One of the questions we hear all the time when women start strength training is:
How do I know what weight I should be using?
While there isn't one perfect answer, we can definitely give you some tips to find your ideal starting point.
The right weight depends on the exercise, how many reps you're doing, your current strength and even how you're feeling that day. A weight that is challenging for your shoulders might feel incredibly light for your legs. And furthermore, a weight that feels challenging for a lateral raise, will probable feel pretty light for a row or bicep curl.
Rather than giving you a number to aim for, we want to teach you something much more useful: how to recognise the right level of challenge for your own body.
If you want to get stronger, you need to challenge yourself
Strength training works because we ask our muscles to do more than they're currently accustomed to. Over time, the body adapts to that demand and becomes stronger.
That means your weights need to feel challenging.
Not so heavy that you're losing control, dramatically changing your technique or unable to complete the exercise, but heavy enough that you're ready for a break by the end of your set.
A really simple way to judge this is to think about how many more good-quality reps you could perform when the set finishes.
If you complete 10 reps and feel like you could comfortably do another 10, you probably have room to increase your weight.
If you finish your set and feel like you could manage another two or three reps with good technique, you're likely much closer to an appropriate challenge.
And if you're struggling to complete the prescribed reps without losing your technique? That's useful information too. Drop the weight slightly and build from there.
The goal is to choose a weight that's heavy enough to challenge you.
Different exercises need different weights
One of the easiest traps to fall into when exercising at home is grabbing one pair of dumbbells and using them for the entire class.
Your body doesn't work like that.
The muscles around your hips and legs are much larger and stronger than many of the muscles around your shoulders and arms, so you should expect your weights to vary considerably throughout a workout.
For example, you might use:
- a light weight for a lateral raise
- a moderate weight for a bicep curl or shoulder press
- a heavier weight for a row
- your heaviest weights for a squat or deadlift
Having a few different options nearby makes this much easier so you can increase and decrease as needed.
How do I know when it's time to go heavier?
One of the best signs that you're getting stronger is that the weights that once challenged you start to feel easier. This might look like the exercise feeling smoother, be able to move through a greater range, or feeling like you had quite a bit left in the tank by the end of the set.
Don't underestimate yourself. We often see women confidently progress exercises in Pilates but hesitate when it comes to picking up a heavier dumbbell.
Your body is adaptable and you can always drop back after the first set if it feels too heavy.
Heavier isn't always better, technique still matters when focusing on load.
We want you to challenge yourself, but adding weight shouldn't come at the expense of the purpose of the exercise.
If going heavier means:
- dramatically reducing your range
- losing control of the movement
- compensating somewhere else in your body
- being unable to complete the exercise as intended
- experiencing pain rather than muscular effort
then the heavier weight isn't necessarily the better choice.
Sometimes the progression is picking up the heavier dumbbells. Other times, it's performing the same movement with better control, greater range or a more challenging variation.
Learning to know the difference is part of getting better at strength training.
Your weights should change as you get stronger
The weights you're using today aren't meant to be the weights you use forever. Keep asking yourself:
Is this challenging me enough for what I'm trying to achieve today?
Some days you'll increase the weight. Some days you'll stay exactly where you are. Some days you'll reduce it.
Key takeaways
Choose a weight that allows you to move well while making those final few reps feel genuinely challenging.
Progress isn't always linear, be ok with increasing and decreasing your weights depending on how the exercise feels that day.
Give your body the chance to adapt by giving the heavier weight a go, you might be surprised what you can do!
Han x