Less than you think! Especially when you are starting out we always see people giving themselves far too much work to do and end up hating their training. When you first start out you should always leave feeling like you could've done more. This has a couple of effects, one it leaves you less soreness the next day which is worse when you just start out. It'll also therefore have less impact on your normal day-to-day life. Secondly, you will be more motivated to go back next time and crush it, rather than be worried that you won't be able to walk up the stairs to bed again. As a rough guide, I would start off with 2-3 sets on a few exercises when you first start out. Then each week you can add a set. If you get to doing 6 or 7 sets per exercise and aren't feeling it too much one of two things are true. You're a cyborg and should report to John Connor for rebooting, or you could do with putting the weight up a little. As for how many reps to do, we recommend most beginners to start with reps of 6-8. This is the start range for traditional muscle growth programmes and isn't as challenging to get a grasp of as sets of 10-12. As you train more you can become more specific but at that point I would recommend getting a coach. Here is a basic guide of what rep ranges suit what training outcomes:
The best way to get a good grasp of how much you should do is to hire a personal trainer. either in-person or online are good options. We do both so if you can't make it in person then get in touch online and we would love to help you out!
If you have any more questions please do get in touch via our socials or contact page.
0 Comments
As a personal trainer who has been in the game for over a decade, it is easy to forget to mention the basics. We throw around terms like sets and reps all the time and it is too easy to forget that a lot of new people to the gym have no idea what we are talking about. In reality, it's quite simple, a rep is short for repetition and it is the amount of times you complete a lift in succession. For example, if you were to do 6 reps of press-ups, it means you would do 6 press-ups back to back without a break. This would also be known as 1 set. A set is an amount of reps done in one go. So if you were to repeat an exercise multiple times for 6 repetitions that would be a number of sets. For example, 3 sets of 6 reps on press-ups would mean that you would complete 6 press-ups, back to back with no rest. Then rest for a couple minutes and repeat this another two times. I hope that helps, most programmes also denote the number of overall sets to do, then the reps per set. An easy way to determine which way around it is, is most programmes will have a higher number of reps than it does sets.
If you would like any other help or have any questions please get in touch. Either via our socials or our contact page. Most information online massively over-complicates a warm-up. A good warm-up needs to prepare you for training, a lot of online warm-ups take more energy than half your workout. A proper warm-up should take 10-20 minutes max, and do three things.
This may sound complex but luckily in practicality, it is super simple and a lot of things you would do tick all three boxes. Now this advice is for people without pre-existing injuries or conditions. A medical professional like a Physiotherapist will be able to help you out there. First up hop on a rower or any bit of cardio equipment. Use it at a gentle pace until you break into a light sweat and are breathing a bit harder, traditionally for a few minutes. If you walk, run, or cycle to the gym this part is already done. There you are part one is taken care of. Next what you do is move to your first exercise, let's say a barbell back squat. don't just jump in at your working set. Do a couple sets with just the bar, then add some weight, do another set and repeat until you are at your working set. A little trial and error is required here. Some people will like to do a few more sets on the way up, some a little less. Also make sure you keep it specific there is no point warming up with sets of 3 if your work set is a set of 12. There you are part two and three complete and you are ready to go. I would repeat the above set for each new body type you train, so if you go from squat to bench then start again, however if for some reason you are a sadist and go from squat to split squats then you don't need to fully repeat this. If you would like to add anything else in then adding in some plyometrics can be beneficial, so some jumping variations etc. However be careful with these they are like training anything else don't just start doing dozens of jumps, throws and sprints before your workout. Ease into it. Warm up done and complete in no time at all, no need to spend 30 mins activating your left piriformis or make sure that you've foam rolled every square inch of your body. If you would like more help in how to get started with training then give us a shout on our socials or via our contact page.
Where to start can be a bit of a mine field, as well as a bit intimidating. Everything looks so complicated and hard to use. I promise you it's simple. If you are a little intimidated and not sure what to do I would reccomend starting with machines. They often have a little picture of how to set them up, and how to use them. Some even have little QR codes with videos of what to do. This make your life so much easier and you can't really go wrong from there. You can also push yourself really hard without worrying about your technique breaking down as a machine wont allow you to do that. If however you are a bit more confident, have used machines a little before, or have input from a personal trainer. Then I would reccomend starting with Free weights. One of the big downsides of machines is they don't allow for all the little differences in our bodies, which means they don't feel great for 90% of the people using them. Where as free weights can be adapted to suit litterally anyone. They also challenge all the little stabalisation muscles as well which is an added bonus, and seem to have a greater impact on your bone strength as they load the whole skeleton. However, it really doesn't matter where you start. Only that you start so go in pick a few things and get lifting!
