Female HEAVY LIFTERS unite!!!!

psyknife

do you do full body 3 x's a week or alternate body parts- so your full body is worked at the end of a week?

Right now i am doing full body 1 exercise per part in a free weight circuit and then do that circuit three times and I change them up each session.

But a woman at my gym- very in shape and about my age does alternate body parts and recommended doing it that way. She said she sees the most difference..thoughts????

I change things up depending on what my current goals are. Right now my main goal is to increase my upper body and abdominal strength for my aerials class. So my current routine looks like this:

MONDAY: Aerials class (upper body, abdominals... legs, somewhat) + ride bike
TUESDAY: Cardio Kickboxing
WEDNESDAY: Total body (pull-ups, push-ups, full body core work, various weight routines for arms using free weights)
THURSDAY: Vinyasa Flow Yoga + Bellydance
FRIDAY: Upper body + Core
SATURDAY: Cardio Kickboxing
SUNDAY: Rest/stretch/yoga/light cardio

So, I'm focusing more on my upper body now... and for my lower body I'm working on strength and flexbility... so when I work my legs it's very yoga and pilates style. I'm not really lifting too heavy with the legs right now. However, I will start that again once I get my upper body to where it wants to be.

People do all sorts of routine.
The more classic body building style involving working opposing muscle groups in sections throughout the week. So, on Monday you may do the back & biceps, on Tuesdays you may do legs, on Wednesday you may work the chest & triceps, etc.
It really depends on what your goals are. Doing a full body workout three times per week will still get you great results as long as you continue to challenge yourself and add in some new exercises (or switch some up) every now and then just to give yourself variety.

mlillie

psyknife- WOW- you are an inspiration! Your pics are awesome!

Yeah I the three day a week full body has been interesting- lots of jumps and plyrometrics which are a blast, I think.

I am a yoga teacher but not teaching right now- but I love the way it helps me to know and connect to my body!

The Aerials class looks AWESOME!

mamakitty

I'm in!!!!!!!!!!

I have learned that my body needs lifting to be in good shape. This spring and summer I backed off of lifting to focus on running. My body adjusted to the running so quickly that I stopped losing weight. In fact I gained weight, and not muscle. So I went on a mission to lift hard and often. Within 2 months I started to see great results, more muscle definition.
I tend to focus on my upper body because I naturally have very muscular legs. Cardio is usually enough to keep my legs tone. When I lift with my legs they tend to get bulky.
I think this thread is a great idea. I love to learn from others.

psyknife

A couple more aerials photos... gosh I love this stuff! It inspires me because it just embodies strength, grace and beauty...

songbyrdsweet

Ok- I have a question and I know there are different rules of thought- but what are your exps.

do you do full body 3 x's a week or alternate body parts- so your full body is worked at the end of a week?

Right now i am doing full body 1 exercise per part in a free weight circuit and then do that circuit three times and I change them up each session.

But a woman at my gym- very in shape and about my age does alternate body parts and recommended doing it that way. She said she sees the most difference..thoughts????

I do 4 push/pull days and one leg day a week...two of those days are also my powerlifting days, and i switch that each week. 3 full body days are fine too, it just depends on how you lift. Since I'm lifting really heavy, I wouldn't be able to do the same full body session 3 times a week, it'd be too taxing on my nervous system. But when I first started I did 3 full body days since I wasn't lifting this heavy.

In a circuit, it's hard to reach failure or build up lactic acid in one body part, which is what promotes muscle growth so you can better see the muscles under the skin. That's usually why people who have been training for several months and have more specific goals for certain body parts will do a split like that, concentrating on just a couple body parts per day.

Fitness_Chick

:drinker:

Fitness_Chick

Are you eating differently to help support the lifting??

I mainly work on eating organic whole foods... just to fuel my body. The one thing I learned, however, was how important it is to have your after workout snack. I used to never consume anything after workouts... but now I realize it's important to get a good protein/carbs mix after workouts to help get my glucose levels back up and help those muscles recover. I totally feel a difference when I do this.

What is something typical of your pre & post workouts?

Thanks!:drinker:

mamakitty

I was not able to lift this weekend due to work. Tomorrow will be a heavy lifting day, mostly upper body. I am also doing the 100 push up challenge. I am noticing alot more upper body definition.

Lift on girls.

Fitness_Chick

:drinker:

Sexythighz

I too Love lifiting! The max for me is 15 lbs. I enjoy routines that require me to use my own body weight. Push ups and Planks are my favorites. I don't mind a lil bulk. My upper body and abs are defined as I would like them to be. Now it time to get my loiwer half caught up!!! I dont have a gym membership all of my hard work is done right at home and at the park.

