Put down those light dumbbells! It’s
time to boost your strength and blast some fat with this muscle-building
workout
If you’re training like a trouper and
reaping zero results, it’ s time to stop lifting 2.5kg dumbbells umpteen times
and start pumping some iron. Here’s why: more weight builds more muscle, and
greater muscle blasts hoards of calories all day long.
If your workout consists of 10 reps or
more, aim to increase the weight, drop the number of reps and do more sets.
Those in the weights world call this ‘progressive overload’, and it’s crucial
for sculpting muscle. In fact, one study published in the Medicine & Science
in Sports & Exercise found that women who lifted heavy dumbbells for eight
reps burned nearly twice as many calories as those who blitzed through 15 reps
with light weights.
If
your workout consists of 10 reps or more, aim to increase the weight, drop the
number of reps and do more sets.
Want to try it? This workout, by trainer
Katarina B, health mentor at Nuffield Health (nuffieldhealth.com), is designed
to make you stronger and slimmer. Based around compound exercises, such as
squats, deadlifts, presses and rows, the circuit promotes fast muscle and
strength gains, as well as great fat loss.
‘These exercises will increase your
strength, boost your metabolism at rest and make you look good,’ says B. ‘And,
when you finish the workout, you won’t be able to do another rep!’ You have
been warned.
Getting Started
For each exercise, estimate your one-rep
max (1RM) – the most weight you can lift for one repetition and train with 75
per cent of that weight (75% 1RM).
Too complicated? Opt for a weight you think
you can lift a few more times than the specified number of reps.
You need: A
barbell, resistance band and skipping rope
Warm-up
Grab a rope and get skipping to prepare
your body for exercise. Skip vigorously for 90 seconds, rest for 30 seconds and
repeat three times.
The workout
1.
Deadlift
Reps: 6 at
75% 1rm
Sets: 3
·
Stand with your feet hip-width apart and the
balls of your feet directly under the bar.
·
Looking ahead, bend at the hips and knees to
grab the bar with an overhand grip. Your hands are shoulder-width apart and
arms are straight (a).
·
Without allowing your lower back to round, stand
up with the barbell (b). Pause momentarily and then lower back to the floor.
Deadlift
2.
Clean
Reps: 3 at
75% 1rm
Sets: 6
·
Stand with feet hip-width apart; balls of your
feet under the bar. Squat down to grab the barbell with a shoulder-width grip
(a).
·
Quickly straighten your legs and push your hips
forward to stand up, keeping the bar close to your body as you rise (b).
·
Shrug your shoulders and lift the barbell to
shoulder height. Simultaneously, drop your elbows and bend your knees to bring
your arms under the bar. Stand up (c). Reverse the process to lower; repeat.
Clean
3.
Front Squat
Reps: 6 at
75% 1rm
Sets: 3
·
Start in the ‘clean’ end position with feet
shoulder-width apart and the bar resting on your upper pectoral muscles (a).
·
Take a deep breath, arch your back slightly and
bend at the knees to squat down. Push through your heels to maintain form (b).
·
Breathe out and return to the start position.
Front
Squat
4.
Push Press
Reps: 3 at
75% 1rm
Sets: 6
·
Perform the clean move, as in exercise 2 (a).
·
Bend at the knees (b) before pressing the bar
straight overhead (c). Keep your core engaged.
·
Return the barbell to your shoulders and repeat
three times to complete one set.
Push
Press
5.
Barbell row to press-up
Reps: 5 (of
each exercise) at 75% 1rm
Sets: 3
·
With feet hip-width, grab the barbell and get
into bent-over row position (a).
·
Stick your chest out, flatten your lower back
and pull the weight into your upper abdomen, sending your elbows back (b).
Repeat this five times.
·
Immediately, put the barbell on the floor and
grab a resistance band. Wrap the band around your upper torso, put a handle in
each hand and get into a press-up position (c).
·
Engage your core, bend your elbows and lower
your chest until it’s nearly touching the floor (d). Pause and push yourself
back up. Do five press-ups.
·
This whole sequence is one ‘superset’. Complete
three supersets, increasing the weight for each round. Don’t rest between
exercises; rest for 30 seconds between sets.
Barbell
row to press-up
Post Work-put stretches
1. Standing chest stretch
·
Stand tall and straighten both arms behind your
back.
·
Place the back of one hand on the palm of the
other – don’t interlock your fingers!
·
Lift your arms up until you can feel a stretch
across your chest. Hold for 15 seconds.
Standing
chest stretch
2.
Kneeling quad stretch
·
Put one knee on the floor and bend the other leg
out in front with the foot flat on the floor. Rest your hand on the front leg.
·
Grasp the ankle of the back leg behind you.
·
You should be able to feel a stretch in you
quad. Lean forwards from the hips to increase the stretch. Hold for 15 seconds
and repeat on the other leg.
Kneeling
quad stretch
