Weight Lifting Question

Hey everyone, I was wondering if you all wouldn't mind giving a bit
of advice. I'm a 40 year old woman, and am losing weight now. I
started at 258, and am now at 237. In addition to eating better and
doing cardio I've been lifting for going on three months now, and seeing
pretty good progress. I was very weak to start, especially in my arms,
and still am, but getting better. Just so you have an idea, I start
bench pressing 20 pounds, and am now up to 50. I do three sets of 15
reps, 3 times a week.

I'm not sure I've been going about knowing when to up my lifting
weights the right way. The way I have been doing it is that when I can
get get through a set of 15 reps without having to rest in the middle of
it, then it is time to add 10 more pounds.

It seems to have been working so far, but I'm not sure that this is
the right way. The last time I worked out I was able to get through
some of my arm exercises without stopping, so it would be time to up the
iron. However, my arms today (Wednesday) are still sore from my
workout on Monday. The idea of doing 60 pounds on my arms is exciting
to me, but I don't want to damage myself by going nuts.

So, do I know when it is time to up the weights?

--
Annie

Annie Benson Lennaman wrote:
So, do I know when it is time to up the weights?

You are making great progress so it seems to be working.

There are a lot of different approaches to weights. The most important
point is to eat lots of cabbage :-)

Personally i would up the weight at 12 reps, but i don't think it's a
big deal. I go for a little more strength though.

A good book is Strong Women Stay Slim.

If you can do 12 reps you need to add weights, but I wouldn't add ten pounds
with upper body for a women. Use 5 pounds until you can do 12 reps then add
another 5 pounds. Just my thought.
Roxan
"Annie Benson Lennaman" wrote in
message . ..
Hey everyone, I was wondering if you all wouldn't mind giving a bit
of advice. I'm a 40 year old woman, and am losing weight now. I
started at 258, and am now at 237. In addition to eating better and
doing cardio I've been lifting for going on three months now, and seeing
pretty good progress. I was very weak to start, especially in my arms,
and still am, but getting better. Just so you have an idea, I start
bench pressing 20 pounds, and am now up to 50. I do three sets of 15
reps, 3 times a week.

I'm not sure I've been going about knowing when to up my lifting
weights the right way. The way I have been doing it is that when I can
get get through a set of 15 reps without having to rest in the middle of
it, then it is time to add 10 more pounds.

It seems to have been working so far, but I'm not sure that this is
the right way. The last time I worked out I was able to get through
some of my arm exercises without stopping, so it would be time to up the
iron. However, my arms today (Wednesday) are still sore from my
workout on Monday. The idea of doing 60 pounds on my arms is exciting
to me, but I don't want to damage myself by going nuts.

So, do I know when it is time to up the weights?

--
Annie

Annie Benson Lennaman wrote in
message . ..
Hey everyone, I was wondering if you all wouldn't mind giving a
bit
of advice. I'm a 40 year old woman, and am losing weight now. I
started at 258, and am now at 237. In addition to eating better and
doing cardio I've been lifting for going on three months now, and
seeing
pretty good progress. I was very weak to start, especially in my
arms,
and still am, but getting better. Just so you have an idea, I start
bench pressing 20 pounds, and am now up to 50. I do three sets of
15
reps, 3 times a week.

Congratulations on your great progress in weight loss and strengh
gains!

I'm not sure I've been going about knowing when to up my lifting
weights the right way. The way I have been doing it is that when I
can
get get through a set of 15 reps without having to rest in the
middle of
it, then it is time to add 10 more pounds.

It seems to have been working so far, but I'm not sure that this
is
the right way.

What you are doing now is the typical protocol if your goal is to gain
muscle. There really isn't a "right" way to determine when to increase
the amount of weight you use to perform a certain exercise; it depends
on your goals.

The last time I worked out I was able to get through
some of my arm exercises without stopping, so it would be time to up
the
iron. However, my arms today (Wednesday) are still sore from my
workout on Monday.

I find that working out is one of the best ways to lessen muscle
soreness.

The idea of doing 60 pounds on my arms is exciting
to me, but I don't want to damage myself by going nuts.

If your goal is building muscle in your chest, shoulders, and the back
of your upper arms, I would increase the weight you use on the bench
press today. Is 10 pounds the minimum amount to increase the weight or
could you add just 5 pounds?

