Work For It!

Lift Weights!

There's not one fit person out there that got that way by sitting on the couch.  That said, if you're wanting to lose weight or gain weight, strength training should be in your life, it will change your body.  You're not going to put on superhero muscles just because you lift weights.  Small amount of weight with lots of repetitions goes a LONG way.  It causes a raise in metabolism, strengthens your bones, increases endurance, improves coordination and balance and raises self-esteem and confidence.  I'd say the benefits are huge!

Where do you start?

Overload your muscles.  Pick a small amount of weight, for example 3 pounds.  Do 25 repetitions.  Pick it up, put it down.  Then do it differently.  Again. And Again. And Again. (The Again and Again and Again are called "sets")

Now, when that 3 pounds get too easy, Add Intensity, or add 2 more pounds.  Then when that gets too easy add more and so on.

Target all major muscle groups and specific muscles.  For example, leg raises: do them to the back, side and front in a variety of large and small to target all muscles.  For arms, same concept.  Don't forget core muscles too!  They're the most important for stability and balance.  As we get older, stability and balance are our biggest problems as bi-pods.
1000+ Workout Routines!

Rest and Recovery is also important to give your muscles time to recover.  Don't focus on the same muscle groups 2 days in a row.  Do arms, then legs, then arms and core, then legs, then arms, then legs and core....you get the point.


To avoid injury make sure to stretch, breathe, warm up and stand up straight!
 5 Common Strength Training Mistakes


Try This! Body Weight Workout (Modified if Needed):
15 Jump Squats
20 Push Ups
15 Pull Ups
15 Walking Lunges
15 Tricep Dips
15 Inverted Pull Ups

Strength Training

Strength training can help you look good and feel even better.  It leads to increases in muscle and bone mass contributing to long-term health and wellness, help control your weight, reduce risk of injury, boost stamina and focus.  It can also help manage chronic conditions, like arthritis, back pain, depression, diabetes, osteoporosis and obesity.

Muscle mass naturally diminishes with age. "If you don't do anything to replace the lean muscle you lose, you'll increase the percentage of fat in your body," says Edward Laskowski, M.D., a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn., and co-director of the Mayo Clinic Sports Medicine Center. "But strength training can help you preserve and enhance your muscle mass — at any age." 

I LOVE strength training for one simple reason right now; muscle burns fat.  The more muscle you build, the more fat you burn.  Get in your zone with cardio and keep it there with strength training and you'll burn more fat and increase muscle mass.  I don't mean you'll bulk up like the Hulk, but you'll add a little definition where you didn't have it before.  There's nothing wrong with defined legs, arms, back and abs and nobody drools more over something than a well defined butt!

Where can I start?
Small amounts of weight, resistance bands and yoga, pilates are all forms of strength training.  Use lots of repetitions and repeat in sets of 3.  It will defiantly help you get the definition you've been wanting.  P90X uses a lot of strength training workouts.  I've been doing P90X for almost 6 weeks now and I've seen huge results!

If you're looking to add bulk, take your max weight -10% and you'll get what you should be doing to add bulk in smaller repetitions.

How often?
2-3 times a week is optimal.  After 3 days of not using muscles, you'll start losing them.  So, you want to keep your muscles active and keep targeting the ones you want to define.  However, you want to give your body a day of rest and recovery between strength training workouts.