Sure, you know that weightlifting works. And to make weightlifting work for you, you know you have to set reasonable goals and find the perfect weightlifting routine that you intend to stick to, right?
But still, there’s so much more you can do to make sure that you get the most out of your weightlifting workout. Read this post to the end for the best weightlifting tips to help you get ripped abs and chiseled arms, guaranteed.
7 Things To Do To Get The Most Out of Weightlifting
Want to avoid the frustration of weightlifting without results? Outlined below are the best weightlifting tips for building muscle.
- Warmup Before & Stretch After
A dynamic warmup is crucial to get the most out of weight training. It helps prepare your muscles for weightlifting. Skipping warmups can cause injury. And when you’re injured, your weightlifting plans will be stalled.
You also need to do some static stretches post weightlifting workout. This helps increase the blood flow to your muscles, thereby aiding muscle repair and recovery. It also improves your muscle flexibility.
To Do: Schedule a fun cardio exercise to warm up and some static stretches after your weightlifting workout.
- Lift The Right Amount of Weight
Just because your gym buddy lifts 50kg effortlessly doesn’t mean you can or should try to do the same. Ensure you lift the right amount of weight for your current strength to prevent injury. You can increase the weights gradually as you get stronger.
However, the right amount of weight isn’t just about not being too heavy. You should also avoid lifting weights that are too light. When you can swing around the weight with no challenge, you’re not really training your muscles to be stronger.
So, how do you know how much weight to lift? Well, the right amount of weight is heavy enough to make the last 2 to 3 reps challenging. But, it’s also light enough that you can power through the workout.
To Do: Load your barbells with weights (or lift dumbbells/kettlebells) that challenge your muscles, but still allow you to complete your workout.
- Maintain The Proper Form
You must train with the proper form or technique for weightlifting to work for you. The proper form aligns your body correctly, allowing you to move through the exercise smoothly. Hence, it enables you to work out more efficiently and prevents injury.
Maintaining the proper form when weightlifting also ensures you’re training the right muscles. So, ensure you learn the proper form to perform weight exercises before starting to train.
To Do: Master the proper weightlifting form using lighter weights that allows you to go through the full range of motions without challenge.
- Log Your Workout
Let’s face it, seeing workout results takes time. You won’t go from dad bod to a six-pack overnight. However, logging your workout tracks every little gain that may not be visible, such as your ability to do more reps. This will keep you motivated until you begin to see physical changes.
Also, when you log your weightlifting training, you’re less likely to lift too much weight. You’ll have records of what you lifted previously, and be able to increase the amount of weight you lift as you get stronger.
To-Do: Get a workout logbook to keep track of your progress. Record workout days, reps, sets, and weight, as well as your body measurement.
- Eat The Right Diet
You need to eat the right foods, and that doesn’t mean just proteins. A common misconception is that you need to eat a protein diet for weightlifting to work for you. However, while protein contains amino acids that rebuild muscles, you need more.
You also need to eat foods rich in carbohydrates and unsaturated fats. These provide enough calories to power through your weightlifting workouts. Without enough calories, your body would start to break down your muscles for energy.
To Do: Create a meal plan that contains the right foods for weightlifting, including proteins, carbs, and saturated fats.
- Schedule A Recovery Day
You may want to train every day, hoping to get results faster. Avoid the temptation. Your body needs rest to recover. Weightlifting essentially involves breaking down the muscles to rebuild them. So, the muscles need a recovery time to rebuild and become stronger.
Listen to your body when it says it needs a day off. Sure, it’s normal to feel sore after an intense workout session. But, if you feel too sore and have to force yourself through a workout, take a day to rest to avoid injury.
To Do: Schedule a rest day when you don’t go to the gym. Also, don’t train the same muscle groups on consecutive days. For instance, if you trained your arms today, rest them and train your legs the next day.
- Work With A Personal Trainer
Training with a personal trainer will make weightlifting work for you faster than when you train by yourself. With personal training, you’ll work out on a suitable routine for your fitness level that will challenge you to achieve your goals faster.
A personal trainer who is a pro at weightlifting can guide you through your weight workouts. They will ensure you lift the right amount of weight and help you nail the proper weightlifting form.
To Do: Hire a personal trainer to help achieve your weightlifting goals. You can sign up to work with a YouFit Gyms personal trainer.
In Conclusion
Whether your goal is to lift things without backaches, lose belly fat or get stronger to do other workouts, follow these guidelines to make weightlifting work for you.
If you’re already a member of YouFit Gyms, go ahead and start weightlifting to see results – visit the weight training area, hop on the weighted machines, or explore the new rig and deadlifting platform. You can log your workouts on the YouFit Gyms App and eat the right diet with the YouFit x EatLove Nutrition Program.
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