THREE BAD HABITS THAT COULD HINDER YOUR WORKOUTS

Article By Beverleigh Piepers

We were made to move. But we don’t do much of it these days in our push-button world. Too many of us lead busy, sedentary, desk-bound lives (which can lead to many diseases). Regular moderate physical exercise activity is essential for good health, posture, strength, for managing diseases such as Type 2 diabetes, and for reducing the risk of heart disease.

Perhaps you have been doing strength training to increase your metabolism, build or tone your muscles and strengthen your bones. Maybe you practice intermittent training to enhance your endurance and become aerobically fit.

You’ve been working hard in the gym and as such, have expected to see optimal results. But yet, those results still elude you. What’s preventing you from reaching your goals?

In many cases, it could be as simple as a few bad habits. Let’s take a look at three bad habits that could be ruining your fitness program and how to overcome them…

BAD HABITS & FAST FIXES

Bad Habit No. 1: Never Warming Up

Fast Fix: Arriving 5 Minutes Early (or account for a few extra minutes to warm up)

If you neglect your warm-up, you may think you are saving time, but you’re just sacrificing results. If you aren’t warmed up, and your blood isn’t flowing as it should be, this means you will struggle to generate the strength you’re after.

The result? A poor workout performance. Arrive five minutes early and do a warm-up. You will be amazed at the difference this makes.

Vita Vie Retreat Tip: A warm up can be some moderate cardio, dynamic flexibility or foam rolling. Choose your preferred method and go for it. A warm up helps prepare your CNS for your workout and gets your body warm and ready to go. Static stretching should be left for after the workout (once you’re warm). A warm up that includes movement is the way to go before your workout.

Bad Habit No. 2: Lifting With Your Ego (or not knowing how to do a move properly)

Fast Fix: Focusing On Form

Too many people arrive at the gym and let their ego get in the way. If you feel yourself losing good form but keep pushing because you want to add more weight to the bar, this needs to change.

Remember you will never see good results from doing an exercise with reduced form as you would with proper form no matter how much weight you’re lifting. Leave your ego at the door and drop the weight 10 to 20 pounds. Only once you have mastered form at that particular weight can you increase it by 10 or 20 pounds.

Vita Vie Retreat Tip: Watch yourself in a mirror so you can see if you’re using good form or not. If you don’t know, a personal trainer might be a great option to help ensure you’re using good form. Not only do you want to get the most out of your workouts but you also want to reduce the risk of injury.

Bad Habit No. 3: Going Through The Motions

Fast Fix: Focusing On Your Breathing

Finally, don’t let yourself just go through the motions during your workout sessions. You want to feel each exercise as you do it. Feeling each activity means dialing into your body, feeling the muscular contractions taking place.

If you focus on your breathing, this can help. It will help you tune out distractions and zero in on what you are doing.

Vita Vie Retreat Tip: Going through the motions might also mean that you’re not challenging yourself enough. Make sure to add intensity into your workouts. Light to moderate intensity workouts have their place but make sure to add in some high intensity moments to challenge your body, improve strength and cardiovascular health.

It’s a great idea to track your goals in a journal or app so you know whether or not what you’re doing is working for 

TIPS GOING FORWARD

So have a look at your current workouts. Are you guilty of any of these habits? If so, get a fix in place so they don’t sabotage your results.

Exercise has so many health benefits. Managing health, disease and body posture are among a few.

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