If you want any help or advice on what to do give us a shout on any of our socials, or via our contact page. Are you eager to kickstart your fitness journey and reap the countless benefits of weight training? Look no further! In this beginner's guide, we'll point out everything you need to know to start weight training. Right here in Edinburgh. One: Just StartEven just one session every other week is powerful. Just get started, go to the gym pick three things to do. Do a few sets on each one then stop. Go back again in a few days and do the same. After a few weeks, you will already see amazing progress. If there is one takeaway from this blog, just start. Two: Set Clear GoalsBefore diving into weight training, take some time to define your goals. Whether you aim to build muscle, increase strength, or enhance your fitness level. Setting clear and achievable goals will help keep you motivated and focused throughout your journey. We even have another blog on how to do this here. Three: Keep it simpleYou don't need to use all the complicated equipment or exercises for success. Stick to the basics and you will be 90% of the way to achieving your goals. We have a whole bunch of exercise demos on our YouTube. Consider working with a Personal Trainer in Edinburgh to receive expert guidance and support tailored to your specific needs. Please get in touch if you have any questions we always love to help out, or even better book on for a free consultation. Then we can answer all your questions in person. Four: Start Slowly As a beginner, it's essential to start slowly and gradually increase the intensity of your workouts over time. You don't have to break yourself to make amazing progress, actually that's counterproductive. Also training too much before your body is ready for it is a highway to injury. Five: Incorporate Compound ExercisesCompound exercises target multiple muscle groups simultaneously. Examples of compound exercises are things like Squats, Bench press' and Deadlifts. This makes them highly effective for building strength and muscle mass without having to do lots of different exercises. Six: It shouldn't hurtContrary to popular belief, you don't need to destroy yourself to get fitter or stronger. You should expect some light soreness and stiffness a day or two after training. Any more than this and you're pushing too hard. Dial it back a little and you will enjoy it much more. Again hiring a personal trainer is a great way to get some help on how to gauge how hard you should be training. Seven: Stay ConsistentConsistency is the most important factor in any plan. Aim for a regular workout schedule that includes both resistance training and adequate rest days for recovery. I can never stress this enough. Two months of consistent training a few times a week is infinitely better than one month of destroying your body and then not going. Eight: Celebrate ProgressNobody makes it in a week. Lots of small achievements grow to greatness. Celebrate your achievements and progress along the way. Whether you've increased the weights you lift, mastered a new exercise, or simply feel stronger and more confident. Take pride in your accomplishments and use them as motivation to keep pushing forward. By following these simple steps and staying committed to your fitness goals, you'll be well on your way to mastering weight training and achieving the results you desire. Ready to embark on your weight training journey in Edinburgh? Let's get started today!
And remeber JUST START! Estimated Reading time: 4 minutes. In my last post about my return to the powerlifting platform. I posted my planned pivot out of that block. The Pivot went well, fatigue dropped, sore things got a lot less sore. Then I ran another developmental block, so I figured I’d post about that and how it went. The goal of the block was to explore some meme variants, get another block of drama-free strength training in, and see if I could reverse grip 3 plates. For no other reason than the meme factor of doing it. The Microcycle for Dev Block 2 was as follows. Day 1: Front Squat x5@8, Drop 5% Reverse Grip Bench x1@8, x3@8, Repeat till x3@9 Bulgarian Split Squats 3 sets @9 Day 2: Trap Bar Deadlift x5@8. Drop 10% Paused Closegrip Bench x3@8, Repeat till x3@9 DB Overhead Press 3 sets @9 Day 3: SSB Squat x1@7 Reverse Grip Bench x1@7 Sumo Deadlift x1@7 Prior Rationale. From my previous training, I’ve really never managed to do a great number of sets on lower movements. Even while I was just doing more hypertrophy-style training, I really struggled to get past 4 work sets at a higher intensity. Having had my main block going into my last competition being to test out minimal effective dose stuff, I averaged 1-2 drop sets per week. In this dev block, I aimed to see what volume was like at a couple of breakpoints. I also kept upper volume minimal with repeats, though I’ve never had issues with upper volumes ever. Along with me not really having the time to train for hours, I need to keep sessions pretty concise. Here are a couple of tables regarding fatigue % drops. I’ve already written about them in depth here. But TL;DR higher % drops take longer, and equal more total volume on average. Whilst being auto-regulating. I’ve picked out 15% total volume for the week between my Front Squats and Trap bar Deads. So we’re going in pretty low, but remember I’m not very accustomed to this. I chose an SBD day on the third day, to limit my total volume, and also to see how it works. I’ve never done one in a block before and they seem fairly popular now, with the rationale of sports practice (doing all three lifts on the same day). I also decided to play around with measuring bar speed and using it to help make some decisions through training. Overall my training priorities went something like: Pain lead. If something goes past a 3/10 on the pain scale, we call it. RPE. My own perception of how performance felt. Average bar speed on the app. If I couldn’t decide based on how it felt, I’d watch the video and decide based on the video and the measured speed. Let’s look at some top sets from week 1. Reverse Grip Bench x1@8 120kg 0.27ms Front Squat x5@8 110kg 0.46ms Trap Bar Deadlift x5@8 200kg 0.42ms These singles are technically week 2. I did my first-week session in a warm-up room at a comp, so I didn't get vids. SSB x1@7 150kg 0.41ms Sumo x1@7 180kg 0.23ms Everything looking fine. No massive drops post-pivot. Though the variations are really different, so it’s hard to tell even versus my pre-comp block. Now let’s compare them to the peak week of the block, week 7. Reverse Grip Bench 1@10 140kg 0.13ms Front Squat x5@8 125kg 0.38ms Trap Bar Deadlift x5@8 230kg 0.38ms SSB x1@7 170kg 0.41ms Sumo x1@7 210kg 0.27ms Overall a very good block for increases. +30kg on the trap bar deadlift is the most notable. +30kg on the sumo deadlift +10kg on reverse grip bench +15kg on front squat Going forward I’m going to pivot out and hopefully decrease fatigue a bunch. My rough plan to get towards my next competition looks a bit like this.
Given that I don’t know when in November the competition is yet, I think my next development block will be another more exploratory block, aimed at progressing some less specific work. Hopefully, you found some of this information useful, and if you’re keen to see how things go and how I develop things, stay tuned, and I’ll post the new dev block construction and implementation. |
Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|