You might also consider doing a warm-up set of 15 reps with 20 pounds
before your 2 working sets. This warm up set can get blood to the
muscles and lessen the soreness remaining from Monday's workout.

On your working sets you don't have to do 15 reps. For example, you
might try to do 8 reps at 60 pounds this workout and gradually
increase the number of reps in subsequent workouts.

Matthew

"Annie Benson Lennaman" wrote in
message . ..
Hey everyone, I was wondering if you all wouldn't mind giving a bit
of advice. I'm a 40 year old woman, and am losing weight now. I
started at 258, and am now at 237. In addition to eating better and
doing cardio I've been lifting for going on three months now, and seeing
pretty good progress. I was very weak to start, especially in my arms,
and still am, but getting better. Just so you have an idea, I start
bench pressing 20 pounds, and am now up to 50. I do three sets of 15
reps, 3 times a week.

I'm not sure I've been going about knowing when to up my lifting
weights the right way. The way I have been doing it is that when I can
get get through a set of 15 reps without having to rest in the middle of
it, then it is time to add 10 more pounds.

It seems to have been working so far, but I'm not sure that this is
the right way. The last time I worked out I was able to get through
some of my arm exercises without stopping, so it would be time to up the
iron. However, my arms today (Wednesday) are still sore from my
workout on Monday. The idea of doing 60 pounds on my arms is exciting
to me, but I don't want to damage myself by going nuts.

So, do I know when it is time to up the weights?

It depends on your goals. First off, the person who recommended increases
in 5 lb increments for upper body is right on the mark. 10 lbs is probably
too much. Also, you are doing a lot of reps. You could try lifting more
weight at less reps. In general your goal is to get the proper form and
then depending on your mindset you want to work your sets at the highest
weight lets you get through the set without breaking form.

I've done 3 set workouts with 12/10/8 reps and an increase in each set.
I've also done a lot of workouts with 3 sets of 10. Working on my bench
press with a goal of powerlifting I did 5-6 sets, starting with a set of 10
to warm up, then 8-10 at a higher level, 6-8 at the next, 4-6 at the next,
then 2-4 and maybe 1-3 at the maximum weight.

Right now I'm rehabbing a rotator cuff and doing a lot of range-of-motion
activities which are very light weights with sets of 15-20. You're going to
get a lot of opinions on the matter because like dieting, there is no one
true way. A good website for reference though is
http://www.stumptuous.com/weights.html

--
the volleyballchick

Hi Annie,

I have a lot of opinions about weight lifting :-). But you've already
gotten lots of good advice here, so I don't really need to add
anything. As people have said, there are lots of different
approaches. And I think most of them work. The most important things
-- whatever approach you select -- a

a) Keep challenging your muscles. Whatever you pick for reps/sets
with a particular exercise should be challenging at first -- maybe
something you can't quite complete. When it is no longer so
challenging, increase the weight. It's okay if you can't do as many
reps at first -- that's what you should expect.

b) Don't get hurt :-). Increase the weight in modest increments. If
you are doing something where failure to complete a lift might result
in an injury (e.g., bench press), get someone to spot for you or stop
before you're sure it's the last rep you can do. If your form starts
deteriorating, don't try for more reps.

c) Get enough rest between sets so that you can give each one your
best shot. (Some people are into a sort of speed-around-in-a-circuit
weight lifting, in order to burn more calories or something. I think
this is just muddying the water between strength training and cardio,
so that you don't get the best of either.)

Chris
262/130s/130s
started dieting July 2002, maintaining since June 2004

It was great to get so many response so fast! You all gave me
something to think on.

I guess I should have mentioned that I am using a home gym,
the http://www.precor.com/hpr_str_zum.php to be exact (though I don't
have the leg/hip attachment thingy shown). The weights this thing use
are 10 pounds, so going up 5 pounds isn't in my means right now. But I
have started wondering if I can by some sort of 5 pound weight and
attach it to the lifting stack somehow, or maybe find a 5 pound magnet?
Hmmm. I need to look into this, because going up 10 pounds on the arms
is very hard for me.

