At what point do you up your weights?

[Chicken_Patty]

i am clueless as to when to start raising the amount of weights for each exercise that i perform. a while back my friend suggested that whenever i can do a few repetitions more than when i started out, i should try raising weights slightly. i've been doing that for a while, but i am not sure if it's the right way to do it or not. can anyone please give any advice on this?

[Mindi912]

easiest way to tell is you find the exercise easier to do up the weight - however I would say when you can get out higher reps on that weight but others might not necessarily agree with that if they never train in the higher rep range

[Daemas]

let's say if I'm doing 3 sets of 8 reps. When i can do all 3 sets of 8 reps at say 10 pounds, i increase the weight to 15 pounds. and then when i can do all the sets and reps for 15 pounds, i go to 20 pounds.

[Mindi912]

let's say if I'm doing 3 sets of 8 reps. When i can do all 3 sets of 8 reps at say 10 pounds, i increase the weight to 15 pounds. and then when i can do all the sets and reps for 15 pounds, i go to 20 pounds.

lets say I did 3 sets of 8 - I got them out and can get them out (but I still felt it working and I had to work hard to get them out) doesn't mean I am ready to immediately up the weight

if I can get them out easy and keeping great form then it's time for a change

I wouldn't up the weight too quickly and risk injury

[Freakzila]

It depends on the excercise. For me, on my chest and shoulders I usually use 12 reps for an indicator that I need to up the weight. My bench press for example..... If I can do 135 for twelve reps then I will up the weight to 145 and than work on that until I can get twelve reps. Dumbell Lateral raises also, If I can do 20 lb. Db's 12X than I will go to 25 lbs.
I guess it depends on what your going for. Size or endurance?

[zarg02]

As soon as I complete 5 reps at the weight I'm working for, I up it 5 pounds and work towards 5 reps again. It's worked well for me so far. Theres no reason to overthink stuff like this when you are just starting out. I mean, you're a 5'9" 120lb girl; you dont need some super-complex loading system. Just up it once you can.

[MIKES3]

I think it all depends on what your striving for. I think its harder to increase weight working with higher reps 10-12 range. Your using a lot of energy doing 3 sets.

I think working in the 3x5 range will help you increase weight, but to each of there own. Start heavy though


Oh and I had to get this out of the way. If thats you in your avatar your friggin gorgeous

[xtrmforce]

i am clueless as to when to start raising the amount of weights for each exercise that i perform. a while back my friend suggested that whenever i can do a few repetitions more than when i started out, i should try raising weights slightly. i've been doing that for a while, but i am not sure if it's the right way to do it or not. can anyone please give any advice on this?

I have always worked on doing 3-4 sets at say a set weight, and the same amount of reps (i do 8 reps usually)
Once i am comfortable with the weight i raise it ever so slightly, you don't have to raise it by 5lbs at a time, try 1.25/2.5lbs etc

ps: when i say comfortable i mean that i can do these sets with little struggle/strain, but of course once you up the weight, don't expect it to be easy

[lonecrow]

I up mine every two weeks or so. I just push myself harder. If I fail? Well I do some more to punish myself This is where you need all the motivation you can get

[SuperFlanker]

you can adjust the weights every set if you want. sometimes i go heavy and work down. other days, i go light and work up and yet other days i do a moderate weight and focus on controlled reps particularly at the top and bottom. keep changing it up so your body doesn't get too accustomed to a workout.

[W8isGR8]

I think it all depends on what your striving for. I think its harder to increase weight working with higher reps 10-12 range. Your using a lot of energy doing 3 sets.

I think working in the 3x5 range will help you increase weight, but to each of there own. Start heavy though


Oh and I had to get this out of the way. If thats you in your avatar your friggin gorgeous

lol

[DJAuto]

When you feel like it.

