A basic workout with free weights should be based around compound lifts and a high degree of intensity. Compound lifts cross more than one joint of your body and work multiple muscle groups, so you get a lot of work done in very little time. Spend time developing good technique and always focus on safety. Consult your physician before beginning any diet or exercise program.
Compound Exercises
An exercise such as the barbell squat works your legs as well as your abdominals, and is one of the most effective muscle-building exercises you can do. Deadlifts work your back and your legs, as well as your abdominals, and strengthen muscles that greatly contribute to the power you can generate in daily activities. Chin-ups and rows work the widest muscles of your back as well as your biceps and forearms, the bench press works your chest, shoulders and triceps; and the military press targets your shoulders and triceps while recruiting many other muscles of your upper body for stability.
Basic Program
Train your entire body three times a week to practice the exercises and develop skill. Rest at least one day in-between each training session to give yourself time to rest and recover. After you have developed good technique you should gradually add weight to the bar until you are training with at least 75 percent of your one-repetition maximum on each exercise. This will cause your body to respond by generating more testosterone, a hormone critical to building muscle.
Workouts
Perform the most skilled movements first, such as squatting - never perform the most demanding lifts when you are fatigued. Perform each exercise for three to five sets of five to eight repetitions. If you can perform more work, you are not training hard enough. Keep your rest periods short, aiming for no more than one minute in-between sets. This will keep you from generating any extra cortisol, which is a hormone that can cause you to store additional fat or eat away at lean muscle.
Detail Work
After you are comfortable with the basic barbell exercises, you can add in dumbbell work for variety or an greater range of motion on some lifts. While you can move the dumbbells farther during the dumbbell bench press in comparison to the barbell bench press, this exercise can only be an occasional substitute for the heavier lift. Dumbbells can also be used to target a weak body part that is limiting another lift, such as extra work for the triceps to improve your pressing exercises.
References
- "Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise"; Biomechanics of the Knee During Closed Kinetic Chain and Open Kinetic Chain Exercises; Rafael F. Escamilla et al.; April 1998
- "Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise"; A Three-dimensional Biomechanical Analysis of Sumo and Conventional Style Deadlifts; Rafael F. Escamilla et al.; July 2000
- "European Journal of Applied Physiology"; Acute Hormonal and Neuromuscular Responses to Hypertrophy, Strength and Power Type Resistance Exercise; George O. McCaulley et al., March 2009.
- "Fiziol Cheloveka"; Acute Testosterone and Cortisol Responses to High Power Resistance Exercise; Andrew Fry & Charles Lohnes; July-Aug. 2010
Member Comments