I tried Matthew's suggestion of warming up my first set at a lower
weight, and it seems to have helped with the pain I usually feel. I
understand that in lifting I am creating tears in muscles which get
repaired over the next day, so some pain does seem enivetable. That's
ok with me, the results seem to be worth it. But warming up does make
good sense, and I might do this everytime I lift now. I will still gain
strength by using one of my sets this way?

I guess I'm a little fuzzy on what my goals are. I want to lose
weight. I want to gain muscle and be stronger. I know that these two
are at odds with one another. Basically I started lifting with the
hopes that this would help me retain my muscle mass as much as possible
as I diet. But this whole business of being able to lift more, and
seeing these funny hard lumps start to form in my forearms is pretty,
well, freaking awesome. I suspect that sooner or later my gains in
lifting strength will peter out, and I'll just be working to preserve
what I have gained (which isn't that bad of a thing; at least now I can
open a pickle jar without help).

Thanks very much for the advice given. I know very little about
fitness (obviously). I have gone to several web sites, including Krista
Smashes, and learned more than I did before. Even so, I know that there
many people who know alot more than I do, and I am very grateful that
they (you!) take the time to answer my questions.
--
Annie

Annie Benson Lennaman wrote in
message . ..
It was great to get so many response so fast! You all gave me
something to think on.

I guess I should have mentioned that I am using a home
gym,
the http://www.precor.com/hpr_str_zum.php to be exact (though I
don't
have the leg/hip attachment thingy shown).

Out of curiosity, do you have the leg press attachment?

The weights this thing use
are 10 pounds, so going up 5 pounds isn't in my means right now.
But I
have started wondering if I can by some sort of 5 pound weight and
attach it to the lifting stack somehow, or maybe find a 5 pound
magnet?
Hmmm. I need to look into this, because going up 10 pounds on the
arms
is very hard for me.

The HST (Hypertrophy Specific Training) folks talk about this a bit.
One article on the topic is he
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/ridgely4.htm.


I tried Matthew's suggestion of warming up my first set at a lower
weight, and it seems to have helped with the pain I usually feel.
I
understand that in lifting I am creating tears in muscles which get
repaired over the next day, so some pain does seem enivetable.
That's
ok with me, the results seem to be worth it. But warming up does
make
good sense, and I might do this everytime I lift now. I will still
gain
strength by using one of my sets this way?

The warm-up set is in addition to your working sets so you should be
able to make the same gains as you did when you were not using a
warm-up set(s). I've seen some antecdotal evidence that a warm-up may
help you lift more on your working sets, so they might even improve
your gains.

I guess I'm a little fuzzy on what my goals are. I want to lose
weight. I want to gain muscle and be stronger. I know that these
two
are at odds with one another.

In the long run, the goal gaining muscle is at odds with the goal of
losing weight. But that is not necessarily the case for the goal of
getting stronger. Building bigger muscles is only one way of getting
stronger. Typical routines to make the muscle you already have even
stronger are using very heavy weights for low reps and very long rest
periods.

Matthew

Thanks again, Matthew! I went to the link you provided, and they
suggested adding chains to a stack to adjust the increment. Chains?
Brilliant! I headed off to the local hardware store today and asked for
5 pounds of chain. I got a funny look, of course, since chains are
typically sold by the length, but they were happy to oblige me. I
wrapped the chain around the top weight of my stack, attached the clip
that was sold conviently next to the chain, and voila! I have a way to
increment by only five pounds now.

Yay!

--
Annie

AGE EverQuest Live FAQ:
http://www.icynic.com/~don/EQ/age.faq.htm

Mirrored at:
http://webpages.charter.net/lenny13/age.faq.htm

http://www.derfy.net/agefaq.html

"Annie Benson Lennaman" wrote in
message . ..
Thanks again, Matthew! I went to the link you provided, and they
suggested adding chains to a stack to adjust the increment. Chains?
Brilliant! I headed off to the local hardware store today and asked for
5 pounds of chain. I got a funny look, of course, since chains are
typically sold by the length, but they were happy to oblige me. I
wrapped the chain around the top weight of my stack, attached the clip
that was sold conviently next to the chain, and voila! I have a way to
increment by only five pounds now.

Yay!

Very neat idea. One of the power lifters in my gym uses chains in quite a
few ways - really big heavy ones. The way he does it, the weight increases
as he presses up the bar. All in all, ingenuity wins out in the end.

--
the volleyballchick