What weight level to start out with

[scrapquilter]

Hi Cathe,
Am back on track again, finally. Will be ordering either your muslcle max dvd or the pure strength dvd this week. I want an all over total body workout with weights.
In your column you were talking about the amount of weights to lift. What is the best to start with. I weigh 230, have a lot of weight to lose, and my heaviest weight is 8 pounds. The rest are 5,4, 2, and 1. Those I have kind of collected.
Also, seeing that I have alot of work to do in the lower body, (stomach and hips and thighs) how do you add a routine that is concentrated on that one area, while you are doing something that is total body? Do you leave out that part of the total body wo and put the concentration in? Are your days alternated in that situation or still the same 3 days a week?
I look forward to getting back into shape and having my name on your list of success stories.
Any information you could give me would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much.
scrapquilter

 

[Davidj]

Use enough weight to tire you for the entire set.

scrapquilter,

Haven't heard from you for a while! How much weight to use? Not Cathe here, and I hope Cathe or some Cathe friends chime in! It depends which strength DVD you own. But you should use enough weight to tire you -- or to give yourself some difficulty -- to get through the entire set.

For example, if you are doing a Cathe DVD that requires 36 straight squats, you should use enough db poundage to get you through the entire 36 reps. But if you use too light dbs, such that you are not really taxed at the end of your set, you should up the poundage. I hope this helps.

Good luck on your weight goals.

-- David

 

[scrapquilter]

thanks for the info.

Hey David.
Yeah, I kind of dropped out of life for awhile. You know those periods where life takes over? Oh well...
I was wondering where to start with the weights. My eight pounders on a previous tape take a little getting used to for me. But I can do that after a little practice. So i guess I would have to start out with 10's, 8's and 5's?
I finally did get my weight bar, now I just have to get the weight plates. The bar is 14 pounds so I am only going to get two 10 pound plates. I don't see myself doing more than that at this point.
Maybe I can work up to the sts series.
Between muscle max and pure strength which do you think would be better? And one more questions, where do you put in a program like butts and guts? do you subsitute that instead of the lower body section on the weight tapes?
Thanks for replying. HOpe everything is going well with you!
dana

 

[LaughingWater]

Dana, I like your user name. I'm a quilter too (though my current obsession is knitting socks).

Until Cathe gets around to your question, I'd like to chime in with David and say yep...use whatever poundage wears you out by the end of the set. You want a weight that's doable but challenging (meaning you're struggling to lift those last 3 reps, but not struggling so hard that your form is poor).

For example, if I'm doing a set of 12 reps, and I'm really struggling by rep 4 or 5, I know I went too heavy. If I breeze through all 12, I went too light. However, if I start to struggle (and swear ) by rep 8 or 9, then I probably have the right weight.

The only way you'll know what numbers are right for the various exercises is by experimenting. And write it down so you can keep track. I started with poundage from 3 - 12 lbs.

Regarding B&G, I use it as I would any other weight workout. For example, I'll do an upper body workout on Monday, B&G on Tuesday, and then another upper body DVD on Wednesday.