[metaldrumr7]

work in a rep range such as 3x10 as long as you can before you stall and can't get all the reps, next workout drop the weight 10% for 3x10 and the next workout start off at your last weight you stalled at but with a different rep range such as 3x8

[lesterarin]

I think it all depends on what your striving for. I think its harder to increase weight working with higher reps 10-12 range. Your using a lot of energy doing 3 sets.

I think working in the 3x5 range will help you increase weight, but to each of there own. Start heavy though


Oh and I had to get this out of the way. If thats you in your avatar your friggin gorgeous

the 3-5 rep range is more in the strength area. I doubt she is striving for strength.

stay in the 8-10 range. get fractional plates, and increase small amounts.

[peteyr1]

When I get to my last set,on my last few reps if I feel theres a few more reps I could do,I'll stop where I normally would and next time add another 5 or 10 pounds and go from there.

[Big Arm Big Pay]

i up the weight if i can do more than 15 or just when i been doing the same weight for awhile i just try and do more even if i cant get as many reps i just keep doing it unless i reach the number i want

[hjayss]

The general rule is when you can get 12-15 reps easy then that would be a good time to up the weight even if it is just a pound on each side then that is good every little bit counts.

[TrainSmarter]

One of the questions I am asked most frequently is: “how should I add weight”. Which at times is kind of scary because in many cases I know it's being asked because they are so used to not being able to add weight that they really don't know how. Again to reiterate, if your routine is structured properly, and diet is in order you should see weight or rep (or both) increases almost EVERY time you hit the gym until you are VERY advanced. “start working” one day?

OK, we're clear on the need to add weight, now how is this best done, and what does it mean when its done? Perhaps the best and easiest way to actually understand what an increase means, and to be able to look at increases on a comparative basis is a simple:

Weight x reps = work completed

And yes, I fully understand for this formula to be complete and give ACTUAL results we would have to include the time factor (speed of movement), AND distance moved in the equation, but I'm trying to keep it simple, and we will go on the understanding that the rep cadence is to be kept constant for this to be reliable.

Using this formula, most people will be extremely surprised to find what a HUGE increase that lowly single rep is relative to adding a small chunk of iron. Lets do a little math!

On week one Joe trainee benches 275 x 8, this looks like:

275 x 8 = 2200 lbs

Now, next week he does one of two things. A) Adds 5 more lbs. B) Adds one more rep. Which is a bigger increase?

280 x 8 = 2240 lbs

275 x 9 = 2475 lbs

The one rep increase is 235 lbs additional workload over the 5 lb increase workload.

Now lets look at a different scenario. Joe trainee is doing lateral raises with 20 lbs in each hand:

20 x 10 = 400 lbs

Next week:

45 x 10 = 450 lbs

40 x 11= 440 lbs

Now the tables are turned and the 5 lbs is the bigger increase. THIS ONLY OCCURS WHEN THE WEIGHTS ARE VERY, VERY TINY. Otherwise rep increases will be the larger percentile increase.

Now that we have a quick and easy to use formula we can use to easily see what the increases mean as far as increased workload, how and when do we go about adding weight to the bar? Before we go further, a few generalities are first in order.

Unless you are VERY advanced increases should be occurring on about every lift, every time you train. Even if these are tiny increases.
Big increases are NOT sustainable for the long term. If you hit each bodypart once a week, and figure on missing about 4-6 weeks of training throughout the year due to injury, sickness, or outside obligations, You are still left with 46 workouts. If your plan is to add 10 lbs a week each week, that is 460 lbs more at the end of the year. Do that for just two years and you OWN the squat and deadlift record (assuming you already squat at least 200), not to mention OBLITERATING the bench record. Sorry—back to earth, it doesn't work that way.
Smaller lifts GENERALLY respond better to rep increases (mostly because in commercial gyms there are no fractional plates, if fractional plates are available, this is by far and above better than trying to use rep increases for little lifts) and bigger lifts do well with weight increases.
Slow twitch muscles TEND to do better with rep increases.
Fast twitch muscles TEND to do better with weight increases.
Some lifts like pull-ups almost demand small weight increases because most folks just will never add a rep each workout.
Fractional plates are one of the best investments you will ever make.
If you don't keep a training journal YOU ARE GUESSING!
OK, now lets talk about weight increases, how to make them, and when using reps, or using more weight is in order.

