Weight Lifting - Are You Making Big Mistakes In Your Workouts?

Weight lifting, also called weight training, is a physical activity that helps build muscle strength and size. It utilizes weights in order to train muscles. Bodybuilders often lift weights to help them achieve their desired bodies.

This type of exercise may appear easy to do but it requires proper form and execution to achieve the best results and avoid injury. Most exercises require the back to be straight and the core engaged the entire time. This allows the routine to effectively work the muscles that it targets.

Proper breathing is also very important. You should not forget to breath and you should not hyperventilate. Regulate your breathing and breathe deeply because the deeper you breathe, the more oxygen is distributed to the muscles and the better you are able to work your entire body.

As with any exercise, always keep hydrated. Even if this type of exercise does not increase the heart level as much as a cardiovascular exercise, you should be wary of your water intake. After a sweaty workout, replenish the fluids you lost right away.

Weight lifting focuses on toning muscles and it is important that these muscles are warm before they do any work. Warming up your body before any workout avoids injury and promotes better form because you loosen up your joints and prepare your muscles to move. After the workout, stretching helps relieve muscle tension and increase flexibility, as well.

For initial strength building, start with lighter weights and do more reps. As you become stronger, increase the number of reps and the weight gradually. Lighter weights with more reps increase your muscle's endurance.

If you want to increase muscle size, lift heavy weights that you can only do for one to three reps maximum. This type of exercise increases the bulk of your muscle and trains your muscles to be stronger. This is often used by Olympic weightlifters in their training but bodybuilders benefit from this exercise as well.

Muscle toning and building is part working it and part allowing it to recover. During your workouts, especially during weight training, your muscles are actually being torn as you work them. It is when you rest that your body repairs them and makes them stronger and burn calories in the process so you have to make sure that you get enough rest and sleep after working out and not work the same muscle groups for consecutive days.

To get cutting edge techniques in body building and getting in the best shape of your life, click here: Weight Lifting