As I talk to women about their current workouts and why they aren't getting results, I find several common themes almost every time. So if you're interested in making the most of your time in the gym, and getting results, check out these 3 common mistakes:
1) Working out too long and too much. Overtraining is more common than you might think. I mean it sounds counterintuitive...how can you exercise too much??? It's really not that hard. The body has it's limits. It needs downtime to recover, repair and make itself stronger for the next go round. If you don't give it the time it needs, it will rebel on you and along with holding back in the results department, it may also punish you with fatigue, lack of motivation, and irritabilit...just to name a few possibilities.
2) Not working out hard enough. Sounds contradictory to number 1, doesn't it? It's not. You need to learn to train harder and smarter, not longer and more. Intensity and quality are key to getting results from your program, not volume and quantity. Make sure you fatigue your muscles when you strength train, and you just aren't throwing dumbbells around. Do interval cardio training to really tax your system and cause a metabolic disturbance. Work harder for shorter periods of time.
3) Making the workouts to complicated. You don't need fancy equipment to get in a good workout. In fact, a lot of the time it can be more of a distraction than anything else. My girlfriend got me a membership to her gym so we can workout together (or rather, I can help her workout : ), but what I usually do is workout at home, then go to the gym to help her. Sometimes I do my workout at the gym, but not usually. At home, I have a set of adjustable dumbbells, a bench, a rack, and a barbell with some free weights. That's all I need. Keep it simple. If you want results, stick to the basics: full body workouts using compound exercises with a few intensity techniques thrown in. That's it. Piece of cake, right? Actually, if you want results, I would skip the cake... : )
Carpe Diem!
1) Working out too long and too much. Overtraining is more common than you might think. I mean it sounds counterintuitive...how can you exercise too much??? It's really not that hard. The body has it's limits. It needs downtime to recover, repair and make itself stronger for the next go round. If you don't give it the time it needs, it will rebel on you and along with holding back in the results department, it may also punish you with fatigue, lack of motivation, and irritabilit...just to name a few possibilities.
2) Not working out hard enough. Sounds contradictory to number 1, doesn't it? It's not. You need to learn to train harder and smarter, not longer and more. Intensity and quality are key to getting results from your program, not volume and quantity. Make sure you fatigue your muscles when you strength train, and you just aren't throwing dumbbells around. Do interval cardio training to really tax your system and cause a metabolic disturbance. Work harder for shorter periods of time.
3) Making the workouts to complicated. You don't need fancy equipment to get in a good workout. In fact, a lot of the time it can be more of a distraction than anything else. My girlfriend got me a membership to her gym so we can workout together (or rather, I can help her workout : ), but what I usually do is workout at home, then go to the gym to help her. Sometimes I do my workout at the gym, but not usually. At home, I have a set of adjustable dumbbells, a bench, a rack, and a barbell with some free weights. That's all I need. Keep it simple. If you want results, stick to the basics: full body workouts using compound exercises with a few intensity techniques thrown in. That's it. Piece of cake, right? Actually, if you want results, I would skip the cake... : )
Carpe Diem!
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2 comments:
how do you know if you are 1 or 2? I think i am in the #1 category.I don't work out long but i work out hard and often. Try as i might i don't rest and recover very well. I can't get past the mindset of if I am not making gains I am not working hard enough.
That's actually a pretty common obstacle for people. In a lot of aspects of life we believe more is better so that carries over into our thoughts about fitness too.
What about trying to back-off on your volume for short periods of time. Promise yourself that for the next week you will only workout x amount of times. And stick to it for that week.
Then based on how it goes, make a goal for the following week then the week after that. It might seem more doable if you just focus on 1 week at a time.
Also, you might consider finding other activities to replace the times you were doing the extra workouts. It could be a leisurely walk, reading, or whatever you enjoy doing, so you get to spend that new found extra time doing something enjoyable.
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