As we finish up the first two weeks where the goal was to prep and prime the muscles for heavier lifting, we hope you stayed consistent and you’re noticing improved dexterity and endurance.

For weeks 3 and 4, we enter the hypertrophy (muscle growth) phase, which will continue beyond week 4 when we introduce more training techniques. For now we will focus on traditional sets of 3 with 10 to 12 repetitions (reps). This range of reps and sets has been scientifically proven to promote muscle growth, provided you lift with enough intensity to do so. This means that for this portion of the exercises you will want to lift at least 70 – 80% of your 1 rep maximum (how heavy you can lift for a single repetition), pushing yourself when possible to lift more. Just be sure to never sacrifice form and keep the movements slow and controlled.

When lifting to grow muscle, which is so integral to reducing body fat, it is often a good idea to have a friend spot you so that you are safely able to push your body to the next level. It is also a good idea to track your weight and repetitions from week to week. If you are working out at home and only have a few sets of dumbbells, you can increase the intensity by slowing down the exercise and really focusing on contracting the muscles throughout the entire movement.