One of the more common questions I get from those unfamiliar with resistance training is how much weight to use and how many sets and reps of each exercise they should do. Clearly this is not a simple question to answer in a generic way. It depends a lot on your goals, your current fitness level, and what you are trying to accomplish in that specific workout. I would say first of all, start fairly light and try the daily workouts here at FitDaily.
If you’re working out on your own and not following a specific workout, I suggest you shoot for 10 reps of each exercise to start. You can go heavier on a day and try for 8, or lighter on another day and try for 12-15. Generally speaking I recommend more reps for lower body than upper body for most beginners because you don’t want to use a lot of resistance until you’re more used to it. Typically you should try for 3 or 4 sets of each exercise, though sometimes it makes sense to vary this as well, depending on the structure of the workout.
When selecting your weight/resistance, all you need to do is find the correct weight where you can do exactly 10 reps and start there. Be sure to write down the weight and your reps (or record it using a progress tracking tool such as the FitDaily tool). On each successive workout, try to do one more rep, or go up by the smallest increment available.
To start out, select the highest weight that you can lift with good form without straining yourself. Just do one rep of each weight until you find this point. Take a few seconds and then start your set. Try for as many reps as possible. Keep your mind focused on the number 20. You want to do 20 reps in your first set.
If you do manage to do 20 reps, you’re not using anywhere near enough weight. Take a break of 1-2 minutes and increase your weight by several increments before trying again. Note that these suggestions are for those in relatively good shape already who are free of injuries that might limit your participation in resistance training. Always consult a doctor if you’re unsure.
It’s important that you really try to do 20 reps during each of these attempts. If you focus on doing 10 reps, you may limit yourself to ten subconsciously. Convince yourself that you can do all 20, and then start determined to do each of the 20 reps with good form, posture, and balance.
The idea is to keep doing these sets and increasing the weight until you reach a weight where you cannot possibly do more than 10 repetitions. This may take a few tries, or even more than one session. But once you get the right weight, record it so you know where to start each exercise.
If you try to do your 20 repetitions and cannot even do 10, then you’re probably using too much weight. Scale back a little and try again after taking a short break.
Vary your workouts so you combine different muscle groups and use different set/rep patterns. At first you can start with 3 sets of 10 reps per exercise, taking a short break between sets. You can change this around on other days, but this is a simple starting point. I discuss this topic more in depth in my eBook Three Weeks to Thrive.
