Wait! What? You read that correctly. For Better Results … Use Lighter Weight! But, isn’t that the opposite of what we’ve been taught ever since we picked up our first dumbbell? I mean, if you want to get bigger and/or stronger, you lift heavier weights, right? Not exactly. The issue comes down to how you’re lifting those weights.

We see this every day in the gym. Many people seem to think that if they can lift more weight, they must be getting stronger. But they are not thinking about how they are lifting that weight. They’re just doing whatever they can do to lift a certain amount of weight. They may be doing that because their current workout program says to lift X amount of weight for Y number of Reps that day. Or they may be trying to keep up with someone else. It could be any number of reasons. The fact is they are trying to lift more weight at that moment than they should be.

I’m sure you’ve seen it. If you don’t think so, just look around the next time you are in the gym and you will see it. I guarantee it! For example, if someone is doing Standing DB Curls, instead of just using their biceps to lift the weight, they are using four or five other body parts to “help” lift the weight. So, are they really building their biceps? Not really. Sure, they may see small gains over a long period of time. But, they are not seeing the best results they could see.

Also, when you “cheat” and use other body parts that the exercise was not designed for, you increase your chance of injury. Now, you can get injured just walking from one exercise to another. It’s not likely, but it’s possible. But, when you twist your back or swing your arms for an exercise that was not designed for that, your risk of injury increases.

Our philosophy is simple - For Better Results … Use Lighter Weight (at least initially)! You want to make slow, controlled movements and really work the muscle group you are intending to work out. One thing to make sure of though, is that you are still working your muscles. You don’t want to lift such a light weight for you on that day that you can do that exercise all day long and not feel anything. You want to choose a weight where you can do the listed number of Reps with proper form and really feel the last 2-3 Reps.

Most people will benefit immediately from using lighter weight. You will work the muscles you are intending to work better. You will feel better! You will see results quicker! You will get these benefits with a decreased risk of injury (it doesn’t eliminate the chance of injury; it just decreases the chance). Only once you are using the correct form and it becomes easier to lift a certain amount of weight, is it then time to increase your weight. The weight will come! So, For Better Results … Use Lighter Weight!