Resistance workout is among the 3 key components in a balanced exercise programme, the other two being cardiovascular and flexibility training.
There are a number of principles, which apply to each of these modes of training and this article covers the basic principles, that should be applied to resistance exercise.
When preparing a resistance-training programme it is significant to make sure that exercises are incorporated to target each and every major muscle group in the body. This is crucial in order to maintain a balanced physique, avoiding possible muscle weaknesses, or postural problems. The primary areas to target are chest, back, arms, shoulders, quads, hamstrings and calves. In a few instances, many muscle group can be worked at a time by using compound exercises, but it's still crucial to target each of the major muscle groups listed.
Another significant aspect to any resistance-training programme is to allow enough rest for every muscle group between exercises. There is little or no benefit to targeting the same muscle group more than once or twice every week, as when a muscle is worked, it needs adequate recovery time to repair and rebuild. Training splits are an excellent way of avoiding muscle over-training. A 3-day training split might look something like this:
Monday: biceps, back and hamstrings, Wednesday: chest, triceps and quads, Friday: shoulders, calves and abdominals
Another major element in any resistance training programme relates to the number of repetitions done in each set of a given exercise. The number of repetitions completed is directly related to the goals of the person. Training for muscular strength and toning generally needs 12 or more repetitions. Reps ranging from 8 to 12 stimulate muscular growth and muscular strength improvements are achieved when rep ranges of 4 to 8 are used.
The last major element is progression. To enable your body to improve, you need to continue to raise the stimulus on your muscles. This is attained by raising numbers of repetitions (whilst remaining within your preferred rep range), raising weights, or raising the number of sets done. It is also necessary to change your workouts or training splits every 4-6 weeks to avoid plateaus in development.
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