Getting the support that you need

If you find that you’re having a hard time keeping up with your program on your own, consider working with a personal trainer or hiring a lifestyle coach to support you.
Find ways to get the support of friends, family members, co-workers, and training partners. Studies show that social support is the single most important factor for sticking to a workout program. Share your goals with people you’re close to and who care about you. Beware of those who may try to sabotage your goals. Let people know how important your training is and why you want to succeed. Share what benefits you expect to achieve and show your appreciation to those around you who do help you to succeed.

Using S.M.A.R.T. goals

People who use a system of setting S.M.A.R.T. (see the following bulleted list for definitions) goals have a much better chance of success at achieving their goals. This system consists of taking small, specific steps toward a particular goal and focuses on changing your habits gradually. When you set your training goals, check to see if they meet the following criteria:

• Specific: If you’re having a tough time with consistent workouts, set a specific goal that you want to achieve that isn’t too extreme. For example, set a specific goal to go through your weight-training program each week.
• Measurable: A measurable goal is one that you can objectively determine whether or not you met the goal. For example, make a measurable goal be to train at least 2 times per week for at least 25 minutes per session.
• Achievable: If you’ve been having a hard time finding a spare hour to train, don’t plan to do a one-hour workout. Instead, set a more achievable goal for your schedule such as two 25-minute workouts.
• Reasonable: If you’re having a tough time training twice a week, don’t set a goal to train three times a week. First, master finding time to train twice a week and build from there. If even two times a week is tough, start out with a goal of once a week and build from there. Remember, you don’t have to achieve your fitness goals all in the first month.
• Timed: Give yourself a set time to meet your goal. For example, if you set the goal of training at least 2 times per week for a minimum of 25 minutes per session, decide that you want to achieve this over a twomonth period. If two months seems too long to you, start with a goal of one-month.

Fifty percent of people typically drop out of a new exercise program within the first six weeks, according to research evidence. Studies also tell us that it takes about eight weeks of doing a new behavior to create a new habit. Know that after you’ve passed the first eight weeks of consistent training, you’re well on your way to successfully achieving your goals and maintaining a lifetime of fitness.

Keep in mind that life happens. If you fall off track, don’t waste precious time beating yourself up with negative thoughts. Simply assess what interfered with your regular training, benefit from the experience, and get right back into your program. As the ancient Chinese saying goes, “The journey of 10,000 miles begins with a single step.” This wisdom is applicable to your training. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other and believe in yourself.

Identifying why your goals are important

You’re much more likely to stick to a plan of action if you remind yourself often why it’s important to you. For example, if you’re starting up a strength training program because you have borderline osteoporosis, increasing your bone density and preventing fractures is a huge motivator, not to mention avoiding looking like a hunchback. You know your life will be better if you don’t end up in the hospital with broken bones on a regular basis. Alternatively, you may be weight training because you want to tone up and have more energy to get through each day. The specific reasons need to be individual and relevant to your life.

Whatever inspires you is key to keeping you on track with your training. Remind yourself of all the benefits you want to enjoy as a result of continuing with your weight-training program. Post your goals (and what you gain from achieving them) on your refrigerator, desk, or computer terminal. Or post pictures of good role models of what you want to achieve. Studies show that the best way to keep you motivated is to remind yourself frequently of the benefits as well as the negative consequences if you don’t stay on track with your plans.

Comparing your abdominal strength

The crunch test is another commonly used assessment that is easy to do at home with a friend, family member, or training partner. Lie on your back on your training mat with your knees bent and arms resting at your sides, palms down. Have your partner mark a horizontal line with masking tape on each side of your body at the end of your fingertips. Place a second piece of tape parallel to the first piece toward your feet — about 21⁄2 inches down the mat.

To begin the test, align your fingertips with the first marking. Crunch upward and slide your fingers along the mat to the second line. Lower completely to the starting position. Continue to do as many reps as you can. Move rhythmically in a smooth, controlled manner. Avoid using momentum and bouncing your body up and down rapidly. Record the date and number of reps for your records.

