| the Talking Can |
02-27-2009 09:15 AM |
i started from scratch 6 months ago after years of doing nothing....start with body weight exercises...you don't need to throw around a bunch of weights if you can't do pushups and pullups with proper form....
but dumbells are great because they force you to use more muscles to stabilize the weight and they allow you to correct for strength imbalances on the left/right sides of your body
I use an Escalating Density Training method at home and love it. Efficient and focused. 40mins to an hour per workout. You do two exercises - usually a push and a pull - with minimal rest between sets (10-30 secs) for 15-20 minutes. You do low rep sets to focus on form and quality. You'll do 2-4 of these 15 min sets per session depending on your own program/progress.
I find it perfect for a busy schedule and a home routine. And it allows you a structure which is easy to vary - in terms of weight and type of exercise - once you progress.
Quote:
EDT Loading Parameters
In resistance training, whenever you’re talking about sets and reps, rest periods, and so on, you’re talking about loading parameters.
• Biomechanics: EDT is based on the concept of doing progressively more work from workout to workout. Therefore, it’s critical that your exercise biomechanics (i.e., technique) are consistent on every workout. If you perform strict curl form on one workout and loose form the next, you aren’t really doing more work (the arms at least!)
• Each workout consists of 2 PR Zones of 15-minute duration each, separated by a short (5-minute) rest period. In each PR Zone, you’ll perform two exercises, for a total of 4 exercises per session.
• In each PR Zone, you’ll perform these two antagonistic exercises in alternating fashion, back and forth, using the same weight for all sets, until the PR Zone has elapsed.
• Load: After warming up with the first exercise(s), select a load that approximates a 10RM for each exercise. Ideally, the weight used for each exercise should be equally difficult.
• Sets/Reps/Rest Intervals: This is where EDT is truly unique. Most people will find it most productive to do higher repetition (but not maximal effort) sets and shorter rests at the beginning, and then gradually progress to fewer reps per set and longer rest intervals as fatigue accumulates. As an example, you might begin by performing sets of 5 with very short (10-15 second) rests. As you begin to fatigue, you’ll increase your rest intervals as you drop down to sets of 4, then 2, and as the time limit approaches, you might crank out a few singles in an effort of accomplish as many repetitions as possible in the time allotted.
NOTE: Do not perform early sets to failure, or even near failure. My recommended starting point is to do 1/2 of what is possible (e.g., 5 reps with a 10RM weight) at the beginning of the time frame. As the time limit approaches however, you’ll find yourself working at or near failure as you attempt to break your rep record.
• Progression: Each time you repeat the workout; your objective is to simply perform more total repetitions in the same time frame. As soon as you can increase the total number of reps by 20 percent or more, start the next workout with 5 pounds or 5 percent more weight (whichever is less) and start over.
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