How to Get Started With Strength Training

If you’ve found this article, you’re probably already aware of the benefits of strength training, but you may not know where to start.

This brief introduction to strength training provides a clear starting point.

While this guide is no substitute for working with a trained professional, there is no reason you shouldn’t begin experiencing the benefits of strength training as soon as possible.

What Is Strength?

Strength, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. It is relative to each person defining it. At its core, strength is the ability to do the things you want to do by overcoming physical—and often mental—obstacles.

You may want the strength to rearrange your home furniture, run a marathon, carry all of the groceries in one trip, or bench press your body weight. All of these goals require different kinds of strength. Strength is not only about load (how much weight you can lift), but also about your overall ability.

One of the most transformative effects of strength training is what happens in your mind. With each session, you will set personal records and lift weights that once felt impossible. These successes build confidence and give you the mental strength to tackle challenges you may never have thought possible.

At Seriously Strong Training, we focus on variations of the bench press, squat, deadlift, row, and overhead press to develop full-body strength. If you can perform these movements pain-free and with proper form, you will have the strength to handle whatever life throws at you.

What Is Strength Training?

Strength training involves moving your body against external resistance in a controlled manner using movements that challenge major muscle groups.

This typically includes implements such as barbells and dumbbells, but anything that provides external resistance can be used. Flipping tractor tires, carrying sandbags, and pushing cars all count as strength training.

The key to practical strength training is purposeful movement. Proper form and execution are essential for maximizing results while avoiding injury.

This is why having a coach is so valuable. A coach can provide the technical guidance you need to lift weights safely and effectively.

Why Should You Do Strength Training?

The primary reason to strength train is to improve your quality of life. Being able to lift objects and move pain-free is essential to living well. These improvements primarily come from increased muscle mass and strength. Below are some of the key benefits of strength training.

• Strength training has been shown to increase muscle mass for people of all ages.

• It is the most effective form of exercise for sustained, long-term fat los.s

• Increased bone mineral density helps reduce the risk of fractures as you a.ge

• Strength training improves mental well-being, stress management, and confide.nce

• It helps clear your mind by forcing you to focus entirely on the present moment.

How Does Your Body Become Stronger?

There are two key components to getting stronger: how large a muscle is and how effectively you can use it.Muscle growthe is known as hypertrophy. Hypertrophy is the process by which your body increases the size of a muscle. A larger muscle has greater potential to become stronger.

The second component of strength is improving your ability to use the muscle you already have. This depends on your brain’s ability to send signals through the nervous system to activate muscle fibers. You can become stronger without increasing muscle size—you have probably seen people who are stronger than they appear. Their bodies are very efficient at recruiting the muscle they have.

The most effective way to get stronger is to increase muscle size while also improving your ability to use that muscle. A well-designed strength-training program addresses both components.

The 12 Major Muscle Groups

Your body functions as a system of levers and pulleys—similar to the simple machines you may remember from grade school. When you move, your brain sends signals to your muscles to contract. As muscles contract, they pull on your bones, creating movement. This is easy to visualize with a bicep curl: your bicep pulls on your forearm, bringing your hand toward your shoulder. Your entire body works in this same way.

There are over 700 muscles in the human body. While that may sound overwhelming, there is no need to learn each muscle individually or understand every specific function.

Fortunately, we can simplify things by grouping muscles that commonly work together into 12 major categories. By focusing on training these 12 major muscle groups, you can ensure that nearly every muscle in your body is being challenged. We can simplify this even further by using just six basic movement patterns to train all 12 groups effectively.

The 12 major muscle groups are:

1. Deltoids
2. Pectorals
3. Biceps
4. Abdominals
5. Quadriceps
6. Trapezius
7. Triceps
8. Lats
9. Erector Spinae
10. Glutes
11. Hamstrings
12. Calves

The 6 Basic Movements

Your body is designed to interact with its environment. This means you must be able to pull objects toward your body (or pull your body toward objects), push them away (or push your body away from them), pick things up, and lower or raise your entire body.

The six basic movements that accomplish these tasks—and ensure a well-balanced, full-body workout—are:

• Squat
• Deadlift (also known as the hip hinge)
• Horizontal Pull
• Horizontal Press
• Vertical Pull
• Vertical Press

Performing these movements regularly (two to three times per week) will challenge all 12 major muscle groups. Over time, this leads to improvements in overall strength, muscle tone, balance, and coordination.

Keep in mind that this is a foundational list. You will likely benefit from adding additional exercises tailored to your specific goals or needs. While these are considered “the basics,” they form the core of every well-designed strength training program.

Before learning the six basic movements, you will want first to master the seven joint control patterns.

The 7 Joint Control Patterns

As mentioned earlier, your muscles create movement by pulling on your bones, and all of this movement occurs around your joints.

Learning to control and coordinate multiple joints at the same time is what allows you to move smoothly and efficiently without stumbling or falling.

For effective weightlifting, you need to learn what I call joint control patterns (JCPs).

You will first learn these patterns individually and then combine them to perform the six basic movements.

This is a critical part of the process and cannot be skipped.

The JCPs are performed using only your bodyweight and are designed to teach proper positioning and control. If you struggle with any of them, it may indicate a lack of mobility or flexibility that needs to be addressed. For more on this topic, check out the How to Get Started with Mobility & Flexibility article. If you are new to strength training, you should read that article and apply the recommendations regardless.

