October 28, 2025
I started lifting weights for the first time this year.
For the first few weeks, I focused on learning the basic movement patterns, how my muscles feel in different positions, and how various exercise movements target different muscles. I found it helpful to learn about different muscles using a 3d interactive tool (like this or this).
After that, I started tracking my workouts, and now actively maintain this spreadsheet. I find that this spreadsheet gives me a lot more control over how I want to track my workouts, and it's fun to see numbers go up. If you'd like to make a copy, here's a link.
I think of resistance training as an executive function scaffolding.
My goal is often to lift the least weight that still gives a growth signal to the muscles. Strength training has a nonlinear dose-response. The first bit of effort gives most of the benefit, and there's severe diminishing returns. You don't need to live in the gym to see progress. It turns out that muscles are remarkably cooperative.
It's also been great for my mood and focus. Strength training is especially great for people with depression or ADHD, because lifting weights triggers immediate endorphins (one of the quickest ways to naturally trigger them), and promotes the growth of new brain cells through BDNF.
Concentration needed to lift weights with good form creates little islands of focus, because you're paying attention to the body - where the feet are, how the back is arching, etc.
Hard sets in particular boost BDNF a lot, even pushing it 2-3x above baseline for ~30 mins after finishing a set. It also raises catecholamines (ex: norepinephrine) which help with staying in a high-energy state.
If running is meditating with your feet, lifting weights is forced mindfulness.
I think this website is a great way to see how good your strength is for a given muscle group in your demographics and experience level.
Here are a bunch of Youtube channels I found useful: