Anaerobic Information

Anaerobic Information

Table of Contents
|| Introduction || Machines || Body Parts || Bottom of Page ||

Introduction

Glycogen is the primary source of glucose used to fuel strenuous bursts of exercise which is the kind of exercise you'll be doing here. So your goal will be to increase your stores of glycogen so you can increase your endurance so you can do more anaerobic exercise which will in turn tone your body up more(1). (What a mouthful!) The reason I tell you this now is so you can see the difference between aerobic and anaerobic which is that aerobic does not concentrate on glucose as the energy source but instead on fat cells. What to eat for building appropriate amounts of glycogen will be discussed in the Healthy Eating Tips Page.
I hope this page will help women feel more comfortable with lifting weights since that seems to be a sort of "manly" exercise. The goal of this page is to provide exercises that will tone up or firm up your body and build more muscle strength, because burning away the fat is just one aspect of fitness. A thin person might still be flabby and unfit because that person's body is not firm nor is it very strong which our bodies should be!
Remember to stretch thoroughly before exercising; stretching is especially important for anaerobic exercise since you target specific areas of the body to work on. This page is divided into two sections: machines and body parts. Free weights, weights that are not attached to machines such as dumbbells, will also be discussed here which will be a part of the body parts section.
A little note about terminology: Terms such as "reps," "plate," and "sets" are common usage in the weight room. "Reps" stands for repetitions which is the amount of times/lifts you will do in one "set." A "set" is like an interval of an anaerobic exercise. For example, 2 sets of15 means you would lift a total of thirty times which would have been divided into two intervals. A "plate" refers to either the free weight plates which are the round wheel-like plates that range from 2 1/2 lbs to 45 lbs or it refers to the fixed level on a machine which range from one to twelve plates.

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Machines
|| Bench Press || Incline Press || Lateral Pull Down ||
BENCH PRESS
The bench press is one of the most fundamental machines in muscle strengthening. This machine may come in two forms. You may see it as part of an array of weight machines hooked up to cables and pulleys, or as a stand-alone bench with two vertical bars on each side, which support a bar that you can manually put weights on. The bench press is the machine that has the flat bench so you will be lying flat on your back. The use of these two types of bench presses are basically the same. I will refer to the first bench press as a "fixed" bench press, meaning that all the weights are already hooked up to the machine, and the second as the "traditional" bench press.
The basic movement for using a bench press is to lower the bar to the middle of your chest, and press it up. It sounds easy, but there are things you should keep in mind if you want to use the bench press correctly, thus effectively. First, you don't want to "bounce" the bar off your chest during the movement. For the most effective results, you should actually pause for a few seconds in the lowered position before pressing the bar back up. Secondly, it is important to keep your lower back on the bench with no arching; the last thing you want is an injured lower back. Also, your grip on the bar should be firm and your hands should be about 18 inches a part. When you first grab the bar, circle your hands right next to each other in the middle of the bar, then slide your hands apart at an equal distance until your hands are about 18 inches apart. As with all machines, you should exhale when you exert, so it would be upon pressing the bar upwards.
Both types of bench presses work in the same way, except that in the "fixed" bench press, you start in the lowered position, whereas you start in the upper position for the "traditional" bench press. The advantage of the "fixed" bench press is mainly safety. The bar rests in a position that is just above your chest, so dropping the bar won't hurt you. On the contrary, you should always work out with a friend to spot--be there to help you lift the bar just in case you can't--you when using the traditional bench press. Once you lower the bar, the only way you'll get to leave the machine is by pressing it back up.
As far as how much weight to do, I would suggest using the lightest weight possible. On the "traditional" bench press, the minimum is 45 pounds, which is the weight of the bar only. When you add weights, you must add the same amount to each side of the bar for balance. At first, add additional weights using the 2-1/2 pound weights on each side. This will increment the weight by 5 pounds. For the "fixed" machine, you set the weight by adjusting the pin that chooses how many plates you want to press up. Start off with one plate to get the feel of the machine, and increment to a comfortable weight where you'll be able to do a set of 10 easily.

INCLINE PRESS
The incline press is pretty much the same as the bench press--even comes in two forms--but you lie down at a different angle, an inclined angle so your back will rest on a bench that looks more like a chair. You follow the same steps as was described for the bench press. The incline press is a little bit more difficult though so you will probably be lifting less weight.

LATERAL PULL DOWN
The lateral pull down, otherwise known as the "back machine", can be used for various back strengthening exerises. It usually is a stand alone machine, but some gyms have the lateral pull down as part of a set of machines. This machine is composed of a seat that is connected to a longer bar that has along handbar portruding from it. The first thing to do is adjust hte knee pad level so that your knees fit snugly under the knee pad. To adjust the level, pull the knob on the side out with one while holding hte knee pad up with the other hand. Keep the knob pulled out and raise or lower the knee pad to your desired height. Then let go and the knee pad should lock in place. Then adjust the plate level you want by pulling out the pin that should be inside one of hte plates already. You'll probably want to start off with plate level 2. Then reach for the handlebar with both arms outstretched to each side. You will want to your hands holding the bar near the end right before the hanldbar turns downard. (You'll undestand what I'm talking about once you see the handlebar!) Pull the handlebar down with your arms and sit on the chair. The goal is to use your back muscles to pull the handlebar each time after this. So let the bar raise up, when your arms are almost ou;tretched, stop, and then pull down uhtil the handlebar passes your neck. Then repeat the motion again for about 10 reps.

Body Parts
|| Arms || Back || Chest ||
ARMS:

Biceps

Bicep curls: Start out with an 8lb dumbbell(aka weight) for each arm.

Stand with your feet slightly spread apart, you knees slightly bent, and a

dumbbell in each hand. Curl your left arm upwards towards your chest,

keeping your left elbow locked in place, and your right arm stays down.

Then keep your left arm down and culr your right arm upwards towards

your chest, remembering to keep your right elbow locked in place and

close to your sides. Alternate your arms and curl for about 20 reps

which means 10 reps for each arm. This will tone up your bicep

muscles for each arm. This will tone up your bicep muscles and

build some muscle mass.

Triceps

Tricep extensions: There are several approaches to doing tricep

extensions. I will talk about one I find pretty popular. Look for a

machine that has a stack of plates at the bottom with a cable that

goes up and around a pulley that is connected to a bar which is will

usuaslly be an inverted "V" shape bar. This exercise is done in a

standing position with knees slightly bent and one front slightly in

front of the other(about six inches). Start our with the lowest plate

level so you can get used to the feel of the motion. Grab the bar with

both hands and press it down as if you are using a jackhammer.

Keep your elbows as close to your sides as possible and keep the

bar down for about 2 seconds. Then raise the weight up slowly

because the weight will force you to go up fast. Stop raising the

weight once your wrists past your elbows. Then repeat this motion

for about 10 reps.

BACK

The lateral pull down works your back muscles very well. Using the

lateral pull down will tone up your back and give you definition

in your back. Keep in mind, the lateral pull down also works your

biceps a little.

CHEST:

Inner chest

Incline Press: Using the incline press machine will work the inside

muscles of your chest. The result of this will be a firmer chest and

also a bit of enhanced decollete.

Outer chest

Bench Press: Using the bench press will work the outside of your

chest creating a toner look on the side of your body and of course, a

stronger chest. Your muscles also get pushed in a bit which will

also enhance your decollete somewhat.

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Author: Vivan Tran, UC Berkeley Student
Send comments to: vivan@uclink2.berkeley.edu
Last updated: May 1, 1996
http://info.sims.berkeley.edu/~vtran/assign5/anaerobic.html