Weightlifting Workout Routines

Weightlifting workout routines have taken the nation by storm...promised to be the fat burning, muscle building, and health enhancing miracle that leaves "aerobics" in the dust...

Although its true that weighlifting has a lot of benefits, it is critical to understand that both types of exercise, cardio and weightlifting, have their benefits.

Weightlifting, in particular, is most useful for bringing about changes in body composition, or the ratio of muscle to fat. Perhaps the fastest way to lower your body fat percentage is to increase lean muscle mass while reducing bodyfat, which translates into a higher body mass index but with a much lower proportion of fat.

Weightlifting brings about changes in how certain muscles look on your body. For instance, you can definitely give your arms a more "shapely" look by increasing the volume of your biceps and triceps. The added benefit of weight training is that it increases metabolism and automatically aids in shedding unwanted bodyfat. Basically, muscle requires a lot of calories to maintain...

So, just by adding 3-5 lbs of extra muscle on your body, you could burn an additional 100 calories a day, even while you sleep! Moreover, all of your cardio/aerobic efforts will also be multiplied due to a higher metabolic rate, which is brought about by the additional lean muscle.

Weightlifting workout routines should definitely be included in every person's schedule, atleast 3-4 a week. A sound practice is to train upper body 2x a week and lower body 2x a week. Alternatively, you could weight train lower body just once a week and do higher intensity cardio 2x a week, which would give you a total of 3 lower body workouts a week.

If you want to shed the fat as soon as possible, then you need to workout 5-6 times per week, following the guidelines in the previous paragraph.

Before commencing any weightlifting workout routine, make sure to read important safety tips and gain an understanding of how to weight train for success. Many people have no idea how to lift weights and they end up injuring themselves or not getting measurable results.

If you're completely new to weightlifting, we suggest you read our weight lifting tips...

If you have a solid background and you're looking for specific workouts, then see our section on weightlifting workout routines...

Keep in mind that a major element of any program's success is proper diet and nutrition. If you ignore this critical element, you'll be spinning your wheels in the gym and blaming every expert in sight for the "bad advice" they gave you. The truth is, people generally don't implement good advice, and that's the reason they don't get the type of results they're seeking.

If you're ready to get started, choose from one of the following goals:

Fat Loss & Toning

Building Muscle

Bodybuilding

Athletic Training

Weightlifting Workout Routines