You know that you need to add weight-lifting to your workout routine but you may not be sure which routine is best.

Just like any other time you start a fitness program, you'll want to start out slowly.

First, you'll need to start with one or two sets of eight to 12 repetitions. If you're older, injured or unsure of your strength you can do 10 to 15 reps with less weight. When you can lift a weight eight to 12 times and it gets harder to lift during the last rep, you'll want to add a little weight and decrease the reps.

Even if you're a seasoned weight-lifting veteran, alternating the workouts is key. You shouldn't do arm workouts and shoulders exercises on consecutive days. You should avoid working on legs consecutively, too. It's important to vary how you're focusing on strengthening different muscles. For instance, you may want to start by isolating the shoulders. At your gym you can do an overhead press, lateral raise or front raise to work on this body part. Start with two sets of eight to 12 repetitions.

Other parts of this workout might include strengthening the chest via the bench press, chest press machine or push-ups. You can work on your back as well in a seated row machine. To build your biceps you can work on bicep curls, hammer curls and concentration curls using hand weights. As for the triceps? You can do tricep extensions.

As you alternate days to work on your lower body, you can try squats, lunges, leg-press machines, deadlifts or calf raises. As for the abdominals, there are always crunches, oblique twists and pelvic tilts.

If you begin your weight training regimen at your health club, the fym should have staff to supervise and answer specific questions.

Now that you've got your weight-lifting routine set, check out That'sFit's cardio workouts.

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Next time you're sweating it out at the gym, pump up the volume on your iPod. Recent studies showed that women who listened to their workout tunes a bit louder than usual not only increased the intensity of the workout but were in a better mood too. During the study, women who listened to loud music did 36 reps of the leg press, compared to 29 reps for women who listened to low or medium-volume music and 26 reps for those who listened to no music at all.

While the findings were true for both cardio and strength training exercises, the difference was most noticeable in participants who were pumping iron. Could it be that listening to music takes your mind off the fact that good grief, this hurts like heck? Yep, study author Janet McMordie tells MSNBC: "Psychologically, music gets you pumped up and it also distracts you from what you're doing," she says. Additionally, listening to music helps bust boredom in even the most routine workout.

A word of caution, though -- don't crank your tunes too much. Prolonged exposure to levels of 85 decibels or higher can permanently damage your hearing.

Ready to fire up your fitness? Check out our That's Fit playlist, sure to inspire you through the toughest of sets.

What are your favorite workout tunes?

Cassandra Forsythe-Pribanic, Ph.D., R.D., and co-author of "The New Rules of Lifting for Women"

That's Fit: Can you explain why "inefficiency" in exercising may help you achieve a leaner body?

Cassandra Forsythe-Pribanic: Think about it in the way gasoline fuels your car: If your car is really efficient, you can go farther on less gas (which is what most of us want for our cars), but if it's inefficient, you burn more fuel faster. In the case of your body, when it's "inefficient," when you start running out of fuel (i.e., food energy), your body will need to tap into other resources to help it perform. This sometimes will be your fat stores because they are the most energy-dense fuel in your body. However, you have to eat fat to help your body burn fat, otherwise it will use other sources in your body such as glycogen (stored carbohydrate) or muscle protein (not desirable when that's what you're trying to maintain or increase). So, try to avoid eating a fat-free, or ultra-low fat diet or your body won't be able to burn the fat within you that you're trying to get rid of.

Have fitness questions? Fitz has your answers. Our That's Fit fitness expert -- and now your own virtual personal trainer -- will help you get fit, increase your overall health and do it in a fun way. Drop your questions here in the Comments section below and we'll choose one per week to publish on That's Fit! Learn more about Fitz here.

Q. Hello, Miss Fitz! I think my best shot at getting fit would be to train at home. What size weights should I buy? I'm a 32-year-old woman, and I'm about 20 pounds overweight. Thanks! Alyssa

A. Thanks for writing, Alyssa. I'm glad you're getting serious about becoming more fit, and training at home is a really great place to start! Honestly, since I'm not standing next to you assessing your fitness level, it's almost impossible for me to tell you exactly what weights you should be using. However, I can provide you with a range, and I'm fairly confident they'll meet your needs.