Comparing your upper-body strength

Knowing how you stack up against others who’ve taken similar fitness tests can motivate you to work hard. A commonly administered test for upperbody strength is the push-up test. Men do military push-ups. Women do modified push-ups. Do as many push-ups as you can until you can no longer do another one with good form. The best way to take the test is with a friend, family member, or training partner who counts your reps out loud for you.

Testing Your Strength and Endurance

When you start an exercise program, you need to test more than the strength of your muscles. It’s also important to evaluate your cardiovascular fitness (on a stationary bike or treadmill, for example) as well as your flexibility. These additional evaluations provide you with a more complete picture of your fitness instead of only looking at your level of strength. Record the following information in your fitness journal before you begin weight training:

• Height
• Weight
• Resting heart rate
• Blood pressure
• Cholesterol levels
• Waist measurement
• Body composition
• Body mass index
• Blood glucose levels

All these factors give important metabolic indicators of your overall health. Recording the above information helps you track your progress and see proven, documented results, even when you may not be seeing your waistline decrease or biceps increase as quickly as you want. When you do a weighttraining program consistently, you’ll see improvement in three areas:

• Body composition
• Body mass index
• Blood pressure

All three of these improvements reflect overall in your health. Most fitness facilities offer fitness assessments for their members for a fee. Some clubs include these assessments as part of your introductory membership package. Research studies tell us that being fit to lower your risk of disease and to improve your quality of life is more important than simply being thin.

For example, in a landmark study conducted at the Cooper Institute of Research, people who were both fit and overweight had a lower risk of disease and greater longevity than people who were thin and inactive.
The term strength testing is somewhat of a misnomer. Strictly speaking, your strength refers to the maximum amount of weight that you can lift one time —also called your one-rep max. For example, if you squeeze out only one shoulder press with 45 pounds, that’s your one-rep max for that exercise.

In general, it’s not such a hot idea to go around testing your one-rep maxes, especially if you’re a beginner. Some veterans like to go all out sometimes, but they typically test their one-rep max for just one or two exercises in a given workout. Pushing to the max places a lot of stress on your body parts and can cause extreme muscle soreness even in experienced weight lifters. A safe alternative to testing all-out muscle strength is testing your muscular endurance; you use a lighter-than-max weight and perform as many repetitions as you can. Most health clubs choose to do this type of testing. You can safely test your muscular endurance at home, too.

We haven’t included a machine option for abdominals because exercises performed on the floor are more effective. The results simply give you a reference point. Strength improves quickly after you begin lifting weights regularly. We can’t tell you how much weight to use for your strength tests because everyone’s abilities are different, but here is a helpful guideline: For each exercise, choose a weight that you think you can lift at least six times. If the weight still feels exceptionally light after six repetitions, put it down and rest a couple of minutes. Then try a weight that’s a few pounds heavier.

For exercises that use no weight — such as the abdominal crunch and the push-up — simply perform as many repetitions as you can. When you test your strength, create a chart that lists each body part that you need to test. Next to the body part, note what exercise you performed, how much weight you lifted, and how many reps you were able to perform. Be sure to date your chart. Create a file folder for the information, keep it on your computer, or record your stats right away in your workout log. Use the results to design a weight-training program that helps you reach your goals.

Organizing Your Long-Term Training: Seeing the Big Picture

After you’ve been training regularly for at least three months, you’re no longer considered a beginner. Congratulations! You can now attend group exercise classes suitable for intermediate to advanced participants. More important, if you want to avoid hitting a plateau and continue to make gains in strength, you need to progress your program.

Studies show that the most effective method to progress your program is through a process called periodization (another bit of weight training jargon that we feel compelled to foist upon you). Periodization involves varying volume and training intensity and simply means organizing your program into different periods, each lasting about four to eight weeks. Each period has a different theme. For example, one month you may use weight machines, and the next month you may switch to dumbbells and barbells. Or you can change the number of sets, repetitions, and exercises you perform from one period to the next. Athletes use periodization to vary their weight lifting (and other types of training) from their off-season to their competitive season.

