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The battle between light and heavy weights

Current gym dogma holds that to build muscle size you need to lift heavy weights. However, new studies have shown that a similar degree of muscle building can be achieved by using lighter weights. The secret is to pump iron until you reach muscle fatigue.

Muscle growth is a complex process; professional bodybuilders are divided into two camps: the light weight, high-rep camp and the heavy weight. In order for a muscle to grow, muscle overload must occur with resistance exercise, no argument there, however several books have advocated high-rep exercises to stimulate muscle growth. The best example, the 50-rep squats to blast leg muscle, is a commonly used method.

Light-weight and heavy-weight exercises are both considered strength exercises, rather than aerobic. They involve slow, controlled, repetitive motions. Resistance training increases the size and strength of muscle fibers, resting metabolism, lean body mass and bone mineral density. It also decreases your body fat.

A normal exercise protocol states that you should do resistance exercises to the point of fatigue - when you cannot do another repetition using good form. If you use heavy weights, you can do far fewer repetitions that you could using light weights. You can reach a high intensity either way, but light weights require eight to 12 repetitions, whereas heavy weights only require three to six repetitions to achieve a high intensity.

Light weights have the distinct disadvantage of consuming much more time than exercises with heavy weights. Psychologically, it is also harder to know that you have to lift that weight 12 times instead of three times. The disadvantage of heavy weights is their imprecision. Perhaps you lift 20 lb. dumbbells four times during a bicep curl but you are not quite fatigued yet, however you cannot do another repetition. If you had been using 10 or 15 lb. dumbbells, you could have actually finished the exercise to the point of fatigue.

While neither type of resistance exercise is considered an aerobic exercise that increases your endurance, using light weights will improve your endurance for strength exercises. Using heavy weights will increase your absolute strength. For example, imagine you are pedalling a bicycle (an aerobic exercise). If you have been training with lighter weights, you will be prepared to climb a long, gradual hill, but you will have a hard time on the short, steep hills. However, your work with heavy weights will prepare you for a short, steep hill, but you will get tired before you reach the top of a long, gradual hill because your endurance for strength exercises is limited.

Advertising for fitness products often claim that lifting light weights results in a more 'toned' appearance, but a toned body is the result of a combination of strong muscle and low body fat. More muscle is built by lifting heavier weights as opposed to light weights, but the goal is to fatigue the muscles with each set you perform. This can be done either through lifting heavy weight with low repetitions - in the one to six range - or through lifting medium weights with repetitions in the 10 to 12 range. Especially light weights that don't challenge the muscles are inefficient for building muscle.

Even though you can build muscles using light weights, it's suggested that you incorporate some heavy lifting into your routine. The bottom line is, besides a healthier appearance, people who build muscle through weightlifting also experience the benefits of added strength, healthier bones, decreased risk of injury, better balance and greater mobility. Muscle helps boost metabolism and burn fat, which can slim the body in conjunction with a healthy diet and cardiovascular exercise. If you train exclusively with light weights, you can not be as strong as the individual who incorporates both light and heavy weights into their routine.

Unless you are physically unable to lift heavier weights, you might be wasting your time using light weights that allow for easy repetitions long into your set. Challenge yourself by lifting heavier while focusing on good form and safety for maximum benefits.

Also, training with heavy weights with low repetitions will get you bigger muscles faster since your muscles will fatigue faster and you will be out of the gym quicker and on your way to gaining muscles. Just make sure you also use lighter weights at certain points in your routines.

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