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1. Cardio Before or
After Weights? link to faq 17, faq 3 Q: Should I do cardiovascular work before or after the weights? See the "12 Mistakes Made In The Gym" Q: I want to tone up, but I don't want to get too big. How can I achieve this? A: You should work out exactly as described above with one exception: once your muscles are as toned as you want them, stop increasing the amount of weight. Performing sets of endless repetitions with extremely light weight is a waste of time. It will not make you more toned. There are only two reasons to perform more than 12 repetitions in a set: 1) you really like to warm up thoroughly or 2) you really like the feel of the pump after a high-rep set. High repetitions will not lead to toning, or hypertrophy for that matter. Getting big is extremely difficult, especially for women. Most men and 99.9% of all women do not have the capacity to get large. If, after two years of lifting weights intensely, you become too large, you are either a genetic freak or on drugs. So many lifters want to be big and so few ever achieve it because it is so difficult. Do not worry about getting too large. Lift weights to strengthen your muscles, this will improve their tone. High repetitions will only increase the amount of time, possibly indefinitely, required to achieve your goal of being toned. Lift hard, and once you are toned, then stop increasing the weights. In addition, fat hides muscle tone. Many people can look toned just by dropping some body fat (see Is weightlifting important to fat loss?) Q: Is weightlifting beneficial for my health? Yes. Muscle is what moves us and it's something we all lose as we age. The loss begins about age 25 resulting in about a 10% loss by age 50. Between the ages of 50 and 80, people lose about half their strength and about 40% of their muscle. The exact mechanism causing this change is unknown, but it is thought that it is related to altered interactions between muscle cells and motor nerves. Muscle loss leads to a lower metabolic rate and, thus, weight gain unless Calorie intake is reduced (which rarely happens). Age associated muscle wasting can lead to a number of problems where older people may not have the strength to lift loads, rise from a chair, or carry out the daily activities required for independent living. Weight lifting or resistance training can actually prevent this muscle loss. So far, strength training is the only method shown effective at slowing this loss of muscle. Aerobic exercise does not stem muscle loss. Physiologists indicate that, ideally, a person would begin weight training before age 50 (those of us at mfw would suggest by age 20). The benefits are not restricted to older members of society. Interestingly, studies have shown that 87 year old men and women experienced a 90% increase in strength over a 10 week period of resistance training. If you have high blood pressure, diabetes, heart pains or any heart or circulatory condition, it is essential to check with your physician before beginning. Strength training has been shown to increase bone-density in post-menopausal women, helping to prevent bone fractures. In addition, weightlifting can improve neural control of muscles which can prevent the types of accidents that often cause bone fractures in the elderly. In addition, weightlifting can contribute greatly to the control of body fat. Therefore, weightlifting can be very beneficial for those who have a tendency towards obesity. As more studies are done, more and more beneficial effects of weightlifting are becoming evident. A: Use weight for resistance. 100 reps of any exercise is a waste of time. Crunches are good because they focus on the abs. I view crunches as an isolation movement. Compound movements are usually better, so I actually recommend sit ups (especially incline) with weight held on the chest. Yes, sit ups work the hip flexors and other muscles as well, but these muscles are critical to movements like the squat, deadlift and other serious compound movements. Who wants weak hip flexors anyway? The High-Intensity Abdominal Workout: For those who are obsessed with their abdominal muscles, are willing to spare no expense to develop them, and want a hard-core, high-intensity, low-repetition abdominal workout, there IS an answer. The primary problem with this method is the fact that the required equipment is [a] rather expensive, and [b] since the late 1980s, rather difficult to find. You will need an "inversion table" with "gravity boots." For those unfamiliar with such devices, a brief explanation is in order. "Gravity boots" are padded, metal collars which are clamped onto your ankles and which have a strong metal hook that protrudes from the front, directly over the foot. An "inversion table" is designed for use with gravity boots. It is like a vertical army cot with two bars spanning the foot end, one below the feet, and one above the feet. It is attached to a stand by a single pivot hinge on each side. After fitting the gravity boots, you step onto the inversion table with your feet on the lowest bar and the hooks of the boots locked