CompositeATHLETE

“I want to start lifting, but I don't know what to do once I walk into the gym.”

Book · Coming soon

Start Lifting When You Don't Know What to Do

Strength Training for Beginners

For adults who want to start strength training, or are coming back after years away, and have a gym membership but no plan.

You don't know which exercises to do, how many sets, or how much weight. Everyone else seems to know what they're doing. Maybe you have started before and stopped after two weeks. This book starts before your first set: what to do on your first visit, the few moves that matter, how much to lift, and how to keep going.

By Quincy L. Harvey, strength and conditioning coach.

Want to start now?

The 12-week plan in this book is the same program as Strength Training for Beginners, a 12-week, 3-day-a-week workbook with a log page for every session. You can start it today.

See Strength Training for Beginners

What is inside

  • Before you walk in

    What strength training is for and what the guidelines recommend, a plan for your first gym visit, who should check with a doctor before starting, and which equipment to use in your first month.

  • The few moves that matter

    Five movement patterns: squat, hinge, push, pull and carry, plus trunk work. One starting exercise for each, an easier and a harder version, and how to tell when your form is good enough.

  • How much, how hard, how often

    How to pick a starting weight, a simple 1 to 10 effort scale, how many sets and reps, how long to rest, how many days a week, and when to add weight.

  • Keeping going

    Which soreness is normal and which is not, what to eat without buying anything special, what to do when you miss a week, and the worry about getting bulky.

  • Your first 12 weeks

    A plain 12-week plan: three full-body days a week in three four-week blocks, each block ending in a lighter week, plus a two-day version for busy weeks.

What this book is not

It makes no promises about your weight, your body shape or your health, or about how strong you will be by a set date. It is written for beginners, in plain words. It has no write-in log pages: if you want to log every session, the workbook and the Composite Athlete app do that.

Educational information only. This book does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Check with a licensed physician before starting an exercise program if you have a heart, metabolic or kidney condition, symptoms during activity, an injury, or are pregnant.