When individuals start lifting, they typically overdo it. You want to develop muscle fast, so you train five, six, or even seven days a week as you think that the more you do, the faster you’ll be able to see results. However, it doesn’t take long before you learn the hard way about the significance of recovery. You’re sore all the time and your improvements grinds to a halt, obliging you to scale your workouts back so you only hit a muscle once or twice a week. This is the frequency that most of us then stay with indefinitely.
What Does The Research Say About Lifting Weights?
Studies demonstrate that – in some cases – the number of times per week that you lift weights makes a difference. However, in other studies, it does not.
In older adults, there is not a lot of difference shown in strength if the person trains either once or twice per week. However, there is a significant growth in strength when the time spent training jumps to three times per week.
The research points to the direction the “sweet spot” of strength training which is somewhere between two and three times per week. We typically recommend that most individuals strength train approximately three days per week in order to make sure that they hit that minimum effective dose, particularly if they are not getting any other activity in the week.
You could also consider adding a fourth day if you have a flexible schedule and also have strength or sport-specific goals. In this case, ensure that you deload your training and take a recovery week every month or so.
Strength Training Exercise To Try
These are moves which work multiple muscles at a time. Examples include:
- Squats with a shoulder press
- Deadlift with a bent-over row
- Lunges with a lateral raise
- Push-ups and plank with a one-arm row
Other very important exercises to include in your strength training programme include:
- Squats
- Lunges
- Planks
- Push-ups
- Straight leg deadlifts
- Bench presses
- Push-up dips
- Overhead presses
- Pull-ups
- Dumbbell rows
- Planks
- Exercise ball crunches
In order for you to get the most out of your weight-loss workouts, ensure that you’re following these standards:
- Vary the intensity of your workouts. Include both HIIT as well as moderate-intensity exercises.
- Do different methods of cardio on a weekly basis, like running on the treadmill, biking as well as swimming.
- Make use of circuit training when lifting weights in order to keep your calorie burn high. Circuit training involves doing a sequence of exercises, one after the other, with no rest between each of the exercises. Towards the end of the series of exercises, you would typically rest for a set period (between 30 and 60 seconds) and then repeat the circuit two or three more times.
- Take at minimum two days of rest each week.
Contact Trifocus Fitness Academy
If you would like to learn more about strength training – in addition to other forms of training – then you need to do our Personal Training Diploma. Follow this link to find out more.