A big problem with working out in a commercial gym is the fact that unless you are using fixed weight, like a selectorized stack, or fixed dumbbells, YOU ARE PROBABLY LIFTING A DIFFERENT AMOUNT OF WEIGHT EVERY WEEK!!!!! What to I mean by that? If you bench 275 x 8 this week and go back to the gym and slap on four 45's and two 25's you are again benching 275 right? Well the answer is “MAYBE”. I have weighed every plate I own, and MANY plates for other people on a certified scale, AND plates from a few commercial gyms, and 45's are often 2 lbs light, or 2 lbs heavy, and sometimes they are almost right on……sometimes. All the plates I use in my home gym are marked with the ACTUAL weight, because putting four 46 pound plates on one side and four 44 lbs SUCKS! Perhaps the bigger problem is that one week you may be 4-5 lbs light, and the next heavy of the weight you THINK you are lifting. Well now that I gave you something to think about I am going to leave it at that, if you work out in a commercial gym there isn't a damn thing you can do about it—live it!

The other problem is the inability to add small increments of iron. Lets talk a minute about the “tiny” increases and what they mean. I task those that train at home to go to PDA http://www.fractionalplates.com/fractional.html or www.theplatemate.com/

and pick up some ½ lb and 1 lb plates. The typical response is “what good is it adding one lb”? Well let's use a small lift like barbell curls as an example. Again, assuming 46 workouts per year, if you add “only” 1 lb per workout, and like most beginning, and intermediate trainees are curling 65-85 lbs. Using the low number, in one year you are now curling 111. Much better. If you can do it another year you're at 157. And how many guys do you actually see curling 155 in your gym? If you think 2 years is too long to spend to spend pursuing a great body, you are in the wrong sport. While big changes can be made in short periods of time, ESPECIALLY when a trainee first starts training right, it is nonetheless a given that you are in this for the long run. And 2 years is NOTHING

Dumbbell's in commercial gyms go up in either 5 or 10 lb increments with 10 lbs being the most common, this means it is extremely hard to jump to the next level doing the smaller lifts. There are two good ways to go about this. As an example, if the trainee is doing 2 sets of 8 dumbbell curls and wants to go up in weight, attempting the 90 lb bells the following week just isn't going to cut it. He should instead just try to get a rep or two more the following week, and keep at adding reps until he is doing 12-14 reps, at which point he can hit the 10 lb increment and drop back down to 8 reps. Alternatively you can buy some Platemate www.theplatemate.com/ fractional magnetic plates that will allow ½ to 2 lb increases and add a small chunk of iron every week. DON'T scoff at these small increases, they add up to big iron in your hands over time!

Continued below...

[TrainSmarter]

One of my favorite methods of being progressive is to use reps as the increase and start with 6-8 and add reps until you hit 12-14 and then add a good sized chunk of iron and go back down. You get the benefit of both medium and high rep ranges and the this method tends to keep one from stalling out on a lift as fast as if the rep range remains constant.

When using weight for increases instead of reps, the big thing to keep in mind is that the increments are commensurate to the lifts being done. Small movements with little poundage's require little bumps in weight, or gradually increasing the reps until a higher number is reached, than adding weight, while the big lifts work just fine adding a reasonable size chunk of iron at every opportunity. 1/2-2 lbs for the small lifts and 5 lbs for the big stuff (10 lbs for many when first exposed to common-sense training, or doing a first or big cycle) will get you there over time.

Now that we have covered the importance of little increases, and making the increases over the long term, I'll spend a few moments covering what everyone wants to hear about—the sick-fast weight progression that is possible at TIMES.

Beginners may add 100-300 lbs on their big lifts and 20-50 lbs of muscle their first year if they do EVERYTHING right which is pretty rare.