Periodization is more than a fun diversion; this strategy gives you better results. The ACSM recommends periodization for experienced exercisers based on the number of research studies that show its benefits. Consider this study of more than 30 women conducted at Penn State University. Half the women did a typical circuit of 12 weight machines, performing one set of 8 to 10 repetitions per machine.

They continued this workout three times a week for nine months. The second group engaged in periodized training, systematically changing the number of sets, reps, and exercises they performed. Initially, the groups showed comparable strength gains. But after four months, the circuit group hit a plateau. The periodization group continued to make steady progress throughout the nine months.

We recommend that an introductory periodization program include five distinct phases, each lasting about a month. (However, depending on your goals, each phase can be as short as two weeks or as long as eight weeks.) You can repeat this cycle over and over again. Here’s a look at each phase:

• Prep Phase: During this period, you prepare your body for the challenges ahead with a basic workout. Use light weights, perform one to four sets per muscle, do 12 to 15 repetitions per set, and rest 90 seconds between sets.
• Pump Phase: In this phase, you step up your efforts a bit. You lift slightly heavier weight, perform 10 to 12 reps per set, do three to eight sets per muscle group, and rest only 60 seconds between sets. The pump phase is a good time to introduce a few of the advanced training techniques we describe later in this chapter, such as super sets and giant sets.
• Push Phase: In this period, you do 8 to 10 reps per set, resting 30 seconds between sets. You do only two or three different exercises per muscle group, but you do several sets of each so you can use the advanced training techniques, such as pyramids, that we describe later.
• Peak Phase: In this phase, you focus on building maximum strength. Do 6 to 8 reps per set, 15 to 20 sets per muscle group, but fewer different exercises. For instance, you may only do one or two leg exercises, but you do multiple sets of each exercise and six to eight repetitions per set. Rest a full two minutes between sets so that you can lift more weight. This phase is your last big effort before you take a break from heavy training.
• Rest Phase: In this phase, either you drop back to the light workouts you did in the prep phase, or you take a break from weight training altogether. Yes, that’s right, we’re giving you permission to stop lifting weights — for as long as two weeks. Resting gives your body (and your mind) a chance to recover from all the hard work you’ve been putting in. After your break, you move back into your next periodization cycle with fresh muscles and a renewed enthusiasm for your training. If you’re hell-bent on toning or building up your body, you may be tempted to skip the rest phase. Don’t. If you never rest, at some point your body starts to break down. You stop making progress, and you may get injured. If you want to get fit, resting is just as important as working out.

We present just one model of periodized training. The possibilities are endless. Depending on your goals, you may want to emphasize or play down a particular phase. For example, if you aim to get as strong as possible, spend more time in the peak phase; if you’ve been lifting weights for years, shorten the prep phase or skip it altogether. An experienced and well-educated personal trainer helps you design a periodization program to meet your needs.

Psyching up and visualizing yourself strong

Studies also show that psyching up before you perform a weight training exercise can improve performance for people with at least one year of training experience. Psyching up strategies include the use of imagery, positive self-talk, affirmations, and focusing attention. So, when you’re ready to train, clear your mind, see yourself going through your workout smoothly and successfully, visualize your strong and toned body, and believe in your ability to lift your weights. It makes a difference.

Understanding the body-mind connection

Have you ever had an argument with someone and then been so flustered that you stubbed your toe on a footstool in the room? This example shows how your feelings affect your movements. Because you’re upset, your heart is racing, your breath is shallow and rapid, and you may even be sweating. That’s an example of your mind-body connection.

When you train your muscles, you tap into your mind-body connection through your neuromuscular system. Before you can contract a muscle fiber, the nervous system must run a communication network from the brain through the spinal column and out to the individual muscle fiber. In the early stages of training, before you start seeing visible external results, your body is laying down this neural network. The more extensive your neural network, the more individual muscle fibers contract.

Studies show that by concentrating on the muscles that you’re training, you can get results faster. In one study, a group of people performed a simple exercise, another group of people imagined doing the exercise but didn’t actually do it, and a third group served as the control and didn’t do anything. Of course, participants who actually lifted the weight gained the most strength. However, the people who simply imagined doing the exercise had more gains than those who did nothing.