Steph

psyknife

What is something typical of your pre & post workouts?

I usually don't have anything pre-workout... if I do, it's likely 8 oz. all natural juice.

For post workout I go for protein and carb combos. Sometimes I use the P90X Recovery Formula, sometimes a protein bar, sometimes a 1/2 cup of nuts, sometimes a piece of fruit and oz. of cheese, sometimes a glass of skim milk (chocolate or chai), sometimes a protein shake. It really depends on my workout and how hard I felt I worked during it.

Fitness_Chick

What is something typical of your pre & post workouts?

I usually don't have anything pre-workout... if I do, it's likely 8 oz. all natural juice.

For post workout I go for protein and carb combos. Sometimes I use the P90X Recovery Formula, sometimes a protein bar, sometimes a 1/2 cup of nuts, sometimes a piece of fruit and oz. of cheese, sometimes a glass of skim milk (chocolate or chai), sometimes a protein shake. It really depends on my workout and how hard I felt I worked during it.

Thanks!! :drinker:

McKnightAM

:bigsmile: i love lifting... i do 50 min of cardio, than lift weights, its easier for me than some, because i have free access to a top notch gym due to husband being in the army, but non-theless i would encourage all women to start weights,,, i'm not wonder woman, but i enjoy it!!

Leg press= 240 lbs
Leg Curls=70 lbs
Inner Thigh=70 lbs
Outer Thigh= 110 lbs
Machine Calves= 150 lbs
Machine crunches= 50 lbs
machine obliques= 70 lbs
Back= 70 lbs
Bicep curls= 15 lbs
Triceps= 40 lbs

Thats all i can think of for now,, and i cant wait to see how high i can get with weights!!

Fitness_Chick

Bump

psyknife

Tonight I get to lift the heaviest weight of all... myself Hehe. I have aerials class... can't wait! I think we are using the lyra tonight. If I remember my camera I'll try to have someone snap some photos

Fab140

Hey there ladies!!

Picked up (and assembled on my own!) a weight bench plus bar, weights.....everything! The bar is 45 pounds and I added five total for my bench press. 50 pounds was not hard!! Did preacher curls (20 pounds) standing curls (20 pounds) dumbell chest flies (7 on each side....lol) and hammer curls (10 pounds each side).

Tonight I'm doing just my cardio kickboxing....(just. Ha!)

Tomorrow, I'll begin doing cardio in the mornings and lifting in the evenings. The DH got one of the pull-up contraptions that hang in the doorway. I can't even begin to lift myself.

Goal for this month(well, next 30 days!): 10 military pushups and 10 pull-ups.

Wish me luck!

songbyrdsweet

I'm at the end of my power cycle today...:sad:

Powerlifting and plyometrics are very taxing on the central nervous system since they require huge changes in the neurons innervating the muscles (and very little change in the actual muscle). So you can't stay with a power cycle much longer than a month without putting yourself at risk for injury or a reduction in the immune system. I've pushed it to 7 weeks to prepare for a comp and got sick right after, it was crummy. :sick:

Now I am switching to endurance...of which I have like, none lol! I was feeling the burn and fatigue at 10-12's. I've had to reduce my bench from 3x6 @ 80 to 3x12 @ 65. *sigh* Made other reductions too. It's okay, just not my favorite stuff hehe

psyknife

Aerials went well.. totally fatigued myself. Oy.
I'm getting better and getting into an inverted position... my big problem is the mechanics of it. Yesterday I did something right because I totally flipped upsidedown way faster than I expected (in fact, I didn't even expect to get my feet over my head... hah)... so I'm getting better. Now I just need to work on doing it in a slow and controlled manner.

Fab140

Aerials went well.. totally fatigued myself. Oy.
I'm getting better and getting into an inverted position... my big problem is the mechanics of it. Yesterday I did something right because I totally flipped upsidedown way faster than I expected (in fact, I didn't even expect to get my feet over my head... hah)... so I'm getting better. Now I just need to work on doing it in a slow and controlled manner.

Congrats!!!!

Did my cardio this morning. Going to focus on weights tonight!

Fab140

Aerials went well.. totally fatigued myself. Oy.
I'm getting better and getting into an inverted position... my big problem is the mechanics of it. Yesterday I did something right because I totally flipped upsidedown way faster than I expected (in fact, I didn't even expect to get my feet over my head... hah)... so I'm getting better. Now I just need to work on doing it in a slow and controlled manner.

Congrats!!!!

Did my cardio this morning. Going to focus on weights tonight!