Sunday 14 August 2011

The Different Strategies Used By Body Builders

By Alene Smolski


Although bodybuilders follow a myriad of different muscle building strategies and workouts, there are a few fundamental weightlifting principles that everyone follows regardless of skill level. These principles form the basic theories behind any serious weight training program.

The first principle of body building is high intensity training, or HIT. This type of workout involves single-set full-body weight training exercises, performed one to three times a week. The goal of these exercises is to get a strenuous workout in a short period of time.

The basic rule of HIT is that every set after the first should be more strenuous than the first. These exercises call for sets of 8-12 reps each.

Since each set after the first needs to be more intense, you'll need to add weight, do more reps, or complete the set in a shorter amount of time than you did in the first set. In this way, your sets keep scaling up in intensity.

Another basic principle of weight lifting is called periodization. This is the practice of increasing the weight in steps so as to avoid overtraining.

An example of utilizing periodization in weight training would be lifting relatively light weights during the first week that you begin working out, then moving on to moderate weights the next week, then heavy weights the week after that.

The purpose of periodization is to gradually introduce the lifter to heavier and heavier weights. This keeps the lifter working towards new goals and also aids in preventing injury or overtraining, which is a common problem for beginners.

Another popular concept in weightlifting is the hard gainer philosophy. This lifting strategy uses high intensity routines to hit muscles hard and promote growth.

This concept aims to work all the muscle groups of the body to provide a balance of strength. Those following this philosophy lift weights three times a week, but the only work each muscle group once every week.




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