Physical therapists are also conducting studies on the use of motor imagery with patients who’ve lost neuromuscular control due to stroke or Parkinson’s disease. Patients visualize walking with a perfect gait, as well as practice specific gait exercises. Studies show that this visualization helps improve performance. The bottom line, therefore, is that you have nothing to lose and possibly more effective training results to gain by focusing your mind on your target muscles as you do your exercises.

Detraining: When you’re too busy to work out

Last but not least, while you need to make rest a part of your training program, you need to avoid resting too much. Unfortunately for all of us, we can’t save or store our fitness. Research evidence suggests that detraining occurs slowly. For example, two weeks after training stopped, study subjects maintained most of their strength and power. However, after eight months of no training, study subjects had lost most, but not all, of their training results. Hear the good news: Maintaining a reduced program can significantly slow detraining.

When your schedule is exceptionally busy and you find it difficult to do your full routine, remember that something is always better than nothing. Even training one day a week, especially if performed at a higher intensity, can be very valuable to prevent a loss of strength over time.

Getting enough sleep

Regular training improves the quality of your sleep because you’ll be physically tired at night when you go to bed. Current sleep researchers recommend that most people get at least seven to nine hours per night. Individuals vary, so you need to discover what is best for you. Many adults are chronically sleep deprived and are compromising their health and well-being. Sleep is always important to your health, but even more so when you’re training your body. Because you’re actively stressing your muscles, your cells need time to repair.
An important hormone for the maintenance and repair of muscle tissue is human growth hormone. Your body naturally secretes this hormone when you sleep. Studies show that supplementation isn’t beneficial for healthy individuals so don’t go out and buy HGH pills. If you deprive yourself of adequate sleep, you’re limiting your opportunity for your muscle tissue to repair itself optimally. Why spend time training only to undermine your hard work by not getting enough sleep? Take care of all aspects of your health for best results.

Avoid overtraining

Always let a muscle rest at least one day between workouts. This doesn’t preclude you from lifting weights two days in a row; you could work your chest and back one day and then your legs the next. But if you’re doing a full-body routine, don’t lift weights more than three times a week and don’t cram your three workouts into one weekend.

As unbelievable as it may sound to a beginner, many exercisers become overly enthusiastic after they start getting results and think that if a little is good, even more has to be great. Researchers have dedicated a lot of time to studying this topic and the ACSM even has a comment paper on the subject entitled, “Overtraining with Resistance Exercise.”
Overtraining typically occurs in the following scenarios:

• Training too many times per week
• Doing too many exercises per session
• Lifting excessive numbers of sets
• Lifting too heavy a weight over too long a period of time

Avoid overtraining by following a periodized training program. See the last section of this chapter for more information.
Signs and symptoms of overtraining include, but aren’t limited to, the following:

• Loss of strength
• Chronic fatigue
• Poor sleep or eating habits
• Reduced appetite
• Excess muscle soreness
• Mood changes
• Loss of interest in training
• Increased frequency of illness combined with slow rate of healing Be sure to avoid overtraining through the following strategies:
• Use periodized training.
• Avoid monotonous training that lacks variety. _ Don’t perform every single set of every exercise of every session to absolute failure without variation.
• Avoid overusing certain muscles or joints.
• Balance your weight training with your other sports activities or cardio-training.

Weight training provides so many benefits to your life. While the risk of overtraining isn’t high, it’s important to mention so you can appreciate the importance of variety in your program, of incorporating rest, and of ultimately listening to your body.

Doing exercises in the right order

In general, work your large muscles before your small muscles. This practice ensures that your larger muscles — such as your butt, back, and chest — are challenged sufficiently. Suppose that you’re performing the dumbbell chest press. This exercise primarily works your chest muscles, but your pecs do require assistance from your shoulders and triceps. If you were to work these smaller muscles first, they’d be too tired to help the chest. On occasion, however, you may specifically want to target a smaller muscle group, like your shoulders, because they’re lagging behind in development compared to other parts of your body.