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Wrist weights and ankle weights have their place in the fitness world, but they've never been a fashion statement. CafeMom has a post about Banglz, wrist and ankle weights that are actually a bit cute.

Banglz are designed to coordinate with your clothes and be worn while you're going about your daily activities. The weights are light and add a small amount of resistance to your daily activities. Cafe Dara tried them out and said she felt the effects of them.

When using ankle or wrist weights, however, it's important to keep safety in mind. Your wrists and ankles aren't used to carrying extra weight, and this could potentially lead to injury.

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That's Fit Club is our feature devoted to you, the reader. We have all learned so much on our paths to becoming more fit, and now it's time to learn from and inspire each other. That's Fit Club members are constantly working to better themselves. Some are perfect; some are not. But all have health on the mind.

Besides showing you off, we want to reward you for all of your hard work! Adidas is giving gorgeous gym bags to each featured member. To join, please send Fitz your answers to these questions, with a photo of yourself. Time for you to be the motivator!

Name: Mark Allen Church

Age: 42

Occupation: IT Project Manager

How often do you exercise? Most of the time, I train four times a week.

What type of exercise do you do? Cardio and weights twice a week. I also play racquetball and mountain hike once each week.

What gets you to work out, even when you're feeling lazy? Knowing I can avoid the energy drop that comes from missing exercise.

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It's wedding season, and the most popular style in bridal fashion is the sleeveless gown. The secret to looking great while walking down that aisle is a set of strong sexy shoulders. Hey! We can probably agree that all brides are beautiful. But we could also agree that fit brides are spectacular. If your wedding is in the works or you simply want to sport some slinky tanks during the summer, then check out this video. You'll find a variety of simple shoulder exercises that are easy to remember.

For more innovative training videos, visit Fitzness.com.

To find the training equipment used in this video, visit Power-Systems.com.

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That's Fit Club is our feature devoted to you, the reader! We have all learned so much on our paths to becoming more fit, and now it's time to learn from and inspire each other! That's Fit Club members are constantly working to better themselves. Some are perfect; some are not. But all have health on the mind.

Name: Lucciana Costa

Age: 20

Occupation: Student and musician.

How often do you exercise? Five to six days a week.

What type of exercise do you do? I switch between interval and endurance training on the treadmill (I absurdly love the treadmill), the elliptical, and then weight train every day alternating muscle groups.

What gets you to work out, even when you're feeling lazy? I like to do one crunch or one squat when I'm unmotivated. When I feel how strong my muscles are now, I realize that they only got that way from consistently exercising. These single reps almost always inspire me to go to the gym.

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Curious to know how celebrities squeeze fitness into their daily lives? Our fitness expert Fiz sits down with the stars and digs out their great and not-so-great methods for staying healthy.

This season's "Bachelor" Jason Mesnick is finally coming down to his most dramatic rose ceremony ever! Although that whole "dramatic rose ceremony thing" makes me giggle, Jason's body does not. In fact, he's been showing off that six-pack of his quite a bit since the show began a couple of months ago. In this satellite video interview, Jason dishes on how he stays sexy for shower scenes and what measures he takes to keep his teeny son Ty healthy too. Jason also answers the question about which girls were kept around just because of their looks.

"The Bachelor" finale airs this Monday night, March 2nd on ABC at 8/7c. I'm sure no matter how much drama the show contains, there is bound to be a few shirtless shots of Jason. I'll tune in for that!

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If you understand the function of the muscles in your back, you should be able to train them in the fanciest gyms in the world -- or even in the desert or lost at sea. Here, Fitz teaches you about what your back does and offers some neat exercises you can do with a variety of equipment.

The cliff hanger in this lesson: How do you use another person as a prop and how do you use this technique to get a kiss?

