Tips on Starting Weight Training

As the world life expectancy and obesity rates are increasing, it is important for everyone to start taking up weight training. Weight training has many health benefits to improve our quality of life so that we can enjoy our golden years.

 

Benefits of Weight Training
There are several benefits to weight training that help us enjoy a healthier and longer life which include:

  1. Maintaining muscle mass
  2. Maintaining bone density
  3. Increasing metabolic rate

These are just some of the benefits of weight training. They are important because as we age we lose an average of 3-5% of muscle per decade after 30 years old. Unfortunately, as we age our bone density and metabolic rate slows down as well. Through weight training we can stave off muscle loss and build stronger, more resilient bones that are less likely to be broken from falls and maintain a higher metabolic rate as a result of having more muscle mass.

 

Warming Up

Warming up is an important factor before any weight training as it helps our body get ready to do the activity and decreases the likelihood of injury. A common mistake is performing static stretches as a warm up which could increase the likelihood of tearing your muscles. This is because your muscles have not been sufficiently warmed up before being stretched into a position that it is not usually at, that is not to say that stretching is bad for you, however it is not what we should be doing for a warm-up.

So what should we be doing for warm-ups? Well, we should be doing dynamic warm-ups which includes walking on the treadmill on a slight incline for 2-5 minutes, arm swings and leg swings. These are some of the general warm ups you can do. You should aim to increase your heart rate slightly but not reach the point of heavy panting. In addition, these warm ups also help to move our major joints allowing us to obtain an improved range of motion when we start our workout!

 

Weight Training

There are a few different factors to consider when doing weight training:

  • What is the purpose of the movement?
  • How many sets or reps?
  • Machines or Free Weights?

However, the general rule of thumb when doing weight training is to do compound movements that are the most challenging and complex exercises first as they have the highest risk of injury when done improperly, followed by the less complex and more isolated exercises. This is so that we can ensure safety and not be limited in our heavier compound movement because we pre fatigue our muscles with other exercises.

A sample workout would be 4 sets each 10-15 reps:

  1. Squat
  2. Back extension
  3. Leg extension
  4. Leg curl
  5. Calf raises.

Repetitions, Sets and Other Considerations

As for how many reps and sets we need to do for each exercise, it will depend on your goals and the complexity of the exercise. It is recommended that to build strength and power, the optimal range would be from 3-6 repetitions. For muscle building a rep range of 5 to 20 is ideal and for muscular endurance a rep range from 15-30 is ideal.

With regards to the number of sets, it is recommended to include 12 to 20 sets a week per muscle group to show ideal growth and improvements in overall strength performance.

 

In summary, as global life expectancy continues to rise, we must focus on enhancing our ability to enjoy life well into our golden years. It is shown that healthier individuals tend to live longer and experience fewer illnesses or injuries. Weight training plays a key role in maintaining our quality of life and supporting independence as we age. Therefore, we should all aim to incorporate weight training into our routines to promote a longer, healthier, and more independent life.

At FITLUC, our dedicated Personal Trainers are more than happy to provide you with proper advice and supervision! So, what are you waiting for? Drop us a WhatsApp message at +65 8812 0110 or book a Personal Training Trial to explore if Personal Training is the best choice for you!

Just a heads-up, it will probably be one of the best decisions you’ve ever made.


About FITLUC

Looking for a Personal Trainer in Singapore? Look no further! At FITLUC, we specialize in In-Person and Online Personal Training, and we also offer house-call PT with a small additional fee. We currently base our Personal Training clients at a well-equipped gym just a stone’s throw away from Outram Park MRT. We have also just opened our second outlet at 82 Boat Quay, which is located right in the heart of CBD!

We are recognized as one of the Top 12 Best PT in Singapore and were featured on Mothership, The Straits Times, YES 93.3FM, Yahoo News, etc. Our Personal Trainers have worked with clients aged 13 – 84, from Celebrities to CEOs, working professionals and homemakers, with goals ranging from fat loss, weight loss, muscle gain to athletic performance and elderly training. Our celebrity clientele includes Tay Ping Hui, Maxi Lim, Hazelle Teo, Tayying, Lee Teng, Ze Tong, Benjamin Tan, Jaspers Lai and more.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook to stay updated on our client stories and for more fitness tips from our Personal Trainers!

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Let's get to know you

Our trainer will spend some time to get to know you better in terms of exercise history, injuries, goals and diet before customising a programme and taking you through the workout segment. Each trial session will take about 1.5hrs.

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