Weight Training Turns Fat Into Muscle

Now that you are watching your diet, it’s time to start building up those strong muscles that have been hiding out under the fat. The main word here is moderation. If you overdo it your body will slim down but you won’t achieve good firm muscle. With this routine you will get muscle growth and definition. This is a twelve week program but it is recommended you continue weight lifting and aerobics in some form for a life time of strength and well being.

Start with 20 minutes of aerobics three times a week. Anything you enjoy doing that keeps you breathing hard will do. Over the next few weeks move up to 30 or 40 minutes 3 times a week. Now it’s time to pick up those weights and go to work.

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You will start your weight training slowly and build up as you go. Work half your body one day and the other half the next. On the third day rest. It’s important to take the third day off because your muscles are repairing and growing while you rest. Each step is important to your progress so follow each step faithfully.

On Monday and Thursday work your triceps,chest, and shoulders.

• Dumbbell Fly: Lie flat on your back on a level exercise bench with a dumbbell in each hand. Raise your arms straight above your chest, palms facing each other and elbows slightly bent. Slowly lower the dumbbells in an arc away from your body, so your hands end up out at your sides. Take it slowly, and make sure your arms don’t drop lower than parallel. Now gradually raise the weights, until the weights are once again nearly together above your chest.
• Barbell Bench Press: Lie flat on a bench, bar at chest level, grasp the bar overhand, with hands a little more than shoulder width apart. Lift the bar straight above the chest, stopping just before your elbows lock. Pause then lower to chest.

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• Side Lateral: Stand straight with dumbbell in each hand, arms at your side. raise your arms from your sides until they are parallel to the floor, palms up,with elbows slightly bent. Hold briefly and lower to starting position.
• Dumbbell Row: place a dumbbell on the floor next to an exercise bench. Bend at the waist and rest your left knee and left hand on the bench. Reach down and grasp the dumbbell with your right hand, palm facing in. Keeping your shoulders parallel with the floor, pull the dumbbell up beside your chest and lower it again. Repeat using your left arm.
• Two Hand Triceps Extension: standing naturally, feet shoulder width apart, grasp a dumbbell with both hands and raise it above your head so the weight is vertical and the top plate rests comfortably on the palms of your hands, thumbs around the handle, palms facing up. This is the starting position. Now , keeping your feet in place, your back straight and elbows close to your head,slowly lower the weight behind your head as far as is comfortable. Finish by raising the weight to the starting position. Don’t lock elbows.
• Rope Pull Down: Thread a thick rope or a small towel through the hook of a lat pull down machine. Stand facing the machine, about a foot away, and hold both sides of the rope about 8 inches below the hook, hands 6 inches apart. Keeping back straight and elbows at your sides,slowly pull down until your arms are beside your thighs, elbows locked. Slowly bring your hands back to the starting position.

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Tuesday and Friday, work your back, biceps,and legs.

• Dead Lift: standing facing a barbell on the floor with bar over toes. Keep back and head straight, bend knees and grasp bar with a shoulder wide grip (one palm facing you, the other facing away) Bend forward and grab handles with both hands, palms facing each other. Keeping elbows slightly bent and back flat, lean your torso back until you are sitting up straight. Arms should remain extended throughout the exerciser lower to starting position.
• Stiff Arm Seated Pulley Row: Sit at pulley machine with feet against foot rest, knees slightly bent. (keep knees in this position throughout movement) Bend forward to grab handles with both hands, palms facing each other. Keeping elbows slightly bent and back flat, lean your torso until you are sitting straight. Arms should remain extended throughout exercise. Slowly lower to starting position.
• Reverse Grip Pull Down: stand facing a pull down machine and grab bar with an underhand grip, hands shoulder width apart. Kneel in front of machine, letting resistance extend your arms overhead. Keeping your back straight, slowly the bar down to the front of chest. Hold then return to starting position.
• Barbell Curl: Do this exercise by raising a barbell from the extended arm position to chest. The curl should be done slowly, especially through the downward movement.
• Reverse Grip E-Z curl: Standing with your feet shoulder width apart, hold an E-Z curl bar (shorter angled bars)with a palms down grip. Keep your elbows close to your sides. Slowly curl the bar to shoulder level, then slowly lower back to starting position.
• Leg Press: Sit on a leg press machine with your back flat against the pad and feet firmly planted on platform 12 inches apart. Release the weight and slowly lower until legs are bent slightly less than 90 degrees. Slowly raise the weight until legs are straight. Don’t lock knees. Return to starting position.
• Leg Extension: Sit on a leg extension machine with your feet beneath the pads so your knees are snug against the seat. With your head and back straight,raise both legs until they are fully extended. Hold, then gently lower to starting position.
• Leg Curl: Lie face down on the leg curl machine, placing feet under the pads with knees just over the edge of bench. Curl your lower leg up until your foot almost touches your buttocks. Hold , then lower to the standing position. Repeat with other leg.
• Seated Calf Raise: Sit at a seated calf machine with your back straight and your knees under pads. Place balls of your feet on the foot bat, toes facing forward. Release the safety bar and drop your heels as low as possible. Loosely grip the knee pads for stability and push as high as possible on the balls of your feet. Lower to starting position.

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Monday through Friday:

• Abdominals: Abdominal muscles are the few you should work every day. They respond better to high repetition sets,so stay at between 12 to 16 repetitions for the following exercises during all 12 weeks.
• Seated Leg Tuck:sit on the edge of a flat bench. Straighten legs and lean your torso forward until your body forms a 45 degree angle. Now contract abdominal, rounding your back as you do. Bend your knees as you raise them to your chest. Hold for a second, then extend your legs back out in front of you,. Keep continuous tension on your lower abdominals through the movement.
• High Pulley Crunch: Thread a rope or towel through the hook of a pulley machine. Get on your knees facing the machine about three feet away. Both your knees and thighs should be touching. Hold ends of rope against the top of your head and slowly curl your torso forward. You’ll be using your abdominal muscles to left the weight stack. Return to starting position.

Week One: Do three repetitions of 12. Use a weight that’s light enough that you can lift 3 sets of 12 without much trouble. Many repetitions but not much weight.

Weeks 2 -4: Boost yourself to 5 sets of repetitions, rest a minute between each set.

Weeks 5-8: Once you’ve reached five sets of repetitions, it’s time to start lifting more weight. If you started out lifting 80 pounds, you might try to lift 100 pounds 10 times. Less repetitions and more weight will trigger more muscle growth.

Once you are comfortable with three sets of 10 repetitions, step up the number of repetitions. Rest one or two minutes between sets. During this phase you’ll notice some growth and mild definition.

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Week 9-12: This stage intensifies the muscle building and coaxes more growth out of those muscles. Start this phase with 4 sets, but this time, lift the weights only five times per set. That means-adding weight. Add enough iron so your muscles will reach fatigue in five repetitions.

Week 10-12: Keep the weight the same, work up to five sets of six repetitions. Rest two or three minutes between sets.

True progress doesn’t mean reaching your goal and quitting. Look at your progress and if you are satisfied, go back with the workout you are comfortable with and keep it up. If you want more growth and definition stick with the program, but increase poundage as you progress.

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