Increasing weight to increase strength is the goal of most people who begin a strength training program. When you increase weight, you need to ensure both safety and success, says Miriam Nelson, author of "Strong Women Stay Young." You want to move up to heavier weights, but you want to do so without increasing your changes of injury. If you have been working out at your current level for at least three to six weeks, you can begin to move up to heavier weights using what Joyce Vedral, fitness expert and author of "Weight Training Made Easy" calls a "pyramid system."
Step 1
Do your first set of 12 repetitions with the weight that you have been using for the last month.
Step 2
Use a dumbbell 2 to 3 lbs. heavier than Step 1 for your second set and complete only 10 repetitions. If you were using a 3-lb. barbell, move up to a 5-lb. one.
Step 3
Add 2 to 3 lbs. for the third set, and complete eight repetitions. If you started at 3 lbs. and moved to 5 lbs., complete your third set at either 8 or 10 lbs.
Step 4
Lift the weights listed in Step 1, Step 2 and Step 3 for two to three weeks.
Step 5
Use the middle level weight for the first set of 12 repetitions. If you began with your first set at 3 lbs., begin now with the 5-lbs. dumbbell.
Step 6
Use a dumbbell 2 to 3 lbs. heavier for the second set, and complete 10 repetitions. If your first set was at 5 lbs., use 8 to 10 lbs. for your second set.
Step 7
Use a dumbbell 2 to 3 lbs. heavier for your third set, and complete eight repetitions.
Step 8
Continue increasing the weight of the dumbbell in the pyramid system every two to three weeks until you are unable to complete 12 repetitions in your first set.
Tips and Warnings
- Begin strength training with a weight that you can use for just 12 repetitions, with the 12th repetition coming at great effort. You will probably move to heavier weights at different rates, depending on the strength of your different muscle groups. Continue to move up with different weights every two weeks, according to Miriam Nelson. At some weight levels, you may increase at a faster rate than at others, or you may move faster in your leg muscles than in your arm muscles, because the leg muscles are stronger and larger to begin with. According to Miriam Nelson, you will probably reach a maximum weight limit after six to nine months.
- Miriam Nelson warns that ankle weights of more than 20 lbs. may create problems and that dumbbells heavier than 25 lbs. are too unsteady. If you want to move beyond that point, she suggests switching to barbells or weight-lifting machines.
Things You'll Need
- Dumbbells in three different weights to begin
- Dumbbells in four additional weight increments
References
- "Strong Women Stay Young"; Miriam Nelson; 2000
- "Weight Training Made Easy"; Joyce Vedral; 1997
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