Trainees that have been training and haven't been exposed to lower volume training, or at least training that is within their ability to recuperate often find that they absolutely EXPLODE with strength and size gains when first doing a “real-world” routine. MANY people that have tried DC's, or my training philosophies for the first time after doing many things wrong, and BAM!! These guys are adding big chunks of iron EVERY WEEK to the bar, and gaining size on a regular basis. Many of my training clients put on 10-30 lbs of lean mass in 3-6 months of training under my guidance and I know Dogg does the same if not more for his people.

Going from a bodybuilding to a PURE STRENGHT program is another time when you can see some phenomenal weight progression each session. Doing low reps without much extra volume or higher rep work can equate to some BIG strength increases. Just be aware a LARGE percentage of these types of gains TEND to be from neural recruitment gains as opposed to actual hypertrophy gains. Westside Barbell training has enough volume and pure strength focus that most guys build a good degree of size and strength while doing them. Refer to the article on “Making Westside work for you” for more info.

And of course, we have the crazy-sick type gains a lot of guys get when doing their first couple of cycles, doing their first BIG DOSE cycle (especially with gear that has a lot of nerve excitability properties), or gear that makes one become the “water boy” like Anadrol. While I sure won't tell anyone that decides to take this course to not take advantage of these big gains, I will be the first to tell you to BE CAREFUL and keep your ego in check. ESPECIALLY if doing lower reps. Adding 50-75 lbs, to your bench and 100-125 to your squat/dead, in an extremely short period of time occurs for SOME guys when going on their first, or first BIG cycle, and one thing that doesn't keep pace with these big weight increases in connective tissue/tendon strength. The muscle growth far outstrips the connective tissue strength increase and if form isn't perfect…..well, lets just say LOTS of guys end up injured that way.

I will also go out on a limb here and state that IF you are training and EATING properly, progress on squats, deads, and leg-presses should be fast and ALMOST linear for beginning and low-intermediate trainees. This means if you haven't been training your lower body with focus, or at all, you should have a FAST-TRACK trip to squatting and deadlifting 300-400 for rep work. Upper body (for many reasons) does not usually progress as fast, nor in as much a linear fashion, but should still be regular and consistent. If it's not with what you are doing now, its time you make some changes. As I have stated a thousand times, if it's not working now, how the hell is supposed to magically “start working” one day?

Iron Addict

...

[Compton24_OLD]

too bad it's not her in her d/p..just some gay guy hoping to get people adding him on msn and eventually getting people to show him themselves on webcam

[robjen1019]

Good rule to follow is to raise weight by 2 to 5 percent per week. if gets too hard. Drop back 10 percent and start to climb again. Kind of follows the loaded progression of the 5x5

I also have had good gains using a progresson of reps. 6 to 10 reps per set. when I can do 10, the next rep I go up 5 to 10 lb and do 6. Then progress the reps till I reach 10, its time to raise the weight again. If you stall, change exercises or drop by 10 percent.


Have fun.

[KnjazVovk]

I'm back on rippetoes so most of the exercises call for a 3 x 5 set x repetitions. If I get a total of 13 reps of more that day, I move up. This ensures I don't work to failure and keeps my strength gains on a good run.

[Chicken_Patty]

thanks for the replies, everyone. i usually start to raise my weights by a little when i can do around 15 reps compared to my regular 10. maybe i should start raising them sooner to see better results faster, or would that just raise my risks of an injury?

kataxu - what is rippetoes?

[MIKES3]

the 3-5 rep range is more in the strength area. I doubt she is striving for strength.

stay in the 8-10 range. get fractional plates, and increase small amounts.

I'll agree with this, but she wants to increase weights. Either way she's going to need more strength to increase weights.

[MIKES3]

thanks for the replies, everyone. i usually start to raise my weights by a little when i can do around 15 reps compared to my regular 10. maybe i should start raising them sooner to see better results faster, or would that just raise my risks of an injury?

kataxu - what is rippetoes?

