I want to start lifting weights on a regular basis, but don't know how to go about it. I don't know what exercises to do on what day. For example, do you do back and chest one day, arms the next? Any help would be appreciated. --iVillager stripes

Since you're just starting out, your lifting schedule doesn't have to be very complicated. The kind of "split routine" you allude to is designed to enable intermediate and advanced athletes achieve maximum strength or size gains. Split routines also take more total time because you end up doing more exercises and sets per muscle group. Then, after blasting your chest and back on one day, you need to take more than one day off before training those muscles again to ensure optimal fiber repair and recovery.

I think training your whole body in one session, with a circuit of exercises that includes all of your major muscle groups, is the way to go. If you're just starting to lift, you'll get stronger no matter how you train. Touching on all muscle groups in one session will lessen the chance of doing too much for one particular body part. At the same time, you will have initiated the repair and growth cycle for all of your major muscle groups. A full body circuit routine is best for overall conditioning and leaves some days during the week to devote to pure cardiovascular conditioning, which, of course, is of paramount importance.

Train larger muscles before smaller muscles, so start with your legs. After a 10 to 20 minute warm-up on a bike, stepper or treadmill, do leg extensions, leg curls and leg presses (if you go to a gym that has machines). If you're working out at home, or somewhere without machines, hold dumbbells in your hands and do squats and lunges. Don't try squatting with a bar across your shoulders without getting proper instruction and having someone spot you.

For your upper body, do your chest, back and shoulders before training your biceps and triceps. The reason is that if you fatigue your biceps and triceps first, they'll be too exhausted to help with movements like pressing and rowing or pull downs. It's easier to train your upper body at home with free weights than it is to train your legs without machines.

Do one-arm dumbbell rows for your lats (back) and flat bench presses and flies for your chest (lying on the floor if you don't have a bench). For your shoulders, do lateral raises and overhead presses, seated or standing. Biceps curls and triceps extensions or kickbacks will finish off your upper body routine. If you go to a gym, you'll find many more upper body exercise options, but you can start with these basic movements.

You can start with two sessions a week, taking one to two days rest between workouts for recovery. Train aerobically at least three times per week, and work up to 30 to 45 minutes of cardiovascular exercise each session. Choose a resistance that allows you to perform at least 12 repetitions of each exercise initially, to avoid extreme muscle soreness. You can increase the resistance and reduce the number of reps once you're familiar with all the exercises and can perform them properly. You ought to notice an increase in strength and overall fitness in six to eight weeks, and at this point you may want to consider tweaking your training schedule.

I also recommend my book Weight Training for Dummies -- no offense intended, stripes -- written with my friend Suzanne Schlossberg. It's a great guide for beginners. I also recommend working with a trainer for a couple of sessions to make sure you understand how to perform each exercise properly.

--Liz Neporent

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