Do you know body basics for strength training?

Do you know body basics for strength training?

Why you should know the body basics?

Your body is your place of worship. This sounds so cliche but I would say today it is the most abused entity in the whole world. We are what our body is well 50% and 50% mind I am sure. So before embarking on this journey let me just quickly walk you through some Body Basics.

Body parts as they call in the bodybuilding terms. While building the body each of these parts is worked out to bring out the best in that muscle. The body is an amazing machine if you slack it slacks and if you push it pushes all the limits.

 

Weight Training Myths That You Hear

Most of the women are not interested in weight training or bodybuilding in the fear of bulking up but the truth is WOMEN NEVER CAN BULK-UP. Women should do weight training progressively and plan food accordingly.

Have you heard about Progressive Overload?

If you have been going to the gym for 5 years and are lifting the same 3 kg, 5 kg weights then you may not see the desired result. The body needs to be challenged at every stage of working out. Increasing your weight lifting capacity is the next move for all ladies who are working out for a long time. I am sure most of you know it but here are my two cents.


Do you know the Body Basics and Muscle Group Details?

Chest

The chest is a major muscle group in the body which includes Pectoralis Major and Pectoralis minor generally we term them as Pecs.

Training the pecs is an important part of strength training. We can train the chest with the help of dumbells as well as barbells. 

If you prefer home workouts, a pair of dumbells would do wonders, if not resistance bands may help too. 

Shoulders

Shoulder muscles are called as Delts named after deltoid, on the front and backside.

The most important part of the body when it comes to strength. All the push-ups, pull-ups, and the variations are aimed at it. 

Shoulder toning and muscle building are some of the toughest jobs. 

Arms

Biceps: The most loved muscle group for all gym-goers because this is where it shows up. The bicep building is a little overrated but worth every effort. 

Triceps: Triceps is the posterior side of biceps, this is the part where most of the ladies struggle. This is a part that jiggles more and needs to be worked upon. 

Abs

The core muscle group of the body. The six-pack abs are what you hear about from the gym-goers.

It is the most important body part for women because there are many changes that happen to the abs after childbirth. Toning of abs is possible with some core workouts. 

Weights can be used to tone abs as well, all the peripheral work that we do for the body usually tones the abs. 

Quads

This is my favorite muscle in the body. It has a lot of strength. These are the thigh muscles. All those squats and weighted squats are used to tone quads. 

Quad muscles can be toned with different exercises. All the squats get the credit for that. 

Calves

Calf muscles are something I am working on for a long time. I love the calf muscles of runners. It shows hard work and dedication. Runners have very pronounced calf muscles because they work on it constantly. Building calf muscles need specific exercises. 

Hams

The backside of thigh muscles. Working on them is a pain but I still love it. When quads are trained, we should train hamstrings too. Lunges and squats activate the quads and hamstrings. 

Glutes

The hip muscles which is the biggest muscle in the body. Working on them the toughest job in the universe. Though it is tough, the combination of bodyweight and weighted squats and lunges are the go-to options for the same. 

Lower back

These are above your hip muscles. Working on core works simultaneously on the lower back. Most women after pregnancy have a weak lower back. Men too have a big pooch due to week lower back. Strengthening the lower back is a good start to build abs. 

Basics of the body are crucial when you want to first start getting into the fitness groove. Later, one can build body researching about different training programs. 

Planning your strength training schedule:

Though there are readymade programs available, we need to plan the workouts for different body parts. The body should not undergo the weight lifting overwhelm. Usually, there are two ways to decide on the strength training schedule.

One is based on the type of muscles, push muscles, and pull muscles. 

What are the push muscles?

As the name suggests Push muscles are the muscles that help you push i.e when the muscle tissues are contracted to push the weight away from the body. It is easy to visualize the push muscles when we talk about muscle contraction pushing the weight away. If you think of Pushups as an exercise, the muscles engaged in the activity are mainly Chest, Shoulders, and Triceps. 

What are Pull Muscles?

Muscles that get contracted when the weight is pulled towards the body. A simple way to identify pull muscles is to visualize Pull-up as an exercise. Pull muscles are all back muscles, biceps, Traps, and Hamstrings. 

For a beginner, it gets confusing to plan each day as per these muscle groups so here is a quick way where you can divide your workouts as per the body parts.

Monday – Upper Body

Tuesday – Cardio

Wednesday – Lower Body

Thursday – Cardio

Friday – Core Work and Abs

Saturday – Cardio

Sunday – Active Recovery

What training programs should I use for Body Basics training? 

There are amazing online training programs available. Again, it is up to you to decide which program suits you best. Here are some tried and tested workout programs for strength training. 

Fitness Blender 

 

Fitness blender has a range of workouts, you can choose from. The best part about these workouts is that they are clear about the number of calories that are burnt in a particular workout. This is a good indicator of the intensity of the workout.