Below, I will list each JCP with a brief explanation, followed by a video playlist demonstrating each one. Using a full-length mirror can be very helpful to ensure your positioning matches the demonstrations.

The 7 Joint Control Patterns are:

1. Setting the shoulders
   Pulling your shoulders down and back (think proud chest).
   This is important for every strength training exercise.
2. Thoracic extension (upper back)
   Flattening the excessive curve in your upper back, which pairs with setting the shoulders.
   This is important for every strength training exercise.
3. Wrist control
   Engaging the forearm muscles so there is a straight line from your forearm through the back of your hand.
   This is most important for pressing exercises to maintain control and prevent wrist pain.
4. Lumbo-pelvic control (hips)
   A drill involving tucking your pelvis under and then extending it back.
   This is most important for the squat and deadlift.
5. External rotation of the femur (thigh bone)
   Actively rotating your thighs away from each other.
   This is most important for the squat and deadlift.
6. Abduction of the femur
   Creating separation between your thighs.
   This is most important for the squat and deadlift.
7. Tripod foot
   Creating an arch in the inside of your foot by distributing pressure between your heel and the inside and outside balls of your foot.
   This is most important for the squat and deadlift.

The Squat

The squat targets all the muscles of the lower body: glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves.

When you are squatting well, you should feel it on the inside, outside, front, and back of your thighs. If you only feel it in your quads (the fronts of your thighs), then you need to make some tweaks. You can use the squat test to figure this out.

Here is a video that will introduce a bodyweight squat.

Once you are performing bodyweight squats well and can perform 20 with perfect for,m it is time to add weight by moving into the goblet squat. If you’re practicing at home, you can use a jug of water if you don’t have any weights.

When you are feeling confident with a goblet squat, you will eventually want to increase the difficulty to a barbell squat. The low-bar squat is usually the best barbell variation for most people, so I will post a video below to teach it.

The Deadlift

The deadlift is a great movement for training your body to lift things well off the ground. This movement will primarily target the glutes, hamstrings, abdominals (abs), erector spinae (your low back muscles), traps (trapezius), and your latissimus dorsi (lats).

To do a deadlift well, you must first master the hip hinge pattern.

Once you have the hip hinge down, you can move on to the Romanian deadlift (RDL).

With the RDL under your belt, you can then progress to the conventional deadlift. This isn’t necessary to get started, but eventually you will want to learn that movement.

Horizontal Pull

The horizontal pull is a great exercise for your biceps, traps, and lats.

I recommend two horizontal pull exercises based on where you will be doing them. One is body weight (the TRX row), and the other is the seated cable row if you have access to a gym.

Click here for even more horizontal pulling exercises.

Horizontal Press

You will probably recognize this exercise as a push-up or a bench press. The horizontal press works the deltoids (delts), pectorals (pecs), and triceps.

Again, I will recommend two different exercises for learning the horizontal press, depending on your access to gym equipment or whether you will be doing at-home workouts. The first to learn is the push-up, and the second is the bench press.

The push-up can be made easier by doing it on an elevated surface, such as placing your hands on the counter. The lower the surface your hands are on will make the exercise more challenging. Be sure to have a firm footing so you don’t slip.

When you feel confident in the push-up, you can move on to the bench press. This can be done with dumbbells, but in the video below, I will show you how to perform the barbell bench press through a series of videos.

Click here for even more horizontal pushing exercises.

Vertical Pull

Vertical pulling will be most familiar to you as a pull-up. Pull-ups are a very hard movement to do well so instead I will introduce you to a pull-down exercise that works the same muscles: the biceps and lats.

Before learning the pull-down, you will first want to master the reverse shrug. This is the first movement you need to perform when doing a pull-down.

After learning that exercise, you will be ready for a pull-down.

Click here for even more vertical pulling exercises.

Vertical Press

Vertical pressing is what you do when you put an object onto a high shelf. This movement will primarily focus on building muscle & strength in the delts and triceps.

A great movement for this is the seated dumbbell shoulder press. These can be done standing with a barbell, but it is easiest to learn seated with a pair of dumbbells.

Click here for more vertical pressing exercises.

What about the Core?

I’m glad you asked. The 6 basic movements are a great starting point and will help improve your core strength, but they won’t give you the strongest core possible.

For that, you will need to add dedicated core training to your workouts.

That is a whole other topic entirely, and the reason I’ve created a free guide to core training.

Just click the button below, let me know where to send it, and within moments, you will receive the Seriously Strong Guide to Core Training absolutely free!

Download The Serious Guide to Core Training

What about my butt?

Another great question!

This article only covers the basics of strength training, and any muscles you want to maximize will need focused training.

Luckily for you, I have put together a free guide to glute training.

Again, click the link below to input your name and email to receive the free guide.

Download The Serious Guide to Glute Training

Putting it all together

Now that you have a better understanding of strength training and the exercises you should be doing to get started, you are probably wondering how to put it all together.

I’ve got even more great news for you.

You can download the free Seriously Strong Training Beginner Program!

Click the button below and download it for free.

Download The Seriously Strong Beginner Program