10 tips from a trainer
Beginning a new fitness journey can be intimidating. In this blog I will be going over 10 tips that I see people struggle with all the time! No matter what your goal is, you should consider these ten tips before you start!
Prioritize Movement:
Anything you can do to make your daily life more active is going to help keep your metabolism running efficiently. Also, the more you move the more calories you burn! Even if it’s as simple as making an effort to stand while doing activities that you normally do while sitting.
Hydration and Rest:
There are not many issues in the body that can’t be fixed by getting more sleep and drinking more water.
Quality Over Quantity in Reps:
Rather than focusing on how many reps you should do, focus on hitting your max effort. For example, if you are trying to hit 10 repetitions, your 10th repetition should be all that you can accomplish. If you can hit 11 repetitions, you should have gone heavier for 10 repetitions.
Strategic Workout Periodization:
Periodization is the BEST way to make sure you are making increases in strength which translates to lean muscle mass. An easy example of periodization workouts would be to lift 3X10 for maximum effort on week 1, then on week 2 increase the weight 5-10 LBS and lift 3X8 for maximum effort. For week 3 increase the weight 5-10LBS again and try to lift 3X6 for maximum effort. Week 4 you go back to 3X10 and you should be able to lift more weight for 10 repetitions than you could on week 1.
Track your Calories and Dive into Macros:
Tracking your macros is the only true way to see how many calories you are eating vs how many are being expended. If you want to lose weight you need to know how many calories are in certain foods to avoid overeating. Tracking your carbs, fats, and proteins will help you see which foods to stay away from! Protein is more thermogenic (it burns more calories breaking it down) than carbs and has lower calories than fat. So, track your macros to see what foods work best for your lifestyle!
Rethink the Scale’s Significance:
The scale is one of the easiest and most convenient tools you can use to see if your workout program is going as planned, but it’s also just that, a tool. The scale is not going to tell you everything. Your body weight will fluctuate from your diet depending on how much food/water is in your stomach and how much water your body is hanging on to from sodium. To avoid these issues, use the scale at the same time every day. Example: right when you wake up after you use the restroom. If you seem to struggle on the scale, try pairing before and after photos with it so you can see gains in lean muscle mass!
Timing Matters: Avoid Late-Night Eating
When you eat late at night and then eat breakfast when you wake up you are failing to take advantage of an easy opportunity to fast. When trying to lose weight, a good goal is to get a 12 hour fast in every day. Even though that seems daunting, it’s not bad if you pair it with your sleep cycle! If you go to sleep at 9:00 PM and eat breakfast at 7:00 AM, you can get a super easy and effective 12 hour fast if you don’t eat past 7:00 PM.
Find Sustainable Eating Habits
Diet is key to any weight related goals. However, the goal is to have a diet that is SUSTAINABLE. Often, people eat only salads for 3 weeks and they feel miserable, so they end up binging out on junk food. Not every diet is going to be sustainable for every person. Try counting your calories and tweaking your diet so that you can stick to it year-round.
Be Mindful of your Beverage Choices
Most drinks have calories. If you are new to dieting or counting calories, don’t fall into the trap that you can drink as much Gatorade as you want. If you are counting your calories always count the calories in your Gatorades, alcohol, energy drinks, coffee etc. When you start keeping track of it, you might realize that drinks often times have a lot more calories than you expect.
Routine with Consistency
No workout or diet is going to outwork a routine. If you say you are going to go to the gym 3x per week, get it into your routine so that you don’t miss any days. Make sure your routine is maintainable. You are not going to notice results overnight, but if you have a routine and you stick to it, you’re guaranteed to see the results!
Need help creating the perfect training program for YOU?
We offer free consultations to new clients. No pressure, just a chat about where you are, where you want to be and how we can help.
Comments