Starting Weights

keiraev

Hi there - I have literally just got the book this week and am dying to start Stage One this evening.

I just wondered how people came up with the weights they started off with as I have no idea?

I do Body Pump but those weights are clearly far lighter than are going to be used for this. I am not a complete weakling but have never lifted "heavy" in my life. The most I have put on a bar tfor squats before is 15 KG (33 lb)

Also does anyone in the UK find it a pain converting lbs to KGs all the time? In the gym all the weights are in kilos!

Any help would be much appreciated

tdrinkard85

The book talks a little about this. Use it kind of as a warm up. Do a little walking around or stretching to warm up and then before you actually start your reps just kind mess with the weights a bit. If you are doing squats that day just start with the bar. If that feels to light first go around, then put a little more on. It took a little bit to get to where I needed to be for my reps but that way you don't risk hurting yourself.

kelseyhere

Before I started this program I was also doing Body Pump. Body Pump is more about endurance than lifting heavy, hence why you use lighter weights. When you do your first workout, I suggest adding slighty more weight than you would typically use in Pump (maybe 10% more). You will need to complete 15 reps for NRoL4W which is close to Pump, where you usually do 8-30 reps. See how you feel the next day and that should give you a gauge of whether or not you can go heavier.

And remember when you get to the 15th rep, you should be about maxed out. If you can do 20 reps, the weight is most likely too light.

Regarding your other question about kilos, I would just record everything in kgs. Who cares about conversion? It's what your used to and it will make your life a lot easier. The only reason you would need to convert is to compare your stats to one of us Americans, but that's not necessary. The program is more about your own progress rather than progress compared to others.

Jenlwb

Yeah, stick to KG. You can change your settings to metric, it's way easier. As long as you can get your head round your weight in KG instead of lbs! We're such a mixed up nation.

I mananged quite a bit more than in BP classes, like the others say, see what you can manage for 15 reps, the first sessions are all about experimentation. I'm on my 5th and i'm still messing around!

deninevi

It doesn't matter if you track your progress in kgs or lbs, as long as you are making a progress. Do whatever works for you. About the weight- start a bit over body pump and get form right. Then you will know if you need to go up. If you go too much up, you can always go down.

thankyou4thevenom

OMG the conversion is driving me crazy.
I do think I'm going to have to swtich MFP to kg. Although it'll mean nothing to me. I'm hoping it'll give me a nice surprise when i realise what I can lift in lbs.