Maximize Your Weight Lifting Time
Posted by fitnesscoach101 on July 26, 2008
This article isn’t just for people who hate the gym (those that are going only because they have to), but it’s also for the experienced weight lifters who need to shorten their workouts while getting better results. About 99% of our population has no interest in being a bodybuilding professional, so why spend hours upon hours at the gym?
This article is meant to enhance your effectiveness of your weight lifting workout. Even if you’re overweight and heading to the gym for lots of cardio, you should consider using some weights and try out these techniques. For all of these tips, I will assume that you are doing about 2-5 sets of each exercise, and that you cover most of your main muscle groups.
1. Weight lifting is all about putting enough stress on your muscles so that they need to repair themselves. You can do all of the weight lifting you need in just 40 minutes for strength. At the end of that time period, you’re going to feel weak the next day and not even be ready to lift more on the second day.
2. Lift weights only when you have completely recovered from your previous bodybuilding session. Sometimes this may consist of two days of rest, or even 3. It all depends on how well your body can recover it self. It’s better to wait an extra day so that you can get a great workout session instead of just putting in 75% effort.
3. Completing 4 sets of less exercises may be better than the “circuit training” method. Doing 4 sets allows you to do a warm-up set, two main sets, and then a pyramid set for each machine.
4. Each week you should increase your max weight for each exercise by about one slot. This may be 10-20 lbs, which isn’t too much if you work out a lot and are doing over 100 pounds on the exercise. This increase will be on the beginning of the pyramid set for your start, and then it will affect your middle sets as well.
5. Learn the strength of the pyramid set. Your body recovers 75% from most of its exertion in the first 7 seconds after the effort is done. The pyramid set consists of you doing 3-4 sets consecutively, but resting 7 seconds between each set. For example, your max weight for an exercise is 200 lbs (while still doing 4-6 reps). The first set is 200 lbs for 4-6 reps. Then change the weight to about 50-60% of the original weight (so 100-120 lbs), do as many reps as you can properly. Then reduce it to 25-30% of the original weight (now 50-60 lbs) and then you do as many reps as possible (maybe 15-20 reps). Remember that all of these sets only have a 7 second resting time. By completing this pyramid set, it will change your regular routine into a very intensive workout.
6. Remember to eat from a good source of protein after your bodybuilding workout is completed. Your body needs some sort of fuel to recover. You don’t need to gulp a dozen eggs for dinner, but eating carbs and a lot of fat isn’t going to help rebuild your body for your next session.
All you have to do is just try out these techniques for your next few workout sessions and see what kind of results will happen. You’ll be amazed. Post your experiences in the comments section if you want. Good Luck!