A lot of reading but you're a smart woman.

Mark Rippetoe's Starting Strength Routine:

*note the dip/chin isnt in the original program

Here is a routine from Mark Rippetoe?s book called ?Starting Strength?. You can buy the book at www.startingstrength.com. It includes endless useful info that all beginners should learn. But as for the program he suggests, his clients that he gives it to on AVERAGE gain 30-40 pounds in about 6 months or so which is amazing gains.

The program is as follows:

You alternate Workout A and Workout B every other day, 3 times a week. So you could either do Mon, Wed, Fri or Tues, Thurs. and Sat. Depending on what works best for you.

Example:

Week 1:

Monday - Workout A
Wednesday -Workout B
Friday - Workout A

Week 2:

Monday - Workout B
Wednesday - Workout A
Friday - Workout B

Etc.

For the actual workouts read below:

Note: This doesn?t include warm-up sets

**Means this is OPTIONAL**

Workout A
3x5 Squat
3x5 Bench Press
1x5 Deadlift
**2x8 Dips (if you cant do these or no assist machine then do Decline Dumbbell Bench Press with your hands Facing each other)

Workout B
3x5 Squat
3x5 Standing military press
3x5 Pendlay or Bent Rows (or power cleans)
**2x8 Chin-ups (recommended mainly if doing the cleans)

Assistance work:

Most people cant get it through there head that compound lifts also work your arms Plenty and always Insist on direct arm work. As quoted by Madcow2, ?Don't **** with this. Every bodybuilder seems to have Attention Deficit Disorder and an overwhelming desire to customize everything.? If you are one of these people note that you have the option of doing the dips and chins which give PLENTY of arm work. Abdominal work is fine to do also if needed.

I recommend weighted decline sit-ups and/or Hanging Leg Raises at 2x8-10.

It's fine to add some assistance work such as abs, hypers, or maybe some direct biceps and triceps work, but don't overdo it. For direct arm work, 3 sets of 8 of one lift for each muscle at the end of your last workout of the week will be plenty. Your arms are getting hit hard all week on this routine, so you don't want to blast them with iso stuff as well.
(dips/chins - skullcrusher/curls)

Weight:

As for the weight, make sure that you use the SAME weight throughout the sets. For example if I do the first set if Squats with 200lbs then I do the other 2 sets of squats with 200lbs.

Every week make it a goal to increase each of your lifts by 2.5%. Meaning if I lifted 100lbs for my Bench Week 1 then Week 2 I would try for 102.5lbs. If I did 200lb Squats Week 1 I would try for 205lbs in Week 2. Sometimes you will be able to do more but don?t mess with your form just to lift more.

Warm-up Sets:

Before all your working sets it is best to do a few warm-up sets. Specifically for your first lift. You don?t have to do the whole thing for the other lifts but definitely the first.

What you do is you ramp your weight up to your working sets.

For example:

2x5xbar (sets x reps x weight)
1x5x85
1x3x125
1x2x155

And the working set weight would be 175.

If you are lifting your working sets under 150 I would cut out the 3rd warmup set of 1x5 because it wont be needed.

Rest interval

As for the rest interval, Rippetoe suggests 1-2 minutes for the worksets, with no rest needed for warmups. Typically the workout takes me about 40 minutes, a little longer then you would think when looking at it. When I add my abs in it can run to 50 or so. So as for the guy saying it should take 10, you have no idea what you are talking about.

The Lifts:

**Used references and quotes from Madcow2 and Bodybuilding.com**

Barbell Squat: These should be full range Olympic style squats. Use the full range of your body - that means as low as you can go which for almost everyone is past parallel. If the top of your thighs aren't at least parallel it's for sh!t. If you think this is bad for your knees going low, you and whoever told you that are relying on an old wives tale. Anyone who knows the human body will tell you that below parallel is MUCH safer on the knees whereas parallel and above put all the sheer right on them and doesn?t allow proper transfer of the load to the rest of your body (this is how your body was designed).

