Everything has its first time in life, and when deciding to abandon a sedentary life for exercise and good nutrition, there will be many fears, doubts and challenges that you will have to face.
The first day at the gym is unique: we could define it as a mixture of internal emotions because at the end you will have the body-health you want, but then you come across a reality: there are many machines and you don’t know which one to start with ( maybe you wouldn’t know how to use them either).
Perhaps hiring a trainer (personal trainer) for general advice on how weight training works could be costly for your budget; That’s why our purpose is to show you everything you need to know before starting weight training.
Weight training basics
Why is it important to lift weights?
To regulate the functions of the body and obtain better physical and mental performance, it is necessary to optimize your metabolism. Through weight training, accompanied by a healthy diet, and cardiovascular exercise, it is possible to accelerate the metabolism, since the muscles use a lot of energy for their maintenance. That is, the more muscle you have, the more energy you will require and the metabolism will increase significantly.
On the other hand, weight training will contribute to the correction of your body posture, mainly due to the imbalances generated by sitting incorrectly during office work. It is also important for those who play other sports such as soccer or tennis in order to prevent injuries and improve body strength / endurance.
What effects does weight training have on our body?
Do you want to know where the magic happens with the weights? Well, it is not that difficult, with a bit of logic we will understand it: when we subject the muscles to an “extra” weight, the muscle fibers that compose it begin to tear (don’t worry, they are small tears). This process is called hypertrophy. The body, through protein synthesis, will proceed to repair these small tears, causing the muscle to become more resistant and, of course, larger.
Depending on what your goals are (to build endurance or increase muscle mass) you should formulate a specific routine for each activity. For example, if your goal is to increase muscle mass and strength, the routine will be based on a higher weight but with few repetitions, while, if the goal is to develop resistance, you should choose a more comfortable weight but doing more repetitions.
How to start weight training
1. Find a place to train
You may have seen different methods of training at home, or aerobic exercises in which you did not need to use any weight; However, to train with weights it is necessary to have the correct equipment to properly carry out your exercise routine.
Whether it’s at a local gym, buying dumbbells and machines to use at home, or signing up for a CrossFit Box, having a dedicated exercise site will be vitally important. You can also use your creativity and make your own dumbbells by filling bottles with water, or using backpacks with books to practice from the comfort of your home.
If you are a beginner and it does not affect your budget considerably, it is advisable to have a few sessions with a personal trainer who will teach you the correct technique for most exercises. In addition to being a good investment, you will avoid unnecessary injuries.
2. Learn to use the gym machines
Depending on where you have chosen to start weight training, you can find a lot of variety. There may only be a few bars and dumbbells, while elsewhere you will find machines for muscles that you did not know existed, as well as a wide variety of kettlebells, conventional weights, bands, medicine balls, etc.
When you have such a variety of machinery at your disposal, you could get confused and not know what to use, so because you are a beginner in weight training you should choose those that provide stability, easy use, and above all, less risk of injury.
Most of the time, the instructions for use are given on the same machines: once you have improved your physical condition with the machines, you can proceed to train with free weight.
3. Build a solid foundation
When we start training with weights we are excited and want to do all the existing exercises, even sometimes with a weight higher than we can resist. This is common to see when we are still beginners. However, in this case we must focus on developing good movement technique. Do not rush to increase the intensity, the important thing is to promote resistance by maintaining an adequate execution.
When you have perfected the technique and have better muscular endurance, you will be ready to increase the weight, in addition, you will also begin to notice results (physical and mental) and of course, you will have avoided injuries.
4. Hire a coach
There are gyms that include the attention of a coach in their service, however in other places you will have to pay for their advice. Do you really need a personal trainer? As long as you are a beginner, it is probably necessary.
Weight training can be quite complex, especially because of the injuries you will be exposed to; For this reason, a coach will help to design a specific routine according to your needs and physical problems that you may be suffering from. In turn, they will correct the deficiencies and errors at the time of executing each exercise.
5. Start preventing injuries
Not even the most professionals are exempt from injuring themselves, this is more common than we think, especially when we are learning to use weights. Weight-bearing accidents do occur, however their prediction is based on using a light weight in the beginning.
In general, when we begin to build our muscles, we forget that there are very small muscles that are not developed, and when we expose them to a weight that they cannot bear, they tear. In addition, the human body is not only made up of muscle, there will also be essential elements that you must take into account, such as tendons and ligaments; which are quite prone to injury with poor technique or improper weight.
6. Make friends or join a group to exercise
There is a principle that also applies to training: two are better than one. When you arrive at a place and you don’t know anyone, it is difficult to break the ice and get in touch with others, sometimes for fear of rejection and other times fear of making a fool of yourself. Beyond such difficulties, finding friends at the training site will help build commitment and help you feel more comfortable.
According to a study carried out by the Virgin Active Health Club chain of health centers in the United Kingdom, it was concluded that people who exercised with a friend not only worked more intensely in the gym, they also burned more calories and were persistent over time.
If you find it difficult to find a friend to help you train, don’t worry: most gyms also promote group activities (like spinning and Body Pump ) that usually include weight training and cardio.
7. Plan an exercise routine
The organization will also determine much of the successes you can have when you start in the world of training.
Every day people seek to be physically better but they do not know how to achieve it. When you start training, you must be aware that the body is not used to constant physical activity, therefore we recommend you train three days a week while building endurance .
The first days you will feel that a steamroller passed over your body, so it is important that there is a day of rest between training. It is also important that you determine the intensity of the training that you will carry out, and what type of exercises you will do. Regardless of what your goals are, use a light weight and do more reps (12-15); completing 3 sets for each exercise you perform.
8. Learn basic exercises
In general, basic exercises such as squats, military press or bench press cover more than one muscle area, making these exercises complex and not like others that work isolated muscles.
When you are a beginner, it is necessary to cover a large part of the muscle area to develop it in a balanced way, especially when training to increase strength and muscle mass.
In addition to the main benefit that we just mentioned, they are generally easy to learn exercises that do not generate any complications. In addition to this, the basic exercises will help to develop good technique.
9. Be disciplined
It will be useless if you have found a place to exercise, have a personal trainer and also an exercise routine if you are not able to meet your goals. To achieve weight training goals you need to be disciplined and be able to make sacrifices in life.
Experts say that to create a habit it is necessary to carry out this activity between 25 and 45 days. We invite you to set your goals and be constant to obtain the results; Remember: the important thing is not how you start, but where you end.
Reference
- Jodi Braverman. “How To Get Started With Weightlifting.” For Livestrong [Revised January 2017]
