For those of you starting out, I will explain what I believe is the best way to figure out what weight to use. I will also provide a few tips/examples of how to progress. Progress is in my opinion one of single most important concepts of weight training.
1) Picking a starting weight.
Your first day in the gym is going to a lot of experimenting and figuring stuff out. I will use the bench press as my example, but this concept should be applied to all exercises.
Repeat this process until it is moderately difficult to get whatever your target rep range is. Don't worry about how many sets it take to get there. This is one time deal and then you don't have to do again.
This will be the baseline weight that will use.
RECORD this in a training journal (You can start one here! http://gymkaki.com/forums/progress-journal.14/)
2) Making progress.
The key to making progress in the gym is changing the loading parameters. This can be accomplished in a number of ways, but I will go of the most common first.
Weight progression - If during a given training session you complete are all your sets and reps then the next session you should add more weight. It is as simple as that. If you don't get all your reps and sets then stay at the weight the following week and try again. It doesn't matter if take you 4 weeks to hit all your target reps, but hopefully you are least getting 1 more rep than the week before.
Set progression - Under this scheme you will added a set each week. Here is an example.
At this point you might want to move up to 105 and repeat the process above.
Rep progress - Under this scheme you will added a rep each week. Here is an example.
Add weight repeat.
Time progression - Under the scheme you goal will be to reduce the amount of time you rest between each set. Example:
Add weight.
As you can see there are many ways to progress. The most important lesson to take away from this is that progression is the key. You should strive for progress from session to session. This is where keeping a training log will come in handy (http://gymkaki.com/forums/progress-journal.14/).
1) Picking a starting weight.
Your first day in the gym is going to a lot of experimenting and figuring stuff out. I will use the bench press as my example, but this concept should be applied to all exercises.
- Start with bar.
- Get a feel for the movement.
- Bang out some reps.
- If you can get 15+ reps pretty easily then you should probably add some weight.
- Add 5-10 lbs and go at it again. Don't just throw plates on go at it. This is stupid and you might get hurt.
Repeat this process until it is moderately difficult to get whatever your target rep range is. Don't worry about how many sets it take to get there. This is one time deal and then you don't have to do again.
This will be the baseline weight that will use.
RECORD this in a training journal (You can start one here! http://gymkaki.com/forums/progress-journal.14/)
2) Making progress.
The key to making progress in the gym is changing the loading parameters. This can be accomplished in a number of ways, but I will go of the most common first.
Weight progression - If during a given training session you complete are all your sets and reps then the next session you should add more weight. It is as simple as that. If you don't get all your reps and sets then stay at the weight the following week and try again. It doesn't matter if take you 4 weeks to hit all your target reps, but hopefully you are least getting 1 more rep than the week before.
Set progression - Under this scheme you will added a set each week. Here is an example.
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 3 sets of 8
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 8
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 5 sets of 8
At this point you might want to move up to 105 and repeat the process above.
Rep progress - Under this scheme you will added a rep each week. Here is an example.
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 6
Session 2 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 7
Session 3 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 8
Add weight repeat.
Time progression - Under the scheme you goal will be to reduce the amount of time you rest between each set. Example:
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 8 2 mins between sets.
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 8 1.5 mins between sets.
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 8 1 mins between sets.
Session 1 Bench 100 lbs 4 sets of 8 0.5 mins between sets.
Add weight.
As you can see there are many ways to progress. The most important lesson to take away from this is that progression is the key. You should strive for progress from session to session. This is where keeping a training log will come in handy (http://gymkaki.com/forums/progress-journal.14/).