For more fun training videos with fresh ideas on how to use all sorts of training equipment, click here.

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We've got one trainer telling us to trash the treadmill and reach solely for the weights. And we've got RealAge saying that runners live longer than non-runners. I wasn't sold on the no-cardio concept before. Now, I'm really not sold on the weights-only mentality. But I'm a runner, which makes me a little biased. What do you think?

Hundreds of runners and non-runners were tracked for more than 20 years in one study, and it was determined that those who pound the pavement are much less likely to become disabled or die than non-runners. The difference in death rate was pretty significant -- 34 percent of non-runners died by age 70, but only 15 percent of runners did. Groups were similar in age, weight and overall health status so the thought is that running was the key to survival.

If you're a runner, I say keep on truckin'. If you're new to the sport but want to pick it up, RealAge offers some pointers for getting started. If you just can't see yourself racing to the finish line, don't forget about walking -- it has some real benefits too. And now, my friends, we want to know: Would you run if your life depended on it?

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You want to tone your arms. So, do you grab some heavy weights and crank out a few tough reps? Or do you pick up the lighter weights and lift, and lift, and lift, and lift? FitSugar has your answer, and it all comes down to a little something called muscle fatigue.

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Content with getting just 30 minutes of exercise a day? Yeah, I bet you are -- half an hour is not a lot of time to set aside for a workout. And you could get away with it and still call your lifestyle healthy -- until now, that is. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) has decided that 30 minutes usually just isn't enough anymore -- you should be thinking more like 50 minutes a session now.

In 2001, it was recommended that everyone get 150 minutes of exercise a week -- so, 30 minutes a day for five days -- to maintain a healthy weight. Nowadays, that number is more like 300 minutes a week, and if you're working out five days a week, that's 40 to 60 minutes a session.

Additionally, the ACSM also recommends a healthy diet and regular resistance training. "Resistance training does not enhance weight loss but may increase fat-free mass and increase loss of fat mass and is associated with reductions in health risk," the writing committee notes.

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Need a reason to cut cardio from your life -- for good? Nicholas Frank, Master Trainer over at LifeTips.com says he almost never does traditional cardio and explains why it's OK if you never do too.

Here's the foundation of his reasoning: People generally burn their weight x 12 in calories per day. So, a 200-pound man burns about 2,400 calories a day. But our trainer friend Nicholas, who weighs 155 pounds, burns about 4,500 calories a day. Some days, he figures he tops 5,000. Why? Lean muscle mass, that's why. And it's all due to weight training -- no treadmill or elliptical necessary. For every pound of lean muscle mass your body has, your calories burned per day increases by about 50, Nicholas says. It's why he only works out with weights. Now, he does keep a swift pace and takes few breaks to keep his heart rate up, so essentially, the cardio workout comes along for the ride.

I don't know about you, but I have no plans for ditching my cardio workouts. Maybe they aren't the most effective and efficient method for making muscles and burning calories, but I like them. I like them for how they make me feel physically. And I like for their mental benefits too. A good run energizes me in a way that weight training never will. How about you -- is cardio in your future? Or not?

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Forget fancy dumbells and barbells -- all you need to get a good workout is an exercise buddy ... or, better yet, a few exercise buddies who come in a range of shapes and sizes. Or, you could just head over to Gymbox in London, where the weights are your workout buddies. That's right, they've replaced traditional weights with humans in a variety of sizes.

Depending on your level of fitness, you can bench press 'Dainty Diva' Arti Shah, who weighs just 66 lbs, or do a lateral pull-down with 'Super Human' Matt Barnard providing, 340 lbs of resistance. All in all, there are five people to choose from, so you can take your pick.

Sounds weird, huh? Gymbox owner Richard Hilton doesn't think so --he believes that being able to visualize the weight you are lifting will help you effectively shape up. In other words, you'll be more motivated to lift a human being than a stack of metal weights, even if it's only for the bragging rights -- just don't mention to your friends that the person you lifted was less than four feet tall.

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