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How long to do weights? I am just starting out.

M

MADDYSMUM

Guest
Hi
I am currently doing 3kg weights (dumbells) a few times a week at home for about 15 minutes. I am not sure how long to do them for as I am new at this, I have lost heaps of weight and now I want to firm up.

How long do I need to do them?

How often?

Which is the best way to do the weights to strengthen upper arms and gain muscle please?

thanks
 
I think you need some heavier weights. You should lift weights consistently for the rest of your life or you will get back to where you have started.

Treat it as a part of your excersize routine to keep you in shape, weights plus cardio makes and amazing female body. I am so glad I got my Fiancee lifting, she is addicted now as well.

What do you need to work on? People who are qualified can give you a routine to follow.
 
I would like to work on my biceps, and firm them up. As I am starting out, I don't want to do the wrong thing.

What size weights do I need?
 
I will let others elaborate that for you. My Fiancee weighs 49 - 50kg and she lifts 8kg in each hand on curls. Don't be afraid of heavy weights.

A full body workout would be perfect for you as you want to tone propotionally I take it?

Some people with alot more experience and qualifications will have to take it from here though, sorry.
 
Hi MADDYSMUM,

Josh is on the right track, recomending a full body workout for you.

You should aim to do this at least 2 to 3 times a week. as you are a beginner, just body weight would probably suffice. Think about the main areas of your body and complete a set of excecises for each one.. repeat.

for example:

Chest/ arms - Push ups
Back/ arms - chin ups
Legs/bum/abs/heart/shoulders - SQUATS (a must)with an overhead press

set yourself a rep range i.e 10-12

therefore for the above 3 excecises
you could complete 3 circuits of the following:

push ups 10-12
chin ups 10-12 (a tough ask)
squats with press 10-12

that in total is almost 120 reps a week towards your goal.

the trick is to add intensity as you progress, for example when you can pump out 12 push ups like a walk in the park, its time to increase the difficulty, i.e doing them with you feet elevated, doing them at a slower/faster pace, doing them one handed, doing them with your 8 year old sitting on your back (not recommended :)) you get the idea, apply thie to the other simple excesises in the abouve routine and you will develop a workout that is forever challenging, which is exactly what you need to keep in greatr shap, as your body will soon learn to handle the work you need to keep it guessing.

of course if you wish and when you advance in your fitness, there are endless variations and additions for you to consider.

How long do I need to do them? aim for about 30mins

How often? 2-3 times a week perhaps alternate with your treadmill workouts

Which is the best way to do the weights to strengthen upper arms and gain muscle please? see above


my advice atm is start out basic. record your results and HAVE FUN!!
 
Last edited:
MADDYSMUM said:
I would like to work on my biceps, and firm them up. As I am starting out, I don't want to do the wrong thing.

What size weights do I need?
Click to expand...
If you can repeat the excercise for more than 10 reps its too light.
 
Hi,

The guys have given you good advice here but it's time for a female perspective :)

Remember that maddysmum is just starting out - so things like chinups will likely be too hard (well, they were too hard for me when I was just starting out!!) So I would suggest inverted rows, as you can vary how hard they are, and I find them easier than chinups
How to Do Inverted Rows | StrongLifts.com

Otherwise what has been said is pretty spot on. Take it slowly, however, as you are just starting out. Good luck!
 
Thanks heaps. It makes sense. What size weights are the best to start with though?
 
You will need to experiment with that one. Do you have a gym membership? If not get some 5kg, 10kg, 12.5kg and 15kg dumbbells. Or adjustable ones so you can add weight and then take it down as well.

Everyone's strength differs. I would say 3kg is too light though.
 
Hi Katie,

katie said:
(well, they were too hard for me when I was just starting out!!)
Click to expand...

My arch enemy.. the Chin-up!!

I still struggle with them, i always advise beginners to incorporate them. if they begin the chin up progress from the very beginning results in shoulders and back can be amazing.

also its an easy one to do at home, but i agree that they can be daunting and the inverted row is a perfect sub...

now back to the bar for me... rrrrrr.... 2 an a half......:)

MD
 
Mandy'sMum - and I do wish we knew your name, you are not just an appendage of your child although I know you may feel that way from time to time - here is the general advice I give to beginners.

My own background is being a skinny youth and bulking up and becoming fit, then slacking off and becoming an ordinary suburban bloke in his 30s - skinny legs, big belly, etc - then working hard to change that. So I am pretty familiar with how it feels to start unfit and weak and build up. My advice (as linked above) comes from that perspective. My view is that it's always better to start slow and have a solid foundation of strength, fitness and flexibility, with a decent diet, than it is to leap into things... and leap back out again.

The advice gives you general physical preparedness. Don't worry about your dumbells or a gym or anything like that until you can do 20-30 pushups, supine pullups (or inverted rows as Keen Katie called them), situps and squats, and you can run 5km (however slowly) without stopping. Just prepare yourself generally for proper training, sort out your diet and so on.

After that - and for completely unfit but medically healthy beginners it takes 3-6 months - you either join a gym or get yourself some barbells with adjustable weights, and do exercises like overhead press, bench press, deadlift, squat, clean and barbell row.

But go test yourself, read the link and see how it all strikes you.
 
GREAT KATIE thanks lol.

Yeah my name is Angie. I thought I mentioned that? Did I?
 
I wanted to update my post. I am lifting 6 kilo weights and now have a personal trainer that comes to me once a week. I do 3 sets of 20 pushups, 30 situps, tae-bo, 15 bench press flys, 15 reps lunges with weights. I have noticed that I am gaining muscle in my biceps and a little in my triceps, but want to see more results in my upper body area. I have done this routine for about 6 weeks now and I feel great, but wanted to start taking a protein powder to maybe help me along. My sister in law does body building and suggested dymatize 100 isolate powder as it has 0 carbs.
Does anyone use this protein powder? If so, what do you think of it?
 
Without sounding like a rude *****, what are you expecting Protein Powder to do? Do you know the amount of protein you get from your diet daily? What does your daily diet look like?

As for your program, it is pretty lacking. There is nothing in there for your back, it seems biased towards chest alot. I would recommend some more back stuff, a beginners full body program would be much better for you. What are you doing with these 6kg weights? I can't see anything that you would need them for besides flyes and lunges. Did your PT put this together for you?
 
Seriously a 10 year old would lift 6kg. I'm sure you are much stronger than that.
Ditch lunges for squats and ditch flys for bench press then you will be on your way.
 
ok well as I stated I am a beginner and I dont want to hurt myself. I am wanting opinions as you people are obviously experienced, and beginners need to start somewhere. So thank you for the beginners program, I will check them out.
What size weights do I have to lift then?
 
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