What's considered "lifting heavy" for women?

Bump!

pretty sure you just keep lifting heavier when you can. Not sure their is a ceiling there until your body just won't go higher. I am up to 20 pound dumbbells on curls... but I know that is nothing compared to what I will be able to lift next year if i keep pushing it. When I can finish my three sets without feeling like I am at muscle failure i know it is time to up the weight.

ditto. And I know the last 3 lifts should be a challenge. I've done it this way and im up 30to lbs on my squats and up on others.

It depends on what is heavy to you.
Pick a weight that you can barely complete 8-10 reps of- meaning the last 2-3 are questionable if you can complete without a spotter.
I was alway taught that to tone you pick a weight that you can do 12-15 reps and to bulk or build up do what I mentioned above.

Heavy is a subjective term since it's going to be completely different for every person based on their fitness level and abilities. But, from most of what I've read while looking up info on strength training, it's considered heavy lifting if you can't do more than 8 reps.

Though, in one extreme case, I read about a guy that would lift to his absolute limit and only do one rep. Yeah, one. And he had crazy-*kitten* muscles. lol

I used to be a bodybuilder and am just getting back into it after a long break because of illness. As people have said above you need to lift heavy for you! You may have stronger legs than arms being female, so you can do more on your legs that upper body to start. My suggestion would be to start with a 20kg free bar weight for squats and see how it feels if it's too heavy go down to 15 kg and if it's not heavy enough put it up 5 kg at a time. You need to make sure you have good form.
A good full-body routine that I am doing at the moment is:

Free weights:
3x8
Squats 20kg
unseated row 20kg
bench press (chest) 20kg
Skull crushers 20kg (you may need lower on this)
Raises 20kg
Bicep Curls individual 10 kg weights
Tricep kick backs 10kg
side raises 10kg


Machines

3x8

Leg extensions 35 kg
leg press 35 kg
sitting squat 85 kg
lat pull down 30 kg
tricep rope pull 20 kg
tricep overhead rope pull 20kg

Abs

Crunches 3 types 3x 50-100

Leg raises 3x 20 and hold for 40 seconds

bench crunch inverted bench so your laying head lower than legs and go for full extended stretch with arms stretched over head

plank holding 60 seconds 3x as many as you can do.



This should be done 3 or 4 times per week for a beginner and rest at weekends. Women don't bulk unless they want to, bodybuilding is the best way to get lean and firm in top speed time!

Hope it's helpful

this is a question that i have been trying to get answered for a long time... because i dont want to get bigger while trying to slim down...

If you are on a calorie deficit you are very unlikely to build muscle mass. You can't build it from nothing.



Basically, to me, "heavy" is as heavy as you can. If you do your set and feel like you could have done more, do more next time.

And I think, although I haven't looked, that you can find some programs endorsed by Jamie Eason, who is a big-time fitness model.

I used to be a bodybuilder and am just getting back into it after a long break because of illness. As people have said above you need to lift heavy for you! You may have stronger legs than arms being female, so you can do more on your legs that upper body to start. My suggestion would be to start with a 20kg free bar weight for squats and see how it feels if it's too heavy go down to 15 kg and if it's not heavy enough put it up 5 kg at a time. You need to make sure you have good form.
A good full-body routine that I am doing at the moment is:

Free weights:
3x8
Squats 20kg
unseated row 20kg
bench press (chest) 20kg
Skull crushers 20kg (you may need lower on this)
Raises 20kg
Bicep Curls individual 10 kg weights
Tricep kick backs 10kg
side raises 10kg


Machines

3x8

Leg extensions 35 kg
leg press 35 kg
sitting squat 85 kg
lat pull down 30 kg
tricep rope pull 20 kg
tricep overhead rope pull 20kg

Abs

Crunches 3 types 3x 50-100

Leg raises 3x 20 and hold for 40 seconds

bench crunch inverted bench so your laying head lower than legs and go for full extended stretch with arms stretched over head

plank holding 60 seconds 3x as many as you can do.



This should be done 3 or 4 times per week for a beginner and rest at weekends. Women don't bulk unless they want to, bodybuilding is the best way to get lean and firm in top speed time!

Hope it's helpful

Should have also said as soon as you can do it with relative ease put the weight up! x

I was alway taught that to tone you pick a weight that you can do 12-15 reps and to bulk or build up do what I mentioned above.

You can "tone up" muscle with heavy weights. All muscle swells up when trained hard temporarily because of water and glycogen, but it's temporary.