Five Myths of Weight Lifting
1. The 12 Rep rule
The twelve rep standard is often prescribed in bodybuilding routines for gaining muscle mass. However, doing this many reps at once actually places the type of strain needed for strength and endurance, rather than gains in muscle mass. In order to develop strength and gain mass, you will need to include both strategies in your workout with the addition of sets of fewer reps of heavier weights to your routine.
2. Three Set rule
It's best to look at this as a guideline for three sets rather than the rule for which it is usually taken. The number of sets in your routine will depend entirely on your goals for that routine. If you are going for strength then the old 3 sets of twelve is perfect, but for muscle mass you will want to do more sets of fewer reps and increase the weight.
3. 3 to 4 exercises per muscle group
The sad fact is that this is the most inefficient way to target a muscle group during a single workout. Instead of spreading all those reps out across three to four different exercises, it's best to do just fifty reps of one exercise during each workout. This way you are more effectively targeting each muscle group during a single workout.
4. Your knees and toes
Due to a study performed by researches at Memphis University in 2003 where they discovered that knee stress during squats was increased by about 30% if you allowed your knees to extend past your toes, it is know a common myth that doing squats this way should be avoided to prevent that extra stress on your knees.
While a 30% increase in knee stress may seem like a big deal, it's nothing compared to what they found next. If you attempt to keep your knees back, you lean forward more and transfer 10 times as much stress to your hips and back instead.
5. Bodybuilding supplements
The market saturation of early weight gain supplements led to a mass hysteria of bodybuilders everywhere buying and drinking gallons of what amounted to nothing more than sugary, overpriced milkshakes. While these do provide some muscle gain, the tendency of the body with these types of supplements is to store it as fat instead. Modern research into nutrition has led to a new and more competitive market of supplements that provide better nutrition for the aspiring bodybuilder.
About the Author:
Grab a free sample of my highest recommended pick of supplement, Acai Force Max for best results.
Posts
