Information On Weight Training

Weight training is a collection of exercises that build the body's strength and muscle mass. Often referred to as body building, weight training is a term in its own standing. Body building is the sport that measures the athletes' strength while weight training is part of the athletes' workout. Weight training is what leads to increase in muscle mass.

Weight training is significantly different from other workouts such as cardio exercises. Where cardio workouts help the body to lose fat and improve stamina, weight training helps the body gain muscle mass. Cardio workouts aim to give the body a healthy supply of oxygenated blood, they strengthen the cardiac muscle, speed up metabolism and maintain health. They are collectively referred to as aerobic exercises. But they do not build strength or muscle mass. Weight training exercises aim to build an oxygen deficit in the body. This is done by creating great intensity in the workout. The weight training principle of ‘overload' works on the premise that when you lift the maximum weight, your muscles are under the maximum stress. In this condition, while there is contraction of the muscles, your body also needs energy. But the need for energy is far greater than the supply. Hence an oxygen deficit is created. The body has a mechanism to deal with this deficit as well; it starts to burn stored glycogen through anabolism. This converts the glycogen to lactic acid which causes a burning sensation in the muscles and causes a slight tear as well. This tear tells the body that it needs to heal and grow stronger. The muscle which grows to replace the torn muscle is bigger in size and greater in mass.

After weight training like this, the muscles also need rest. Continuously exhausting the muscles and damaging like this, without giving intervals for healing and relief can cause permanent muscle damage. A muscle set should never be exercised for longer than 5-10 minutes at a time or for more than 2 days in a row. Most experts go with training one muscle set for only one day a week.

As you can see that the key to muscle growth is the intensity that is built up when you lift weights. This means that lifting the maximum weight is crucial to the success of your weight lifting workout. Another crucial part of the workout is ‘progression'. Just as the muscles will grow bigger and stronger from the tear they receive when you lift a heavy, they will be in a perfectly workable condition when you lift the same weight again. The human body is highly adaptive and responds to change. The muscles are no exception. For continuous muscle growth, you have to lift heavier with eat new set of exercises that you do. Increasing the intensity of your workout also means shortening the time needed to perform them. When you lift greater weights, fewer reps will be required.

Women can and do weight train, with equally benefiting results as the men receive. The myth that women may bulk up if they start to weight train is just a tale. Men have naturally high levels of testosterone that build the huge muscle mass. Women don't have the needed testosterone levels and instead get lean muscle mass that makes them look like super models

• John Palsson
• 22/06/2009, 12:59 AM
• 0 Comments