Sculpting a Hard, Defined Body Through Strength Training

Strength training is an exercise that utilizes resistance to activate the muscles. This is an excellent workout to build strength, definition and power. Strength training also boosts endurance, stamina and builds stronger bones. When done right, strength training allows you to sculpt and define a specific muscle, group. In today’s post, we are giving you helpful tips to maximize the benefits of strength training exercises:

Developing a Fitness Plan

You can’t set goals if you don’t have a plan. A plan will give your fitness efforts a direction. If you’re working with a fitness trainer, then you can discuss your goals and how to achieve them. If you’re into this alone, star reading self-help books to determine the best way to start your program. Then, plan your training cycle in 12-weeks blocks. You can break down every block into 2 to 3 mini blocks. From here, you can alternate different strength training exercises to maximize your time in the gym.

Track Your Progress

Make it a point to track your progress to see if you are on the right direction. Keeping a fitness and diet journal is one way to do this. Start by listing down your measurements before starting the program. Measure the circumference of the limbs and midsection and calculating your body fat percentage. Start tracking your measurements every 2 weeks. Also, list down your meal plans. Do all these long enough and you will achieve your fitness goals in no time at all.

Focus on Major, Multi-Joint Movements

To maximize your workout, concentrate on doing lots of deadlifts, squats, shoulder press, bench presses and other multi-joint exercises. These moves will isolate specific muscle groups so they stimulate the muscles more effectively. Eventually, you will achieve definition on targeted areas of the body, which should be one of your goals.

Pay Attention To The Tempo

Tempo refers to the speed at which you lift the weight. Most fitness experts recommend a faster tempo of 1 second eccentric and 1 second concentric, which translates to one second of lifting and 1 second of raising weights. However, you can develop your own tempo to make your workout as effective as possible. You can either slow down or speed up the raising of the weights or pause in the top or bottom of the exercise. Changing the tempo allows you to lengthen the time the muscles are engaged. This will build definition. Forcing the muscles to adapt to different stress also boost muscle growth!

Get Enough Rest

Never forgo resting, it’s just as important as working out. Start by resting between sets. The amount of time you spend resting between sets will depend on the intensity of the workout. If say, you completed lighter exercises with higher sets, then your resting period should be shorter. But if you completed heavy sets with few reps then you will require longer resting periods between every set. When you complete lighter exercises, the body can bounce back at a faster rate. Heavier sets will require longer periods of recovery.

Keep it Balanced

Balance is everything especially when you’re trying to sculpt a muscular frame. Develop a fitness program that equally trains the agonist and antagonist muscle groups. This will reduce injuries from improper training.