How To Start Lifting Weights For Beginners

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I took a non-traditional path to learn how to lift weights – my teachers were friends from Catch22 NYC Dragon Boat, Squats & Science, and social media. Finding good teachers is critical if you want to grow on your journey, and it doesn’t always have to be a “professional.” Consider me as your lifting friend!

So how do you start lifting weights? The best place to start is with bodyweight and slowly introducing resistance through resistance bands, dumbbells, kettlebells, and eventually barbells. This approach allows your body to get acclimated with resistance while addressing any mobility limitations.

Keep reading to learn about the steps you can take to start or improve weight training at home or in the gym.

Table of Contents

Misconceptions About Weight Training

Before anything else, I’d like to address some misconceptions about weight training.

Misconception #1: Weight training is complicated

The ambiguity of moving weight could be intimidating and overwhelming, especially when you’re just starting to lift weights. This article will provide all the resources for you to get started and continue learning.

Misconception #2: Weight training is only for men, not women

Weight training is for anyone who wants to increase their muscle mass and bone density to improve strength, posture, balance, sleep, energy levels, confidence, and the list goes on.

How do you boost your confidence when you feel like you don’t belong? It’s essential to learn and apply concepts of weight training to develop your greatest asset – your mind. Knowledge and practice will empower you to do more.

Misconception #3: Lifting weights will make women bulky

Before I started lifting weights, I was afraid the weights would make me look too masculine. But after giving it a try, I realized aesthetics didn’t matter. Lifting made me feel empowered, confident, ambitious, and eager to learn more. Why care about the opinions of people who don’t matter? What matters is how you feel in your mind and body.

What Is Weight Training?

Alright, let’s start lifting! What exactly do I mean when I mention weight training? Weight training is a form of strength training that utilizes free weights or weight machines to create resistance against the contraction of muscles to stimulate growth, strength, and power.

Free weights and weight machines differ greatly.

Weight machines (like a smith, lat pull-down, or leg press machine) are exercise machines that isolate a single muscle group but restricts your range of motion to unnatural positions.
Free weights (like a barbell, kettlebell, or dumbbell) allow your joints to move naturally while strengthening major muscle groups and small stabilizing muscles, thus far more versatile than weight machines.

Strength Training Modalities

These are four ways you can start and progress in strength training.

#1. Bodyweight Training

Using your body weight is an effective and natural way to build strength. Bodyweight training is suitable for those looking to build foundational strength to those mastering bodyweight control through calisthenics.

If you’re new to strength training, bodyweight training is a great place to start. Practice cues mentioned below in front of a mirror until you’re comfortable with adding resistance.

#2. Resistance Band Training

Resistance bands provide a form of resistance similar to free weights that could be useful to beginners looking to level up from bodyweight training or minimalists who don’t want to clutter their homes with free weights.

Check out the article on resistance bands for 22 exercises to build full-body strength.

#3. Dumbbell Or Kettlebell Training

Don’t underestimate the versatility of dumbbells and kettlebells. Both are relatively inexpensive and compact free weights that build unilateral strength and stabilization. Dumbbells and kettlebells are great options to introduce beginners to free weights.

Check out the article on kettlebell VS dumbbell to learn more about how they differ.

#4. Barbell Training

The barbell is more suitable for heavy compound lifts since you can load more weight on the barbell. Barbells can typically weigh between 35 and 45 pounds.

There are a few pieces of equipment you need to start barbell training. Check out the buying guides for everything you need to start barbell training.

Barbell
Plates & Collars
Squat Rack
Weight Bench
Heavy-duty mats/platforms coming soon!

Big 3 Compound Lifts For Strength

When you engage multiple muscle groups at the same time, that’s considered a compound exercise. Opposite of a compound exercise is an isolation exercise, where you hit only one muscle group.

The big three compound lifts for strength training, or powerlifting, is the squat, bench, and deadlift. These foundational strength movements are a great place to start and continue building strength. Among many other things, the process of learning about your body through experimentation, developing habits to instill discipline, and measuring self-improvement makes it extremely rewarding. Practicing the big three lifts helps to challenge your mental and physical strength. Unlocking these strength gains opens your world to new abilities and experiences.

Check out the article on Basics Of The Big Three Lifts: Squat, Bench, Deadlift for step-by-step instructions to learn the movements.

Training Programs & Additional Resources

Rather than aimlessly picking up weight, training programs will help to keep you on track to get stronger.

A post for training programs and additional resources is coming soon!

Dos	Don’ts
✓ Evaluate your purpose ✓ Be consistent in applying yourself ✓ Listen to your body ✓ Explore your interests ✓ Experiment to figure out what works for you	✗ Train until failure every session (can increase risk of injury) ✗ Rely on someone else to tell you what to do all the time (it becomes a chore in the end)