Weight Lifting

[SunsetRunner]

Hey guys. Id really appreciate some help. I feel like im ready to start weight training but im totally clueless. Can anyone recommend tips, websites or apps to get me started. Also what weight should I start working with?

[WavyDavey]

Hi @SunsetRunner,

It not easy to advise without more information, but here are some things I would take a look at:

1. Are you going to work out at home or in a gym? If at home, you'll need some dumbbells and probably a bench. At the gym, all the equipment is provided but there's a membership fee. I prefer the gym, as there's nothing I have to store at home.

2. What is your goal? Some people want to add muscle mass, others just want "toning", and others are just interested in strength. For muscle mass, I think barbells can't be beat.

3. Progressive overload. You need to be able to add weight progressively to make progress. If working out at home, this means having a bunch of different dumbbells. In the gym, it just means using their dumbbells or loading up their barbells.

4. Finding a weight program that supports your goal in #2. 5x5 and Starting Strength are two popular choices for barbell training.

For starting weight, you just have to play with it. Better to start light than too heavy. Over time you will progress to heavier weights. Just lifting the same weight week in and week out won't do.

If you could provide some more information about your goals, and what kind of lifting you're interested in, it would be easier to point you to web sites.

[SunsetRunner]

Okay, so going to a gym won't be possible for me. Im working out at home. 

Im going more for toning and maybe a bit of strength training. But mostly just basic stuff, nothing too serious. Eg: introducing kettlebells to my squats etc. 

I dont want a quick-fix, i want something that i can be consistent with and something manageable. 

Thank you so much

[Dominique]

@SunsetRunner: you got some excellent advice from @WavyDavey. You’ve also got the right attitude: gaining muscle is a painfully slow process, not something that will produce visible results after just a couple of weeks or even months. Are you a guy or a gal (I can’t tell based on your profile, nor your posts)? I’m asking not because it really matters from the point of view of resistance training (the basic principles, like progressive overload, apply regardless of gender), but because of semantics (e.g. muscle vs. "toning") and common misconceptions (e.g. that lifting heavy weights make females bulky).

Training at home is possible, though it will somewhat limit your options: for instance, lunges with kettlebells can be an alternative to barbell squat, but the only way to increase volume will be to add more reps per set, and/or more sets (whereas you could progressively add more weight on the bar with a barbell squat). You may want to get some adjustable dumbbells. A pull-up bar is also a great addition to a home gym: it’s inexpensive and doesn’t take any floor real estate.

You asked about apps: my suggestion would be to get an old-fashioned notebook instead, and use it to log your workouts: exercises performed, number of reps & sets, rest time between sets. Logging is the only way to make sure you’re progressing over time, and it’s easier to log on paper with a pen than with an app IMO. There’s no way you can remember everything. I only use my phone as a timer (for rest times between sets).

[SunsetRunner]

Thank you so much for your help. 

[exhile]

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@SunsetRunner:

You asked about apps: my suggestion would be to get an old-fashioned notebook instead, and use it to log your workouts: exercises performed, number of reps & sets, rest time between sets. Logging is the only way to make sure you’re progressing over time, and it’s easier to log on paper with a pen than with an app IMO. There’s no way you can remember everything.

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I use Microsoft Excel to log workouts.

[SunsetRunner]

Im basically using FitBit Coach and i started using Zova and ive been seeing results so yeah. It kinda logs my workouts there. Its just that all these workout apps have bodyweight workouts only and that's great but i think ill just have to slowly introduce small weights to all my workouts to start off. 

All the weight training apps are more focused on building muscle mass and strength so its not really what im looking for. I just want to introduce weights in to get toned

[Dominique]

Getting "toned" = building muscle while keeping subcutaneous fat low enough so your muscles are visible. You seem to be afraid you’d put on too much muscle mass: don’t worry, it won’t happen (and in the unlikely event it would happen, you can always stop lifting). You need to lift weights that are heavy enough even if you "only" want to get toned.

[bourby]

hey. what the others say is correct. i'll add tho that if you arent going to a gym then you want to learn technique to avoid injury and to make sure that what you are doing is working. i cant go to a gym because of my kids so i have built myself a gym. theres heaps of second hand equipment, much of it is given away free or dirt cheap. lots of people had the best intentions and buy up big but then do nothing. its a bonanza out there. 

i try to do variety to keep growing and losing fat. i dont want my body to adapt and not change at all. youtube is great for videos and i check out bodybuilding.com when i want new exercises or variations of current ones. that site has lots of videos to teach you the proper way to do things as well as articles and tips. just use their search bar for ideas.

theres alot more sites, some target men, women or people over 30 etc.... i dont know where you fall in those categorys. 

[WavyDavey]

These are some links that have taught me a lot about barbell training:

Starting Strength

Starting Strength Video Instruction

Stronger By Science (seriously scientific approach to lifting)

[Alicat2104]

https://exrx.net

I used the templates on this site when I was first starting out, many years ago, and it is still a wealth of info.

[SunsetRunner]

@Alicat2104 @WavyDavey @bourby @Dominique @exhile

Thank you all so much for the advice. 

You guys are seriously helpful. 😊

I will check out the websites and also for second hand equipment. Never thought of that one. 🙌

[emili]

just one more shout out to making sure your form is good. nothing causes injury faster than bad form or improper lift. you probably have already started, but I would start to lift light just until you are sure your form is good and you know what a proper lift is. than add weight. and although for some working out in front of a mirror is a "look at me" kind of thing, for serious lifters it is the best way to know everything is being done properly. you don't want to be sidelined with pain just when you are getting into the groove..