Welcome to Free Fitness Gym,
We have a weights session for you today that you can do week in week out with great results. Nick is a personal trainer and has used this routine with many clients, men and women to achieve great results. Many women are worried about doing weights because they think that they will get big bulky muscles, and this is simply not true. Helen who features in this workout does weights on a regular basis and has achieved great results without gaining bulky muscles. Women do not have the testosterone levels to get huge muscles. Men on the other hand have on average 40 times more testosterone in their bodies than women, and can do the same weight program as a woman (generally lifting heavier weights), and achieve bigger muscles.
If you have dedicated years to fitness training and are still not quite getting the results you want, then you should really think about incorporating a weights routine into your training regime.
We have a good length warm up in today's workout to make sure that all of the muscles, joints. ligaments and tendons are ready for the work load we are about to put them under.
You can use this program week in week out, you just need to make sure that you are progressing the weight you are lifting as you go along. The increase in weights you can lift will depend on how often you are training, your diet, sex, genetics, and dedication to never missing a workout. Nick who has trained Helen for many years personally uses this routine up to 3 times per week to keep his muscles ticking over, and also used this routine with Helen to tweak her muscular toning.
Diet is very important when it comes to weight lifting and muscle toning, and if you do not eat the right foods then all of your hard work will go un noticed. You will want to eat a clean healthy diet that is high in protein. After a workout you muscles will need a protein intake to help them recover. Your muscles will recover during the day and will need a high protein diet to achieve maximum results. At night time your body produces a hormone that helps the muscles to repair which is why sleep is so important if you are weight lifting. But this also means that when you wake up in the morning you muscles will be crying out for a protein intake because they will have been working hard repairing themselves whilst you slept. So make sure your breakfast contains a good amount of protein. Many people struggle to fit a protein intake into their breakfast meal due to time or the fact that they just can't stomach protein in the morning. This is where many people turn to protein shakes as an easy solution for a quick protein fix.
Workout Breakdown:
We will be super setting 2 exercises at a time, this allows one muscle group to recover whilst we work another muscle group, and maximizes your time training. Super setting simply means doing alternating between exercises. Today we are super setting 2 exercises at a time.
Exercises:
Warm up included
Chest flyes - Plank ... 3 sets of 12 reps for chest flyes with a 30 second plank between sets.
Bicep curls - Weighted triceps ... 3 sets of 12 reps alternating exercises.
Weighted squats - Shoulder raise on each side .. 3 sets of 12 reps alternating exercises.
Cool down stretches.
Exercise Description
Chest flyes: Make sure you engage the core muscles during this exercise, and when you are lifting the weights up exhale, and inhale as you lower the weights. You want to have a slight bend in the arms as you raise and lower the weights, we want elbows to touch the ground but not the weights. Keep a slight bend in the arms as you lift the weight up above the sternum / chest. Do not increase the bend in the arm, we want a stiff arm raise to make a nice long lever when lifting the weights.
Plank: A great exercise for the core muscles and this exercise will be used as a recovery exercise between sets of chest flyes.
Weighted squats: Keep feet shoulder width apart and hold the weights to the chest. On the upward phase of the squat exhale, and inhale on the way down. Drive through the heels of the feet to engage the glutes / bottom muslces. Keep a nice straight back throughout the full range of the exercise. Holding the weights to the chest will force the stomach and back muscles to work hard. This is quite a cheeky exercise so take a break afterwards if you need to. On the downward phase of the exercise we want your thighs to be parallel to the ground
Shoulder raise: You can either do individual shoulder raises or double shoulder raises as is featured in the fitness video. As you lift the weights up above the head exhale, and inhale on the way down. Try and get a full range through the muscle as you work, ie bring the weight down so that your elbow touches your side, then lift the weight up until arms are 95 % extended. Make sure you engage the core muscles throughout this exercise to help support your back. Keep the feet shoulder width apart, and try to have just the shoulder muscle doing the work as opposed to contorting your body to get the work done.
Bicep curls: Stand with feet shoulder width apart and engage the core muscles. Stand tall and proud and lever the movement just through the elbow. We do not want the shoulders lifting as we do the work. As you lift the weight up exhale, and inhale as you lower the weight. Try and get a full range of movement through the biceps by lowering the weights all the way down so that arms are fully extended, then as you lift the weights again, engage the core muscles and bring the weight up as far as you can. In regards to hand grip / weight position, there are many variations. Try and use the variation that Helen is using in this workout video.
Weighted triceps: Follow Helen's instructions on how to hold the weights. When we are in position make sure that your feet are shoulder width apart, tense the core muscles as you lift the weight above the head. Try to keep elbows tucked in close to the head and the back nice and straight. Exhale as you lift the weight up, and inhale as you lower the weight. Try and work the muscle through a full range of movement. Fully extend arms on the way up, and try to touch the spine gently with the weights on the way down. This is quite a difficult exercise to master but once you have done it a few times you mind and body will be used to it. All new exercises will feel a little foreign to begin with.
