So, you’ve decided to dive into strength training, awesome choice! Whether you’re looking to build muscle, tone up, or just feel stronger in your everyday life, strength training is one of the best things you can do for your body. Let’s break down the basics so you can hit the gym (or home workout) with confidence.
Before you get started, there are a few things you need to know in order to get the most out of strength training to make it safe and effective, let's dive in
#1 - what is strength training
First and foremost, what is strength training? Strength training is all about challenging your muscles by using resistance—think weights, resistance bands, or even your body weight, to make them stronger. Over time, this helps increase muscle mass, improve your metabolism, boost your muscular endurance, increase bone density, improve flexibility & mobility, and improve our overall quality of life. Not bad, huh?
While many people use strength training to improve their aesthetics (which is a totally valid reason for strength training), it is important to know all the benefits it can provide for us and why everyone should include some sort of strength training in their routine.
#2 - benefits of strength training
As mentioned previously, there are many important benefits to strength training beyond aesthetic gains 1. Build Muscle: More muscle means more strength and better performance in both workouts and everyday activities.
2. Burn Fat: Muscle burns more calories at rest than fat, so building muscle helps boost your metabolism, making it easier to stay lean.
3. Increase Bone Density: Strength training helps prevent bone loss and reduces the risk of osteoporosis, keeping your bones healthy as you age.
4. Improve Posture and Stability: Strong muscles, especially in your core and back, lead to better posture and fewer aches and pains.
5. Boost Confidence: As you get stronger and start seeing progress, your confidence will skyrocket.
"don't chase somebody else's body; work on building your own"
#3 - Key strength training movements
It's important to note that I said movements, not exercises, and there is an important reason for that. So often, especially when starting out, we can get caught up in "which exercise is best for (insert muscle group)" or doing the exercise you were told you need to from that guy at your gym or the influencer on Instagram. I'm not saying they are bad sources of information, but that there are no best or essential exercises. There are, however, essential movements to perform in order to maintain function throughout our life; the novelty can come later. With that said, let's break down the essential movements.
1. Squat pattern: Quads, hamstrings, glutes, and core
How:
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, toes slightly outward. Engage core, keep chest up, retract shoulder blades for neutral spine. Squat hinge at hips, push back as if sitting into chair, bend knees tracking over toes, weight on heels and midfoot. Lower body until thighs parallel to ground. Drive back up through heels and midfoot, extending hips and knees, squeeze glutes. Repeat for desired reps with controlled motion.
2. Lunge pattern: Quads, hamstrings, glutes, and core
How: Stand tall with feet hip-width apart and engage core for stability. Step forward, backward, or to the side for different lunge types. Initiate the lunge by stepping with one leg, bending both knees to about 90 degrees. Lower back knee without touching the ground, keeping front knee aligned with ankle and torso upright. Push back up through the heel to return to starting position. Alternate legs or complete reps on each side for different lunge variations.
3. Hip hinge: Hamstrings, glutes, lower back, and core
How: Start with feet hip-width apart and a slight knee bend. Keep chest up, shoulders back, and engage core. Use Dumbbells or a barbell for exercise. Initiate hip hinge movement, imagine there is a drawer behind you, and you are trying to close that drawer with your butt (pardon my French) . Maintain neutral spine and tight core. Lower weight or torso until feeling hamstring stretch. Return by driving hips forward and standing tall.
4. Push pattern: Chest, shoulders, and triceps
How: For push-ups, place hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart on the floor. For bench presses, grip barbell slightly wider than shoulder-width. For overhead presses, stand tall, grip barbell/dumbbells at shoulder height just outside shoulder-width. Engage core, keep neutral spine, and stabilize body. Drive hands/bar away from body, fully extend arms, and avoid locking out elbows. Lower weight/body back in a controlled manner.
5. Pull pattern: Shoulders, upper back, traps, lats, and biceps
How: For rows or pull-ups, use the appropriate equipment: overhand or underhand grip for pull-ups, barbell, dumbbell, or cable machine for rows. Engage core and scapula by tightening abdominal muscles and retracting shoulder blades. Initiate the pull by driving elbows back or down towards ribs, focusing on using back muscles. Pull until elbows pass torso or chin is above the bar. Lower with control, extending arms fully back to starting position while maintaining tension.
6. Carry: Lats, biceps, upper back, core, shoulders, forearms, glutes, erector spinae, and many more
How: Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart. Grab a heavy dumbbell, kettlebell, or similar weight in each hand. Keep your chest up, shoulders back, and core engaged. Begin walking in a straight line for a designated distance or time while maintaining an upright posture and a strong grip on the weights. Avoid leaning forward, rounding your back, or allowing your shoulders to slump.
Grabbed a coffee and maybe a snack? Good, don't worry, we are almost done.
Tip #4 - How to structure your workout
This is the part most people struggle with. Now, there isn't actually a wrong way to structure your workout, just a better way depending on your goals and intentions. We may dive into different workout structures in another post, but for now, here are some general guidelines.
For beginners, start with full-body workouts 2-3 times per week. This way, you’ll hit each muscle group multiple times without overtraining. Here’s a simple structure to follow:
1. Warm-up (5-10 minutes): Do some light cardio and dynamic stretching to get your blood flowing and muscles ready. it can also be a good idea to do 1-2 sets of your first exercises at a low weight to get used to the movement
2. Compound Exercises (30-40 minutes): Focus on big, multi-joint movements like our 6 Key movements listed previously. These give you the most return in terms of strength and muscle growth.
3. Accessory Work (10-15 minutes): Add in exercises that target smaller muscle groups, like bicep curls, triceps dips, or core exercises.
4. Cool Down (5-10 minutes): Stretch to help reduce muscle soreness and improve flexibility.
Sets, Reps, and Progression
Reps: Start with 8-12 repetitions (reps) for most exercises. This is a good range for building both strength and muscle while being able to focus on form and quality movement.
Sets: Do 2-5 sets per exercise. If you're new to strength training, aim for 2-3 sets and increase as you get stronger.
Progressive Overload: To keep making gains, you need to gradually increase the challenge. This can mean lifting heavier weights, doing more reps, or increasing your workout intensity over time.
Tip #5 - Tips for success
1. Focus on Form: Good form is crucial to avoid injury and maximize results. If you’re unsure about a movement, don’t be afraid to ask for help or check out tutorials online.
2. Rest & Recovery: Give your muscles time to recover. Aim for at least one day of rest between strength sessions targeting the same muscle groups.
3. Eat to Fuel Your Training: Strength training demands energy, so make sure you’re eating enough protein and carbs to fuel your workouts and recovery.
4. Stay Consistent: You won’t see changes overnight, but stick with it! Consistency is key to long-term progress.
5. Track Your Progress: Keep a log of your workouts, noting the exercises, weights, sets, and reps. Seeing improvements over time is one of the most rewarding aspects of strength training.
Final thoughts
Starting out with strength training might feel like a lot, but don't stress. Just take it easy, work on the basics, and check out the tips I've shared from my own journey. If you need help with your training plan, click below to learn more about my services! Until next time.
Cheers,
-Coach Taj
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