Weight Workout

My typical weight workout is one that requires heavy lifting. I lift to exhaustion and I try to increase pounds over time. I'm basically hoping to build as much muscle as possible.

As a "hard gainer" female, it takes a lot of iron-pumping for me to build any real muscle. I was ecstatic the first time I saw a "cut" in my bicep. That "cut" is long gone, thanks to my slacking.

Building muscle requires a fairly high calorie diet. At the very least, it's almost impossible for me to build muscle and lose weight at the same time. Since right now I'd rather lose a few pounds than build any real muscle, I've had to adjust my weight workout.

I've switched to a circuit type plan that requires me to go from exercise to exercise with very little rest. I'm using lighter weights than usual. So I might do...

10 Chest Presses
10 Bicep Curls
8 Lateral Raises
10 Sumo Squats
10 Lunges (each leg)
8 Military Presses

...without stopping between exercises. Once I finish those sets, I'll rest for two minutes. Then I move on to my next group of exercises.

I have to use lighter weights if I want to move from exercise to exercise without rest (otherwise I'd get too tired and my form would suffer). I'm doing this circuit because it torches calories, too. Because I don't get a chance to rest, my heart rate stays pretty high--turning this into both a strength training and cardio workout.

I won't build any real muscle with this workout, but I will maintain the muscle I have now. Plus it helps with weight loss, too!