If you’re weak, scrawny, out of shape, lifting weights is what you NEED to do.
Lifting weights has profound benefits on the body.
Gaining muscle, losing body fat, increased confidence, elevation of happiness, an endorphin release, the list goes on and on.
If you don’t have a gym membership, get on one now.
It’s not even that expensive, probably around 40 bucks a month at most for a decent gym like UFC.
Equating that 40 a month to close to a dollar a day, there really isn’t an excuse not to go financially.
When you do get on that gym membership, take a look around.
You’ll see people of all sorts of physiques.
Of course you’ll see the ripped guys, but what will really surprise you is when you stick around the gym for a couple of months is how “average” the average person in the gym looks.
It’s kind of mind-blowing to think about it.
We advocate compound lifting to see optimal results.
You’ll get the best bang for your buck as compound lifts work out multiple areas in your body, as opposed to isolation exercises.
The three lifts we advise anyone in the gym (regardless of age, gender, physical condition) are the squat, deadlift, and bench press.
The Squat:
The squat is a complete, all body work out in which you’ll use everything – primarily your legs to lower the weight, and to explode back on up.
Because you’re going to be holding a bar onto your shoulders, this will engage other key muscles in the body like your core, back, and even arms as they work to stabilize the weight on your back.
You can read more about how to squat and the complete benefits of it here (INSERT LINK).
The Deadlift:
The deadlift is basically what it sounds like – you’re going to be lifting dead weight from the ground, that dead weight being the barbell.
To be able to deadlift, you’re going to need a strong everything – arms, biceps, laterals, core, lower back, and hamstrings.
Deadlifts also make you feel powerful. You’ll know when you accomplish a heavy set.
If you’re starting, we recommend starting with low weight (the bar), watch as many videos as you can on form, and track your progress and make sure you slowly increase. Key word slowly.
The Bench:
Everyone’s favorite.
The bench seems to be the benchmark exercise for how fit everyone is as its a means to quantify one’s strength and easily comparable with others. “Hey bro, how much you bench?”
The bench is a complete upper body workout but that doesn’t mean the lower body doesn’t get a workout as well.
With lifting the bar off of the bench using your chest and arms, your legs also come into play through leg drive.
As you can see above, the legs are strategically placed to ensure max leg drive and stability.