At the moment I am incorporating weightlifting back into my overall fitness regime which pretty much consisted of nothing but kettlebell training for 3 months straight. Training will kettlebells only is fine if you are mostly concerned with body composition and having an aesthetic physique. The reason I am bringing strength training back into my regime is I am missing the muscle mass that I used to carry as a competitive powerlifter. My lifts 2 years ago were, Squat 573 lbs, Bench Press 440 lbs, and Deadlift 573 lbs. Not world class strength but enough to win me several powerlifting contests in Canada. Anyways, I am not here to brag, just to give you an idea of the kind of weight I used to push around before I experienced a major burnout in April 2006 and couldn't even watch a powerlift let alone attempt one. Over the course of the last two years I focused more on body composition and got into Muay Thai as a new sport. Thai boxing is fun but in the end lifting weights is my passion and I am dying to get back into it.
So, for those of you getting back into or starting out in lifting weights, check out the workout below to give you an idea of breaking the body in. I am not starting from scratch here as I have a good base and have never stopped working out, just getting back into lifting weights again. Today's workout was another "break in" workout, this time focusing on the bench press, row and deadlift compared to yesterdays focus on the front squat and chin-up. You will notice I don't do any movements that waste time, ie isolation movements. This is because in weight lifting, like all things, first you build the base or the structure, then worry about the fine tuning later if ever.
Mobility Work, 5 mins
Bench Press super set with Row, 8 sets x 10 reps (going light here and just getting the co-ordination back)
Deadlift super set with Hanging Leg Lift (light again)
You will notice that I don't do a lot of different exercises, that is because the compound lifts are very taxing. Plus, why bother doing a bunch of different stuff, I am saving them for later! Also, you will notice that the movements are opposites, Push with Pull, In with Out. This is to help keep the body balanced. For every push movement I mirror it with a pull movement in order to prevent shoulder or hip imbalances.
I will keep posting kettlebell workouts and videos daily but with my rekindled interest in lifting weights this blog will become a little more eclectic so enjoy! Check out the video below for what deadlifting can do for your physique!
So, for those of you getting back into or starting out in lifting weights, check out the workout below to give you an idea of breaking the body in. I am not starting from scratch here as I have a good base and have never stopped working out, just getting back into lifting weights again. Today's workout was another "break in" workout, this time focusing on the bench press, row and deadlift compared to yesterdays focus on the front squat and chin-up. You will notice I don't do any movements that waste time, ie isolation movements. This is because in weight lifting, like all things, first you build the base or the structure, then worry about the fine tuning later if ever.
Mobility Work, 5 mins
Bench Press super set with Row, 8 sets x 10 reps (going light here and just getting the co-ordination back)
Deadlift super set with Hanging Leg Lift (light again)
The Bear (see yesterdays post)
Elliptical Machine (burn some fat baby!)
You will notice that I don't do a lot of different exercises, that is because the compound lifts are very taxing. Plus, why bother doing a bunch of different stuff, I am saving them for later! Also, you will notice that the movements are opposites, Push with Pull, In with Out. This is to help keep the body balanced. For every push movement I mirror it with a pull movement in order to prevent shoulder or hip imbalances.
I will keep posting kettlebell workouts and videos daily but with my rekindled interest in lifting weights this blog will become a little more eclectic so enjoy! Check out the video below for what deadlifting can do for your physique!