Weight Training for Beginners
Entering the world of weightlifting can be extremely nerve-wracking if you don't know where to start ... With all the warnings you've received, it may become difficult to know what to really do once you hit the gym.
Differentiated workouts for the various parts of the body, kettlebells, etc ... Most training programs have one thing in common: they include weight exercises (and rightly so!).
Weight training exercises are great for beginners and even more so for experienced athletes!
Advantages
Weight training leads to training a higher level than gym machines and similar equipment, since machines work the muscle with a specific motor pattern e they do not deal with the stabilizer muscles and those secondary muscle groups, which instead are considered by training with loads free from constraints.
Not to mention that, in the long run, you are however limited by the maximum weight you can use in the machine and any progress you make, in that exercise, it is related to the use of that particular machine.
1) Increases in Energy Levels and Calories Burned
Weight training from constraints it inevitably requires higher energy levels than exercising with machines.
In fact, although it is effective, Exercise with the weight of the machines is not so versatile that you can train many muscle groups at the same time, like weight training does. Stimulating more muscle groups means making more effort, which leads to a greater expenditure of calories.
2) Versatility of the Muscle Strengthening process
Though machine training can help you increase your overall strength levels, the execution of various free weight exercises manages to stimulate a higher number of at the same time specific muscle groups.
The versatility of this type of training allows the athlete to literally adapt theweight training from constraints to any area of ​​the body he wishes, rather than making the machine work a single part of the body with one movement.
3) Improve Balance and Strength Levels
Execution becomes a little more complicated when there is no machinery to guide us. It is almost impossible to "steal an extra rep" when training with a load unattached to the machines.
Balance can only improve when a person enters the perspective of being able to rely solely on their body as support during exercise.
According to a January 2008 article in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, those who train with weights have notable increases in strength and balance levels; to be precise, a 58% increase in strength and 196% in balance!
The Execution
Since unconstrained weight training does not use well-defined motor patterns, as machines do, it may be a little more difficult to understand perfectly the technique of performing the exercises, but don't worry: there are tons of guides you can find to gradually learn the correct technique.
For example, take any of our reps' videos on ours Youtube channel: first of all, they guide you to a perfect execution of the exercise because technique is everything when it comes to weight lifting; and if we talk about exercises with free weights from any type of hook or support, well… it's even more important.
Choice of Exercises
Since usually a beginner doesn't want to be bombarded with hundreds of complex information, I'll give you this program example (base your routine around these three exercises):
? the Squat
? the Piana Bench
? the Deadlift
These are what we call fundamental and multi-joint exercises, which above all means that they work more muscle groups at the same time (and they do it very effectively!). This is what mainly distinguishes weight training from machine training, that is the ability to use multiple muscle groups with one movement.
The Squat
The squat is best done with the support structure (squat rack or power rack), which has places to rest the bar safely, and with someone to assist you, in case you cannot lift yourself when you are in full squat with the bar on your shoulders.
The squat works virtually all of the leg muscles… and I mean all of them! In addition, it also stimulates the abdominal core and back, but as secondary muscle groups: practically an indispensable exercise for anyone starting out in the gym!
Technique of execution
Stand in front of a bar, leaning against the squat rack at eye level.
a) Grab the bar with a slightly wider grip than your shoulders, and in the meantime bend under the bar and place it at the thickest point of the upper back, which acts as a cushion in this case (usually the area around the trapezius).
b) Raise the bar from the support and take a few steps back, keeping your feet a little more than shoulder width apart and with your big toes facing slightly outwards (at 11:05, so to speak).
c) Keep your core tight, chest out, neck relaxed, and then imagine that you have a chair behind you and are ready to sit on it.
d) Lower yourself until your hips are parallel with your knees and then lift yourself up by pushing from your heels.
The Piana Bench
La flat bench it has its own specific equipment and is practically present in every gym (it is well known). Train your pectoral muscles (chest), triceps and shoulders. But it also stimulates the abdominal core and back a little.
Technique of execution:
a) Lie on the bench on your stomach and position yourself so that your eyes are right under the bar.
b) Grab the bar with a handle slightly wider than your shoulders and lift it from the support, always keeping your arms straight. Position the bar so that it is in line with your upper chest.
c) Contract your core firmly, bring your shoulder blades up and bend your elbows as you lower the bar until it touches your chest.
d) Bring the bar back up with a controlled push until your arms are fully extended.
The Deadlift
Probably one of the best lifting exercises, the deadlift works all the muscles of the posterior chain of the body, and also the quadriceps and the abs: so, how can you not love it? !! For many the playing technique can be complex to master and understand, but for others it is quite natural.
Execution technique:
Ground bar, be sure to insert weights, at the ends of the bar, that are the same size as a classic 20kg (45lb) cast iron plate, so you don't have to bend further down than necessary.
a) Stand in front of the bar with your feet shoulder-width apart and turn them a little outward. Grab the bar with your arms slightly extended forward and keep your hands at a distance slightly greater than the width of the legs, so that they remain outside the legs. Lower your torso until your thighs are parallel and straight.
b) Retract and depress your shoulder blades (this is where you will push); chest out and neck relaxed.
c) Start climbing, but instead of trying to pull the bar off the floor, focus on pushing the ground with your heels.
d) Rise up to the point that your body will not be in an upright position, making sure your legs are straightened, as well as your back. In a controlled manner, slowly return the bar to the ground, following all the steps you used to lift it.
Diet and Recovery
Remember: You don't grow up in the gym. The whole muscle growth process takes place away from the weight room, while you rest after all the hard work you've done in the gym!
Nutrition is part of recovery; if you come from a time when you did nothing in your free time, then it is more than likely that you will need to eat a little more than before to go to support the extra activity and the workload on your body.
Don't make nutrition complicated too, it is important to recover better.
A tip not to be forgotten
I hope this article will help anyone who is thinking of jumping into the world of weightlifting. Keep us updated on your weight training experience!
