The 5 Most Commonly Asked Questions About Weightlifting

Weightlifting is one of the most remarkably versatile ways to train, and if you want to maintain your strength, mobility and overall fitness, strength training needs to form a significant part of your fitness regime.

Alongside cardiovascular training, the NHS recommends at least two sessions of strength training a week to aid recovery, boost mobility and give your health a significant boost.

Over the last year, the benefits of weight training for everyone have become far more widely known. However, there are still several questions we are asked that are shaped by the mythology surrounding weightlifting, which has its origins during an era when strongmen lifted cheese.

In order to help with this, we have found five of the most commonly asked questions by new weightlifters, the truth behind them, and why the questions are so commonly asked.

Do You Need To Weight Train Every Day?

Whilst there is a somewhat foolish valour behind the idea of being “Mr/Ms No Days Off”, the reality is that recovery is a critical part of the process, so you should ensure that recovery is factored into your exercise regime.

Generally, you should try to lift weights at least twice a week, ideally for at least half an hour at a time, and avoid lifting two days in a row if possible to ensure that your muscle fibres can build themselves up to be as strong as possible.

Instead of doing as much training as possible, which risks injury, either cycle the muscle groups you train or take rest days to give your muscles a chance to build.

It can really hurt you to overtrain, so make sure you give your body a chance to refuel and recuperate. As the old bodybuilding saying goes, eat clean, train hard and rest well.

If you get hurt, take the time to recover; muscle memory means that even if you lose muscle mass, it is often easier to get back to where you were than it was to reach that peak in the first place.

Do You Need To Lift As Heavy As Possible?

On the subject of overtraining, you do not need to load your barbell with as many rubber bumper plates as you can lift every single time you go to the gym in order to get noticeable gains.

The ultimate goal of weight training is to reach a state of hypertrophy; strength training is ultimately about creating microtears in the muscles that the body will repair and make even stronger than before.

In general, you should train in a way you can consistently do over a session; for most people, that is about 80 per cent of your maximum level of physical exertion. 

Going too far risks turning a microtear into an actual muscle tear, and injuries lead to serious fitness setbacks. Listen to your body and make sure to rest.

Will Weightlifting Help You Lose Weight?

Weightlifting is underrated in its ability to help you lose body fat and weight because muscle weighs more than fat, and it can obfuscate your fitness gains if you are purely looking at the scales.

Strength training increases levels of testosterone, which not only helps with building up muscle but also speeds up the metabolism of fat in order to produce more muscle.

There is no substitute for a balanced workout regime, of course, but the idea that weightlifting helps you build muscle but cannot help you lose weight is not entirely true.

Do You Need To Consume More Protein?

Whether it is protein-rich meal preps, supplements or all manner of smoothies and drinks rich in protein, a lot of workout products are designed to infuse you with as much protein as possible. Are all of those amino acids necessary, however?

Most people who are eating a balanced diet are typically eating more than enough protein without requiring supplements or adding extra. In general, you need one gramme of protein per pound of bodyweight (or one gramme per kilogramme).

If you are 15 stone, for instance (95 kg), you need 95g of protein, which is about 350g of grilled chicken breast. As you will get protein from so many different sources, you can eat a balanced diet and still meet your protein needs.

Should Weightlifting Hurt?

Simply put, if you are hurting when you lift weights, you need to stop and either take a break, lower the weights on the barbell or look at your technique.

There is confusion between “feeling the burn”, where you feel the muscles work, but if you notice stabbing pains, pains on the spine and within the joint you are working on, it is time to stop. 

If it is still hurting after you finish exercising, use the RICE method (rest, ice, compress, elevate) to ease the injury, and see a doctor if it does not recover.