How often should I be strength training?

classicalguitar1
classicalguitar1 Posts: 27 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi, over the last 7 months I have lost 4 stone and reduced my body fat from 33% to 20% and I have achieved this through purely dieting and excercising (only cardio).
However now I am turning my attention to strength training with the goal of reducing my body fat by a few more percent and also building/maintaining the muscle I already have.
Bearing in mind I have never really had a serious attempt at strength training before how often should I be working these muscles?
Currently I am lifting using dumbbells (8 kg on each dumbbell) and mainly focusing on biceps, shoulders, triceps chest and abs ( I am also doing pressups and crunches)
The problem is that after every session I can't really feel any burning in my muscles so I am doing it twice a day now just to convince myself that I really am working the muscles.
Is this a mistake? If so can someone

Replies

  • jjking54
    jjking54 Posts: 113 Member
    Lift heavier weights.

    I lift three days a week, and honestly I can't lift more than that because my muscles are tired and need time to recover.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    Focus on compound barbell lifts. Right now you are neglecting all of the largest muscles in your body. Look into Starting Strength; it's a great book that outlines probably the best beginner strength training program out there and gives you exhaustive descriptions of all the lifts.
  • norcalskater
    norcalskater Posts: 194 Member
    I also lift 3 days a week and the other 3 days I do cardio. The day left over I either rest or do light cardio. Lift heavier weights. A good rule of thumb is a weight where you can do at least 6 reps but no more than 12 reps. Also include a leg day.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,329 Member
    Personally I would suggest Stronglifts 5x5 for a beginner. It is three days a week, focuses on a small number of compound lifts (lifts that use more than one joint), works the whole body, and will give a good foundation for future lifting. The program has a clear easy to follow progression moving you from easy to more and more challenging. However, you will need access to a barbell (ideally an Olympic style one) bench and squat racks.

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