Weightlifting question

Most definitely.

You need to switch it up by upping the weight or the reps. use different machines or exercises to work the same body parts. For example, find 3 or 4 different things that work your back muscles and then switch them out. You need to keep your body guessing.

As you get stronger, you are able to increase the weights you are using. Don't worry, you will not turn into the incredible hulk.

There is actually some confusion about reps for people that are new to lifting. I clarified this for a friend recently, and she commented that it was helpful, so I will share with a larger audience.

you often hear that you should do "x number of reps", and I have seen some people stick to the number but miss the more significant meaning. If I tell you to do 10 reps, the weight you select in a perfect world should be one where the 10th rep is very difficult, not just any weight and doing 10 reps. I see lots of women in particular that will actually use a weight that is too light.. pump out 10 reps, but the muscle is not really fatigued by the exercise. keep in mind that the TARGET is 10 reps.. if you put on a weight and get 8 or 9 reps (with good form) and are working hard, then thats fine.. the next workout you are likely to hit 10, and the subsequent workouts will move you into 11 or 12, when you can do 12, increase your weight. The point is to use good form for the movement, and put the muscle group(s) you are targeting into a fatigued state.

Good form is ESSENTIAL. i see far too many people jerking and squirming around, and that does two things:
a) its a very good way to get injured
b) if you are "cheating", by swinging, using momentum, or a reduced range of motion, you are reducing the amount of work the target muscle group(s) has to do..
NOTE: there are some movements where it actually is proper form to move the weight quickly, such as olympic lifting techniques, but if you are not trained on the proper form you might want to reconsider.

As far as changing the program, i say that changing the movements performed, and incorporating cycles to the training is a great idea to keep the workouts interesting, and to keep the muscles and joints healthy.. one phase of a cycle would have higher weights and lower reps, other phases would focus more on endurance and have lower weight and higher reps. there is a TON of material available on routines that incorporate this concept, so i will not go into too much detail here.

hope this helps.
Mike

Since nobody else has mentioned it, I would recommend "Starting Strength" by Mark Rippetoe (both the book and the DVD). He also has a website and forum, and if you google it there is a WIKI page that describes the program.

Essentially this program is designed for people who are just starting strength training. His book and DVD's are excellent for form and you can post videos on his site to get a form check to make sure you are doing it right.

The idea is you focus on 5 main lifts - Squats, DeadLift, Press (Overhead Press), Bench Press and Power Cleans. You use his instructions for finding your starting weight, then you lift 3 times a week doing 3 sets of 5 and move up the weights every workout.

It's a bit more involved than that, but in the end, it's very simple and very, VERY effective for quickly getting a lot stronger.

Yeah, try to switch up your routine. It can be as simple as adding more weight or change the order of your normal routine. I always change my entire program every 4 weeks. Also, try to perform some dropsets or even supersets. The theory is....after a while your muscles will quickly adapt and hit a plateau, therefore you should always try to introduce new exercises and/or routines.