We hope you enjoy the workout, weights really are fantastic at forcing muscles to tone up and get the results so many of you are after. Take the warm up and cool down stretches seriously to avoid injury and we look forward to hearing how you got on
We have a weights session for you today that you can do week in week out with great results. Nick is a personal trainer and has used this routine with many clients, men and women to achieve great results. Many women are worried about doing weights because they think that they will get big bulky muscles, and this is simply not true. Helen who features in this workout does weights on a regular basis and has achieved great results without gaining bulky muscles. Women do not have the testosterone levels to get huge muscles. Men on the other hand have on average 40 times more testosterone in their bodies than women, and can do the same weight program as a woman (generally lifting heavier weights), and achieve bigger muscles.
If you have dedicated years to fitness training and are still not quite getting the results you want, then you should really think about incorporating a weights routine into your training regime.
We have a good length warm up in today's workout to make sure that all of the muscles, joints. ligaments and tendons are ready for the work load we are about to put them under.
You can use this program week in week out, you just need to make sure that you are progressing the weight you are lifting as you go along. The increase in weights you can lift will depend on how often you are training, your diet, sex, genetics, and dedication to never missing a workout. Nick who has trained Helen for many years personally uses this routine up to 3 times per week to keep his muscles ticking over, and also used this routine with Helen to tweak her muscular toning.
Diet is very important when it comes to weight lifting and muscle toning, and if you do not eat the right foods then all of your hard work will go un noticed. You will want to eat a clean healthy diet that is high in protein. After a workout you muscles will need a protein intake to help them recover. Your muscles will recover during the day and will need a high protein diet to achieve maximum results. At night time your body produces a hormone that helps the muscles to repair which is why sleep is so important if you are weight lifting. But this also means that when you wake up in the morning you muscles will be crying out for a protein intake because they will have been working hard repairing themselves whilst you slept. So make sure your breakfast contains a good amount of protein. Many people struggle to fit a protein intake into their breakfast meal due to time or the fact that they just can't stomach protein in the morning. This is where many people turn to protein shakes as an easy solution for a quick protein fix.
Workout Breakdown:
We will be super setting 2 exercises at a time, this allows one muscle group to recover whilst we work another muscle group, and maximizes your time training. Super setting simply means doing alternating between exercises. Today we are super setting 2 exercises at a time.
Exercises:
Warm up included
Chest flyes - Plank ... 3 sets of 12 reps for chest flyes with a 30 second plank between sets.
Bicep curls - Weighted triceps ... 3 sets of 12 reps alternating exercises.
Weighted squats - Shoulder raise on each side .. 3 sets of 12 reps alternating exercises.
Cool down stretches.
Exercise Description
Chest flyes: Make sure you engage the core muscles during this exercise, and when you are lifting the weights up exhale, and inhale as you lower the weights. You want to have a slight bend in the arms as you raise and lower the weights, we want elbows to touch the ground but not the weights. Keep a slight bend in the arms as you lift the weight up above the sternum / chest. Do not increase the bend in the arm, we want a stiff arm raise to make a nice long lever when lifting the weights.
Plank: A great exercise for the core muscles and this exercise will be used as a recovery exercise between sets of chest flyes.
Weighted squats: Keep feet shoulder width apart and hold the weights to the chest. On the upward phase of the squat exhale, and inhale on the way down. Drive through the heels of the feet to engage the glutes / bottom muslces. Keep a nice straight back throughout the full range of the exercise. Holding the weights to the chest will force the stomach and back muscles to work hard. This is quite a cheeky exercise so take a break afterwards if you need to. On the downward phase of the exercise we want your thighs to be parallel to the ground
Shoulder raise: You can either do individual shoulder raises or double shoulder raises as is featured in the fitness video. As you lift the weights up above the head exhale, and inhale on the way down. Try and get a full range through the muscle as you work, ie bring the weight down so that your elbow touches your side, then lift the weight up until arms are 95 % extended. Make sure you engage the core muscles throughout this exercise to help support your back. Keep the feet shoulder width apart, and try to have just the shoulder muscle doing the work as opposed to contorting your body to get the work done.
Bicep curls: Stand with feet shoulder width apart and engage the core muscles. Stand tall and proud and lever the movement just through the elbow. We do not want the shoulders lifting as we do the work. As you lift the weight up exhale, and inhale as you lower the weight. Try and get a full range of movement through the biceps by lowering the weights all the way down so that arms are fully extended, then as you lift the weights again, engage the core muscles and bring the weight up as far as you can. In regards to hand grip / weight position, there are many variations. Try and use the variation that Helen is using in this workout video.
Weighted triceps: Follow Helen's instructions on how to hold the weights. When we are in position make sure that your feet are shoulder width apart, tense the core muscles as you lift the weight above the head. Try to keep elbows tucked in close to the head and the back nice and straight. Exhale as you lift the weight up, and inhale as you lower the weight. Try and work the muscle through a full range of movement. Fully extend arms on the way up, and try to touch the spine gently with the weights on the way down. This is quite a difficult exercise to master but once you have done it a few times you mind and body will be used to it. All new exercises will feel a little foreign to begin with.
We hope you enjoy the workout, weights really are fantastic at forcing muscles to tone up and get the results so many of you are after. Take the warm up and cool down stretches seriously to avoid injury and we look forward to hearing how you got on
