Strength Exercise... I don't really know what I'm doing.
 

Hi guys, would really appreciate some help. Sorry if this has been asked a million times but I can never seem to find a simple answer!

I tend to stay away from weights, opting for cardio everytime, because I feel stupid when I try to do any weight training.

After going to a few bodypump classes while on holiday I know how to do lunges and squats with the bar on my shoulders behind my head, but other than that I am clueless.

My gym is part of the complex where I live so no instructor advice on hand. Please could you give me some exercises I can feel confident doing with a bar and free weights. I don't want to use machines as I want to make the most out of my time and effort.


Thanks so much for any help!

Get thee to www.stumptuous.com, the best site I know of for women who are new to weight training. A lot of solid, well-researched, no BS, no-hard sell information from a woman who knows her stuff.

If you prefer a book form, New Rules of Lifting for Women is good.

be strong//
K

For myself, I paid for a trainer until I learned the exercises correctly (without being a member of the gym)

However, you can search the exercises on Youtube and there are some really good demo's! I don't know if you have a laptop or not, but if your complex gym is quiet, you could bring it in there and do that as you go along.

Thanks for your replies guys!

stumptuous.com has been great and I managed to have my first weight training workout yesterday, without feeling like a total newbie.

I love it when video examples are given to demonstrate different exercises because it means I can see whether I'm doing things right or not, so youtube is a great idea - I'll check it out.

stumptuous.com is a wonderful site. Also, if you have access to a library (in case you don't want to spend $$), check out the following books, they all have detailed workouts to do and nutrition to follow:

- New Rules of Lifting by Lou Schuler
- New Rules of Lifting for Women by Lou Schuler with Alwyn Cosgrove and Cassandra Forsythe
- The Female Body Breakthrough by Rachel Cosgrove
- Body Fat Solution by Tom Venuto
Edited to add:
- The Women's Health Big Book of Exercises by Adam Campbell

- Starting Strength (2nd edition) by Mark Rippetoe for proper form. You can also find him on youtube and look for the videos,for example, how to do a proper deadlift or squat.

Hope this helps :)