If that’s the case, you may want to design a program where you do shoulder exercises first one or two days a week for several weeks to build them up. In general, follow the rule of training larger to smaller.

In order to perform your exercises in the right order, you need to understand which exercises work which muscle groups. Many people do their routines in the wrong sequence because they don’t realize the purpose of a particular exercise (the purpose isn’t always obvious). When you pull a bar down to your chest, as in the lat, you may think that you’re doing an arm exercise when, in fact, the exercise primarily strengthens your back. So, make a point to understand which muscles are involved in each move that you do.

In addition, studies show that concentrating on the specific muscle that you’re working and visualizing it becoming stronger increases the effectiveness of your training. You definitely want to make sure that you’re focusing on the right muscles to get the best results. When choosing the sequence of a workout, imagine your body splitting into three zones: upper, middle, and lower.

Within each zone, do your exercises in the following order. Feel free to mix exercises from the upper and lower body. It’s a good idea to train your middle body or core stabilizer muscles last as they stabilize your body during all the preceding exercises and help to prevent injury.

Upper body
1. Chest and back (It doesn’t matter which comes first.)
2. Shoulders
3. Biceps and triceps (It doesn’t matter which comes first.)
4. Wrists

Middle body
You can perform your abdominal and lower back muscle exercises in any order you want.

Lower body
1. Butt
2. Thighs
3. Calves and shins (It doesn’t matter which comes first although we prefer to work our calves before our shins.)

Working all of your major muscle groups

Be sure that your routines include at least one exercise for each of the following muscle groups.

• Butt or buttocks (glutes)
• Front thighs (quadriceps)
• Rear thighs (hamstrings)
• Calves
• Chest (pecs)
• Back
• Abdominals (abs)
• Shoulders (delts)
• Front of upper arm (biceps)
• Rear of upper arm (triceps)

You have exercises for additional muscle groups, such as the wrist and shin muscles and inner and outer thighs. But for general fitness, the preceding muscles should be your highest priorities. If you neglect any of these muscle groups, you’ll have a gap in your strength, and you may set yourself up for injury.

If you avoid training any particular muscle group, you also may end up with a body that looks out of proportion. You don’t need to hit all your muscle groups on the same day — just make sure that you work each group twice a week.

Getting Acquainted with Sets

Beginners should start with one set for each of the major muscle groups listed under “Previewing Weight Routine Essentials: Working all of your major muscle groups.” That’s roughly 11 sets per workout. The ACSM recommends one-set training because most of your gains occur from that first set. You’ll, of course, gain more strength and faster results with more sets, but your program takes more time. After a month or two, you may want to increase the number of sets. But then again, you may not. If your goal is to gain moderate amounts of strength and maintain your health, one set may be as much as you ever need to do.

If you want to continue to increase your strength over time, studies show that trained individuals require multiple-set training of at least three or more. A trained person is someone who’s been lifting consistently for at least three months. In addition to increasing the number of sets, you should also vary your training volume and intensity over time with periodized training as explained later in this section. Increases in training should be gradual to avoid injury from overtraining.

However, if your goal is to become as strong as you can or reshape an area of your body, you need to perform more than three sets per muscle group. Some serious weight lifters perform as many as 20. (However, they don’t do 20 sets of the same exercise; they may do 5 sets each of 4 different exercises that work the same muscle.) The principle of specificity of training determines how much rest you should take in between sets.

Beginners should take all the rest they need because you’re just becoming acquainted with your body and want to avoid injury. New exercisers may take up to twice as long to rest as those who’re more experienced. The National Strength and Conditioning Association recommends that your rest period be based on your training goal. If your goal is to increase endurance and you’re lifting 12 or more reps, your rest period should be up to 30 seconds.

If your goal is to increase size, and you’re lifting between 6 to 12 reps, you should rest between 30 to 90 seconds. If your goal is to increase strength and you’re lifting fewer than six reps, you should rest between two to five minutes. People who train for pure strength are going for all-out lifts — a very intense approach. Circuit training, which emphasizes muscular endurance or what is sometimes described as cardio-resistance, involves taking little or no rest between sets.