Workouts, Workouts, Workouts...Which one is for you?

Workouts, Workouts, Workouts...Which one is for you?

You have probably been to a gym and seen a lot of things happen. For instance to one side you might see people on stationary bikes or treadmills. Another side you see people lifting dumbbells and barbells filled with lots of plates. Then you see people lifting themselves on a bar or people using TRXs or machines. Or you might see people using bosu balls or medicine balls. To the average joe, all of these exercises would to make you fit. But the truth is, even though they make you fit, they have different benefits.

People who are lifting heavy weights with barbells and dumbbells are getting totally different improvements then someone who is on the bikes or skipping. The truth is, there are several of different styles of workouts out there and maybe the workouts you are doing aren’t going to get you to your goals.

Different workouts

There are two kinds of workout methods. One is aerobic and the other is anaerobic. Aerobic means with oxygen and is mostly exercises/workouts that consist of cardio workouts. Skipping, jogging, biking, swimming are examples of these kinds of workouts.

Anaerobic means without oxygen and this exercise has you building muscles and strength. Examples of these are lifting dumbbells, barbells, sprinting or bodyweight exercises.

Aerobics are mostly useful for people who are competing in marathons or triathlons; they are also useful for overall fitness. Aerobics are also a popular workout method for losing fat and weight. However if you aren’t careful, doing aerobics can actually make you lose muscle. Aerobics also work on slow twitch fibres.

Anaerobic is the kind of exercise that mostly bodybuilders and powerlifters do. These kinds of workouts fire your fast twitch muscle fibres. Even though anaerobic exercises work on building muscles, there are different methods. Depending on the reps you do; you could be either gaining more mass, improving endurance of your muscles or gaining more power and strength. There are many articles and products out there with different kinds of workouts. Some are the same but the reps and sets are different.

Reps between 8-12 are considered mass gaining. You see many bodybuilders using this type of method. This is useful when you want to improve your size or up yourself in weight. Professional athletes sometimes use this when they are trying to become more heavy and hard to take down.

Reps between 1-6 are considered to improve your power and strength. These workouts are used mostly by powerlifters and many athletes to improve their explosive power and strength. These are useful when you want to improve the amount you lift or just want to lift heavy weights. These types of workouts will improve your muscle size as well but won’t be as fast as the 8-12 reps. There is also workouts with reps of 6-8. Doing these workouts will help you gain power and strength but at the same time size.

As for sets, a good number for sets is anywhere between 3-5. However if the exercise your doing is vigorous and take more than one day rest to get rid of the soreness; sets of 1-2 are good. Examples are heavy deadlifts, squats or clean and jerks. Even though it feels after a good workout on either of those exercises; the soreness could affect the next day’s workout.

With the many different kinds of workouts out there, you should really research them. The current workout program I'm following is known as Starting Strength and you should check it out if you want to gain serious strength and power. But either way, I hope you’re seeing improvements and changes for the good in your workout programs. Till next time.