitions.
A weightlifting program usually consists of two to four sets, with ten repetitions each. A beginner may begin with light weights, doing 2 sets with ten repetitions for every lifting technique. As he advances, he may increase the weight a little and do three then four sets as he goes.
Lifting for Bulk
Bulk is a term for the muscle mass in you. When you have a slender or trim body figure, your trainer may want to beef up the muscles in you. So gradually, he will make you workout for bulk. He will show you how to carry heavy plates and how to increase the weight gradually. An ideal program would consist of four sets of each exercise, with 10 repetitions each set. Also important when working out for bulk is increasing your calorie intake so your muscles have extra substance to use to grow on.
When you have the bulk built up in your muscles, then your trainer may tell you to increase the repetitions with lighter weights for muscle endurance.
Lifting for Definition
When you are flabby or obese, you need to trim down first. Fat must be burned first before muscles should be bulked up. Aside from aerobics, your trainer may have you do four sets of more than ten repetitions using very light weights. This is for you to build muscle endurance and help burn more fat. When you have trimmed down, your trainer may have you train for bulk. After you have produced the muscle mass, that's the time you focus on muscle definition.
Definition is the act of reducing your body-fat percentage so your muscles take on a more clear or defined look. They would no longer appear as mere lumps; but their stripped form would outline or define their appearance. When you have both bulk and definition, that's when your biceps, triceps, abdominals, chest, and other muscle parts become readily seen and identified.
USING BARBELLS
Lifting barbells is a popular method of fully developing the muscles in bulk and definition. The earliest and crudest form of weightlifting involved carrying small boulders that a trainee could hold or embrace in his arms. Later, a bar with concrete bells on both ends was conceived. Steel barbells and dumbbells were used much later, but they came as a whole piece. The plates were not yet removable.
Today, modern barbells come in stainless bars with removable steel plates and clamps. The steel plates are also applicable in modern machine pulleys that make weight lifting more comfortable and more versatile.
Loading weights on a bar
Load a weight plate by placing one on the right end of the bar, and then one on the left end. This is to maintain balance. Never finish loading an end before you load the other end. This will tilt the bar and release the weight plates from the loaded end. This is dangerous. Also, make sure the clamps securing the ends are always locked against the weight plates after the weight plates have been completely loaded.
Loading weight plates when the bar is on the floor is safer. Load it any way you want. Just make sure that the clamps or clips are locked after loading. However, never load on the floor when you intend to mount the barbell on your shoulders. Use the two upright rods for this.
Distribute the weights evenly on each of the bar's ends. Say you want to use 20 pounds of weights. This means on one end of the bar you load up one 10-pound plate, and another 10-pound plate on the other end. If you want to use 40 pounds of weights, you load one 20-pound plate on one end of the bar, and another 20-pound plate on the other end. You may also choose to use two 10-pound plates on one end, and another pair of 10-pound plates on the other. Thus, you have a total 40 pounds.
Always remember this golden rule; never load two 10-pound plates on one end of the bar and one 20-pound plate on the other. Always use the same weight plate scheme on both sides of the bar for maximum displacement of balance of the bar.
Jim O'Neill is a certified personal fitness trainer and also holds a sports nutrition certification. He has been helping people successfully achieve their weight loss and fitness goals for over 15 years by staying on the cutting edge of weight loss and fitness technology. To learn more about how you can benefit from his easy to use weight loss and fitness programs go to: http://www.mrgymfitness.com/minicourse.php
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