Frustrated.
This is one of the words I hear the most when talking with people about their diet and exercise routines.
They are frustrated because even though it seems as though they are doing everything right, they still aren’t getting the results they want.
Sometimes they aren’t getting any results, despite working out regularly and watching what they eat.
If you can relate to feeling stuck or finding yourself frustrated by a lack of results, you could be making one of these five common fitness mistakes.
Doing too much steady-state cardio
- Doing cardio actually teaches your body how to conserve energy, not burn it. The more cardio you do the more your body learns to conserve energy efficiently so it spends less and less energy every time you do it.
- Long duration, steady-state cardio also breaks down muscle tissue. If you’re trying to build muscle and you’re doing a lot of steady-state cardio on top of that, you’re just burning off that muscle that you’re trying to build.
How to fix it
- Swap long runs for things like sprints, Tabata and circuit training.
- Spend less time doing cardio but make the activity more intense.
Not lifting weights
- If you want to reshape your body, you have to lift weights. Want sculpted arms and a round booty? You won’t get it joining the running club.
- Strength training boosts your metabolism as well as building muscle tissue and teaches our body to become super efficient at fat burning and not fat storing.
How to fix it
- If you’re not sure what to do in the weight room, sign up with a trainer even just for a few weeks or a few months to learn some exercises and get comfortable around the gym and around weights.
- Let go of the fear of getting bulky. You won’t get bulky from lifting weights, you’ll get tighter and more toned.
Eating too little, then too much
- A common mistake is trying to “diet” and eating very little during the day. This sets you up to come home, tired and starving which can lead to overeating.
- Even when you eat the right foods most of the time, snacking too much at night and on the weekends can totally derail your progress.
How to fix it
- Plan balanced meals to eat throughout the day. Don’t try to white-knuckle your way through or leave dinner to chance.
- Get snack items out of the house. If it isn’t in the cabinet, you can’t eat it.
Thinking that more is always better when it comes to exercise
- Cortisol is your biggest enemy when it comes to weight loss and exercise raises cortisol. The more exercise you do, the more cortisol your body produces.
- Your body needs to be able to recover from workouts in order to change. If we’re working out too hard and we’re working out too much we’re not giving our body time to rest and recover.
How to fix it
- Instead of thinking more is always better with exercise think of it this way, the more stress that you have in your life the less stressful your diet and exercise routine should be.
- Incorporate walking, yoga and activities that you enjoy such as a dance class or maybe playing tennis. Do things that feel good.
Not having a plan
- What gets measured gets managed. You’ve got to have a plan because without a plan you won’t be consistent. It’s the number one factor that’s going to bring about change both through diet and exercise.
How to fix it
- Find a plan by either working with a Personal Trainer, getting set up on a program at your gym, or even finding free programs online you can follow. Commit to something for at least three months and follow it without deviating.
- For your diet, planning ahead is absolutely essential. You need to know what you’re going to eat, how much, and when, and have that food ready. Plan your weekly meals, prep your food on Sunday then stick to your plan all week long.
These five fitness mistakes are very common but an easy fix!
Swap out your cardio for metabolic conditioning, get in the weight room, eliminate late-night snacking, leave room for rest and recovery, and have a plan for both your training and your food.
Say so long to feeling frustrated. Shake up your thinking and your training and you’ll finally start to see some results!
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