beneath the upper bar. Then, you simply throw your weight backwards, causing the table to pivot approximately 180 degrees on its hinges, leaving you suspended by your ankles, completely upside-down. Please note that a good inversion table will pivot beyond perpendicular, breaking contact with all parts of your body other than your ankles; some of them will not reach full perpendicular, leaving you mostly inverted but still laying on the surface of the table. The latter is not well suited to this type of exercise. Once inverted, you can perform a normal "crunch" routine. The complete inversion of your body will provide extreme resistance which will result in the much-desired abdominal "burn" long before the number of repetitions required when doing crunches on the floor or on a slant board. However, a few suggestions on technique will be helpful: (1) Do NOT hold your hands behind your head; clasp them across your chest. Your neck should be held in a relaxed position, with your head back, "pulling" yourself forward with your shoulders, not your head. When you find yourself able to do more than 20 repetitions, you may clasp a weight plate to your chest to add resistance, increasing the size of the plate each time you can exceed 20 repetitions. (2) Although it will be slightly difficult, bending slightly at the knees will decrease stress on your back. However, even with your legs fully extended, you will find that the usual back stress experienced during traditional crunches is almost non-existent when performing "inverted" crunches. Aside from the increased resistance in using this abdominal workout, there are a few other advantages: (1) No "tailbone rash." The usual abrasion caused by constant friction on the sacral spine area during traditional crunches no longer exists. Your back does not contact any solid surface; therefore, no friction. (2) No "head banging." There is no solid surface to come into contact with your head, either. That is why you can easily hold your head back during this routine without worrying about striking it on the floor and without the need to support it in any way. Abdominal Training FAQ A: Everyone has a six-pack of abs. The ability to see them is completely dependent upon body fat levels. If you want to show off a washboard stomach, then drop the body fat. Spot reduction is a myth. Hundreds of sit-ups or crunches will not "bring out" the abs if they're covered in fat. If you want to increase the strength of your abdominals (and every lifter should), then perform abdominal exercises with WEIGHT. 100 reps of any exercise is a waste of time. Q: How many times per week should I lift? A: Some beginners make fine progress training the entire body three times a week, a Mon, Wed and Fri routine, for example. Other beginners require more recuperation time and make gains training the entire body only once per week. People differ and so do individual muscle groups. Some muscles can be trained more frequently than others. Find a routine that is comfortable for you and allows you to make progress. If you aren't making any progress consider the possibility that you are overtraining (quite common) or even undertraining (less common). Q: Should I be concerned about the amount of weight I lift? A: Initially, no. The most important thing for a beginner is to learn proper lifting technique. However, the basic principle of getting larger through weightlifting is progressive overload. You must increase the weight (load) so that the muscle will be forced to adapt to the increase in stress. Bouncing and moving the weight too quickly will not stress your muscles into growing and it will likely stress your joints unnecessarily. Remember, that for bodybuilders, the goal is not to lift the weight. Weightlifting, for bodybuilders, is merely a method to stress the muscles. A bodybuilder should work the muscle, or muscle group that the exercise focuses on, not try to heave the weight up by any means possible. There is a difference between lifting a weight and working a muscle, although it basically comes down to using proper form and technique. For example, if your lower back becomes stressed from doing biceps curls, you should consider paying more attention to working the biceps, not trying to get too much weight up by throwing out your back. Comparing yourself to other lifters is also unnecessary. Everyone starts at a different level. Q: What is a 'Hardgainer'? / What is a Hardgainer routine'? A: A hardgainer (HG) is someone who has a genetic make-up which does not allow him/her to pack on muscle quickly. These type of people typically do not respond large volumes and frequency of training. It has been estimated that 60%-95% of the population are hardgainers. HG routines use low volumes and frequencies of training. A HG routine will usually train each body part no more than once per week. Compound movements (like squats and deadlifts) are favored over isolation movements (like leg extensions or hamstring curls). Hardgainers are prone to overtraining when using high volume/frequency workouts, hence the general rule of thumb is 'less is more'.
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