Rest a barbell on the upper portion of your back, not your neck. Firmly grip the bar with your hands almost twice your shoulder width apart. Position your feet about shoulder width apart and your toes should be pointing just a little outward with your knees in the same direction. Keep your back as straight as possible and your chin up, bend your knees and slowly lower your hips straight down until your THIGHS ARE AT LEAST PARALLEL TO THE FLOOR. Once you reach the bottom position, press the weight up back to the starting position.

To be honest ATG (Ass to the Grass) squats work the best IMO. What you do is you go ALL the way down until your hamstrings touch your calves and keep the same Olympic squat form.

Barbell Deadlift: Each rep is deweighted fully on the floor. No touch and go. This is called the 'dead'lift because the weight is 'dead' on the ground. You can touch and go warm ups but that's it.

Flat Barbell Bench Press: Lie on a flat bench and firmly position your feet flat on the floor a little more than shoulder width apart. Keep your back flat on the bench! Using a grip broader than shoulder width, hold the barbell above your body, then lower slowly to the middle of your chest. Without bouncing the weight off your chest, drive the barbell up over the middle of your chest until your arms are straight and your elbows are locked. Lower the bar down slowly.

Standing Barbell Military Press: Standing overhead presses. Supporting weight overhead is a fundamental exercise and stimulates the whole body.
Raise barbell to your chest with your hands shoulder width apart. Lock your legs and hips. Keep your elbows in, slightly under your bar. Press bar to arm's length overhead. Lower to your upper chest or chin (depending on what is comfortable).

Bent Barbell Row: Raise barbell to your chest with your hands shoulder width apart. Lock your legs and hips. Keep your elbows in, slightly under your bar. Press bar to arm's length overhead. Lower to your upper chest or chin (depending on what is comfortable).

You could also do Pendlay Rows which IMO are also better.

Power Clean: This is also a very complicated exercise so here is bodybuilding.com?s detailed instructions on this lift.

Chin-Up: Hold the chin-up bar with a supinated grip (palms facing you) with your hands about 6 to 8 inches apart. Pull yourself up and try to touch either your chin or upper chest to the bar. Return slowly to the starting position. Do NOT swing back and forth! Using this grip works more of your biceps than your back or lats.

Dip: Using the parallel bars, grip the handles and push yourself up to your starting position. With elbows close to body and hips straight, lower body until shoulders are slightly stretched. Push body up in same posture and repeat. You can bend and cross your legs or keep them straight.

The Diet:

If you are bulking, which is what people usually do on this program, you need to be eating like there is no tomorrow. 3000-4000 calories a day. Make sure you get 1 to 2 x your bodyweight in protein (in grams) and more than that in carbs. Mark Rippetoe also suggests that you drink up to a gallon of milk a day and plenty of water.

Your bulk could be clean but its hard to do so. I suggest just going all out and getting any protein you can get your hands on. For example lean grilled chicken and egg whites is best but if you want to gain that muscle fast then ground beef, steaks, whole eggs, cheeses etc is great. Eat a lot of oats, pasta, wheat bread, yogurt, cottage cheese, tuna, etc.

Make sure you get a huge breakfast. Mark recommends 4 huge meals a day with breakfast being the largest. Make sure all your meals have plenty of both carbs and protein! Also look into getting a PWO shake for post workout to get some carbs DIRECTLY into your system when your done lifting. Then an hour later eat a meal. Its also good to eat a snack before bed. Just remember to get big you need to eat big because eating is 90% of your muscle gains.

[luckyshark]

thanks for the replies, everyone. i usually start to raise my weights by a little when i can do around 15 reps compared to my regular 10. maybe i should start raising them sooner to see better results faster, or would that just raise my risks of an injury?

kataxu - what is rippetoes?

Figure out a rep range that gets the best results for you (in your case it looks like that's 10-15) and do a weight at which you can perfrom at least 10 reps, but not more than 15. Once you get up to 15 reps with that weight, it's time to bump up.