Weight training????

The best thing is to start with an established workout routine. New Rules of Lifting, Stronglifts, and Starting Strengh are all great beginner programs that focus on full body, compound exercises. Just reading NRoL or Starting Strength will give you a ton of information that's clear and easy to read.

Keep in mind that to "tone" you need to lose body fat to expose the muscle underneath. This means keeping your eating in check first and foremost.

There are some great threads on this in the fitness section too.

Happy Lifting

serenityfrye wrote: »

http://www.questformuscle.com/articles/glossary.html

That will help with the lingo. You can also look on YouTube for how to videos.

Here's a video explaining Starting Strength.

https://youtu.be/ttbAAZOd3EM

kami3006 wrote: »

Yeah, I too think Stronglifts is the best of the three. NRoL is a great read though for getting a full understanding of lifting and how the body responds to it.

Just started Stronglifts. Why do you like it better than SS?

If you already belong to a gym, check w/the staff they may be able to help you get started and ensure you are performing the exercises correctly. Form is more important than the weight you lift especially when you are first starting out. If you don't belong to a gym, check out some of the locally owned ones vs. chains; they tend to be somewhat cheaper and the staff friendlier. Good luck!

There are a lot of things you can do. You can do pushups, bodyweight squats, dips, pullups. You probably can't do a pullup yet, but you can try, or do part of one, of just lower yourself. These are not exercises where you lift weights, but they are resistance exercises,which is what weight training is. For someone who has never done strength training before, they would be good to start. It doesn't have to be fancy or perfect. There are a million resistance/strength training philosophies, systems, workouts, etc. and none are magic. Consistency and effort are the key. If you are still confused by the most basic comcepts, a rep is short for repetition, or performing the movent of an exercise one time. For example, getting into the pushup position, lowering yourself down and then pushing yourself back up to where you started is one rep. If you do that 10 times in a row, that is ten reps, or ten pushups. That group of ten reps done together in a row is a set. So, doing 3 sets of 10 reps would be doing ten pushups, resting for a few minutes, doing 10 pushups, resting for a few minutes and finally doing 10 more pushups. This would be your last set, if you were doing 3 sets, of ten reps. It would be written 3x10 in a workout. The first number is the number of sets, and the second number is thd number of reps in each set. You can start by doing something as simple as 2 sets of as many reps of pushups as you can, then two sets of bodyweight squats for as many as you can, and finding something suitably heavy for you and doing a row with one arm at a time. Look up dumbell row on the internet for instructions amd/or video of how to do this exercise. Instead of a dumbell though, you would use a paint can, or a bag with heavy stuff in it, or a large container with a gallon or two pf some liquid in it and a handle(like milk jug, laundry detergent bottle, whatever). Do a couple sets of 10-20 reps. If you can do like 50 reps, get something heavier. Do these three exercises every other day untill you have access to weights and get on a real program. You will be farther than if you had done nothing. Any questions, ask.

kami3006 wrote: »

Yeah, I too think Stronglifts is the best of the three. NRoL is a great read though for getting a full understanding of lifting and how the body responds to it.

I agree with this advice, in that I started with NRoL and found the program both a bit more confusing and less focused on strength advances (it's more of a 3x8-12 structure) than SL, although some are going to find the exercises it uses easier to start with, especially since the barbell bar alone is too heavy or intimidating for some at first.

I would HIGHLY recommend that anyone new to lifting and a little intimidated by it consider reading NRoL -- OP, if you are female (as it seems), New Rules of Lifting for Women or the New Rules of Lifting for Life are good books to read, and as an alternative so is Strong Curves (also a decent starter program). They explain things really well.

RiniShy wrote: »

Some of my friends are worried I'm going to bulk up or something and not look like a woman anymore if I do strength training. lol. I couldn't imagine me like that, but what is wrong with a little muscle, you know?

It's very hard to bulk up unless you are genetically predisposed. That's why body builders spend years doing crazy routines and some resort to steroids to bulk. Plus none of the programs mentioned are focused on hypertrophy (bulking). You will get very strong, help prevent osteoporosis, improve your hormone balance, improve your overall health, and be a total bad *kitten*, however.

I pick things up and put them down.

Weight lifting is a great way to lose weight. The more muscle you have the more calories your body will burn. Don't worry about bulking up, that rarely happens to women unless they are lifting heavy and/or taking supplements. If you do join a gym and can afford to, hire a personal trainer to help you get the basics down. If you can't afford a trainer, there are a lot of resources on the internet to help. My main tip would be to start out slow, doing what you are comfortable with and progress from there, slowly. Don't do anything that hurts a joint (knees, shoulders, etc..) Here is a link with some good info: http://www.niashanks.com/11-beginner-strength-training-tips-women/ Good luck!