Hasfit

Hasfit is also similar to Fitness Blender. You can choose from a range of workouts:

Heather Robertson:

Bodyfit By Amy:

Jessica Smith TV:

You can strengthen different body parts with these trainers. Choose what you like. In the beginning it is good to start with online workouts and then move to the paid version of different workouts.

Taking the first step:

Working with weights takes time to gel well with the body and you should be doubly careful about your nutrition. Well begun is half done, so if you have taken that first step? Congratulations!!

Snehal Joshi
mugdhaaa@gmail.com

Snehal is a Certified Nutrition Coach by National Academy of Sports Medicine. She is writing about her persuits of Nutrition Science since last 4 years.

24 Comments
  • Namratha
    Posted at 12:06h, 02 April

    I used to have gr8 calves because of years of playing tennis but is now not in good shape. Your theme is a good reminder for me to restart all my fitness work.

    Bodylicious @NamySaysSo

    • admin
      Posted at 12:34h, 02 April

      Get those calves back 🙂 start working out.

  • Sitharaam Jayakumar
    Posted at 12:13h, 02 April

    The more one strains and extracts every ounce from the body the healthier it becomes. Which is why working men and women tend to have such healthy bodies. By working men and women I mean people who work physically. Unfortunately with so many white collar jobs around we tend to be sedentary all the time and our bodies become flabby and lose their strength. Great article.

    • admin
      Posted at 12:21h, 02 April

      Thank you for dropping by Jai. I thought you are going to start working out as the challenge progresses.

  • Sushma
    Posted at 13:18h, 02 April

    You cleared the myth that woman don’t bulk. Thanks for it. I always thought joining gym might and lifting weight might make me bulkier.

    Do check my post http://mytinythot.blogspot.in/2018/04/birthday-celebrations-a2z-challenge.html?m=1

    • admin
      Posted at 15:00h, 03 April

      Yes!Pick that barbell girl its so good to do that 🙂

  • Paul Taubman
    Posted at 14:07h, 02 April

    I like to go to the gym at lunchtime to help break up my day.One of the things that help me is that a group of friends also go at the same time and it helps keep us all accountable.

    • admin
      Posted at 15:00h, 03 April

      Crossfit is it paul? I so wish I could do it. Thank you for the comment Paul. Appreciate it.

  • Jeanine Byers
    Posted at 22:27h, 02 April

    I used to go to the gym and work out with weights. It had a walking track, too, that I would use. I never realized just what all that working out was doing for me until I stopped! Need to get back to it.

    • admin
      Posted at 14:57h, 03 April

      With spiritual practice, fitness will be a cherry on top 🙂
      Love all your posts.

  • Shweta
    Posted at 01:07h, 03 April

    Quite a list to work on 😀 thanks for sharing such an informative post.

    B is Bold – Love is not my need

    • admin
      Posted at 05:39h, 04 April

      Yeah. Thank you Shweta. 🙂

  • Martha DeMeo
    Posted at 05:52h, 03 April

    Shoulders, arms, low back, that’s what I need to work on! Thanks for sharing

    • admin
      Posted at 05:40h, 04 April

      Would love to see the changes. 🙂 Let me know.

  • Angie Newton
    Posted at 06:08h, 03 April

    I had to stop weights for a while due to a pinched nerve/pulled muscle but I still work out with my own body weight. I’m currently doing a walking challenge and when I use my walk video workouts we move upper and lower body so it’s great and covers all the areas you mentioned.

    • admin
      Posted at 05:40h, 04 April

      I have joined the walking challenge. Looks great to start with. Hope you get well soon.

  • Tammy
    Posted at 07:50h, 03 April

    I look forward to more of your posts. I just started to go back to the gym a couple of months ago.

    • admin
      Posted at 13:05h, 03 April

      Hey Tammy, Thank you. Great to know that you are back to gym. 🙂 I will try to keep the posts motivating.

  • Rhonda @ The Watcher
    Posted at 16:01h, 03 April

    I’m doing mostly split training where I work on a different part of my body each day. I’ve found it works better this way, otherwise I ache all over if I do a full body workout each time. We don’t want that!

    • admin
      Posted at 05:41h, 04 April

      Yes! Split training is the best any day. Rest is important for every muscle group.

  • Nupur
    Posted at 20:18h, 03 April

    Wow never knew what was exactly what. Thanks!

    • admin
      Posted at 20:50h, 03 April

      That is the purpose of the blog. Thanks.

  • Monica
    Posted at 21:41h, 03 April

    I’ve always scared to do weight training. Reading this makes me wonder and wang to try it! One thing for sure though when it slack it is really slacks like I am now. Gonna have to start exercise again! Thanks for the post!

    • admin
      Posted at 05:51h, 04 April

      Most welcome Monica. Hope to see you back to the grind. 🙂