Do you frown whenever you see a cute sleeveless top, knowing you could never wear it because of the sagging skin under your arms? Do you sometimes bemoan the fact that your upper arms look like loose chicken wings? Do you find yourself struggling to fit into a pair of jeans because everything on your legs feels loose? Then perhaps it is time to hit a fitness regimen of some sort! But perhaps you have heard before that you will need to undergo a strict cardiovascular program in order to lose the excess fat. But do you know that there is a better way to tone those muscles?
Many women shy away from strength training thinking that it is only designed to bulk up muscles like the ones you see on the Incredible Hulk. Naturally, the average woman would not want her muscles to look like that, with the exception of those who are actually proud of their biceps on the covers of Sports Illustrated. But strength training is indeed not only limited to giving you large bulky muscles. If you know how to do it properly, it can actually tone your muscles and enhance your silhouette! The basic things you need to know about strength training are as follows:
1. The effects of strength training differ based on the weight that you carry. In order to bulk up, you need to workout with heavy weights, or those that you cannot lift more than five times per set. This builds strength, which results in the bulky muscles. So if you want to tone your muscles, opt for weights that you can lift at twenty times per set, and do three sets at a time. What happens is that you are building endurance, and your muscles break down and then repair themselves into longer, leaner form.
2. Take important note of the principle of rest. What happens during strength training is that the muscles break down from the strain, and then they rebuild themselves. This is why personal trainers and experts require at least a 24-hour gap between strength training sessions. If you go to a gym, they will likely instruct you to do strength training three times a week and intersperse those times with two or three times of cardiovascular exercise. This is in order to give your muscles time to recuperate and build themselves back up. If you fail to give them the rest they need, you will wind up with injured muscles.
3. Strength training may not necessarily make you lose more weight than cardiovascular training, but it will usually make you look leaner and fitter. This is because strength training builds muscle, and muscle is heavier than fat. So do not worry if your scale tells you that you are not losing weight as fast as you would like, since doing strength training will definitely burn up your fat but build up muscle mass in exchange.
4. The good news is, in the long run, muscles burn more calories than fat, even at rest. This means that the muscles you build up will help you burn even when you are just sleeping or doing nothing, which protects you from gaining back unwanted weight even if you wind up eating a little too much sometimes. Or, once you stop exercising, you still have a leeway of about a few months as the muscles continue to burn extra calories. You will only wind up gaining back weight once the muscle tone itself wears off, which you would not want to happen anyway!
5. Lastly, be sure to do your workouts properly. Working out with dumbbells is a lot more complicated than riding an exercise bike because you need to know the proper way to hold and lift them or else you risk injury. If you do not have a personal trainer, check magazines for illustrations, or better yet, find how-to videos on the Internet for the proper form. It will serve you well in the long run as you start to see the results you desire.
Now that you know that working with weights can actually work for your benefit, go ahead and buy a couple of dumbbells, and tone those muscles up for a better-looking, better-feeling you!
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