The crunch time is here...
Everyone is instagramming their perfect meals and workouts in order to get the body they want for summer.
It's more comical than watching the lines at Dunkin' Donuts on days they give out FREE coffee. People are doing all sorts of bizarre diets, exercises, and routines in order to cut some fat from their belly for bathing suit season.
Which is where I come in! I LOVE helping these people and those with ANY fitness goals in general, so I am here to give you 5 reasons WHY your workouts are not working.
1) You don't warm up properly.
Look, if you don't prime your muscles for exercise, you risk injury, DOMS, and your workout will suffer.
Ever feel like it took you half the workout to get the juices flowing and feeling warmed up?
Case in point...You need to be starting your workout FULLY prepared for what you are about to do!
This means active isolated stretching(not static), mobility flows, and maybe some SMR if you feel like it helps you.
Then start doing basic bodyweight movement flows that will be prepping you for the type of workout you are doing.
For example, lets not be doing a full blown jog/shuffle/broad jump and high knee warm up for a upper body day....instead lets focus on t-spine mobilizations, band pull parts, semi's, and spider climbs with reaching.
2) You don't go heavy enough.
Being the owner of the largest bootcamp facility in the tri-state, I see this one more often than not. There are times and places to go heavy, and certain workouts that can be great for that are those with longer rest periods.
The key to a balanced workout regimen is one that uses both high and low volume training and intensities that are inversely proportional.
So don't get comfortable using 10 or 15 # dumbbells every day and think you will progressively "overload" your muscles and build strength or get ripped.
At the same time, do think throwing 300# on your bar and performing heavy triples for your sessions will help you reach your goals also.
It is all about balance, so if you feel stuck in your routines, more often than not....you are not pushing the weight your body is capable of.
If you are stuck in group classes that go off intervals, try choosing a heavier weight and focusing on get a few solid reps and stopping before the interval. There is no shame in cutting short if you are busting out 100# goblet squats while your counterparts are using 30's.
3) You don't push yourself.
If you want to get results, you need to be pushing yourself. Plain and simple. Half ass workouts will give you half ass results. This reminds me of the times I worked in global gyms and would see guys spending more time looking a themselves in the mirror than they would under a load.
Same goes for women. If you can read that magazine word for word and learn more from the book you're reading than the intensity of your training....you shouldn't be sticker shocked to see the same body frame 3 years from now.
Anything great in life doesn't come with an "easy button."
Now this doesn't mean that "light days" and "deloads" are crap.
There is a time and place for recovery and days off. However, if you are not pushing yourself 3-4 times a week....then don't expect to change much, especially if you are not eating near perfectly clean.
At least 2-3 days a week I make sure I end my workouts with NOTHING left in the tank. I love metabolic training for this and/or finishers.
The same goes for your heavy lifting sessions. If you are pushing the thresholds on heavy lifts and leaving 1-3 RIR's and RPE's of 8-10 then you are doing work.
But if you are "lifting heavy" every week and leaving 5-6 reps left in the tank on every set and then plopping your ass on the benches and counting the clock for your 3 minute rest more closely than your form with your deadlift....then you may need to have a reality check to where you want to be goal wise.....
4) You don't prioritize your nutrition.
It's not related to your training, but it's THAT important. I can't tell you enough how upsetting it is to see people forgo their training nutrition.
By this I mean fueling in the RIGHT ways for your body to perform. There is no "one size fits all" for the equation.
Your custom meal plan may NOT be the best "for you."
You have to find what works BEST for your body. Some are better training on an empty stomach. Some need fuel.
But there are a few laws of leanness I obey and highly recommend you should if you are looking to get the best results:
A. Eat a majority of your carbs around your WORKOUT WINDOWS(1-2 prior and/or 1-3 post).
B. Limiting fat intake post workout(slows absorption of other nutrients)
C. Stick to QUALITY protein sources. Grass fed Beef, Lean Turkey, Fish, Grass Fed Whey Powder/Isolate and/or QUALITY vegan/plant protein(I like pea for its high amino acid profile).
My favorite WHEY combo is Body Nutrition's Trutein....You can order here and save 15% on your order!
D. Stop being a 5 year old and EAT YOUR VEGGIES. If you can't, at least use a solid greens powder. I HIGHLY recommend using Athletic Greens if you haven't. You can get 20 FREE trial packs with your first order here.
E. If above everything else, EAT MORE PROTEIN. 9/10 you are not getting enough. Aim for your desired bodyweight in grams if you are active and training 5-6 days a week.
F. CUT OUT FAKE FOOD and artificial sweeteners and processed garbage. Eat real food!
5.) You do the same things.
Variety is key to any training program. Now, with that being said...it doesn't give you the green light to be doing the bogus balance and circus acts you see being done in gyms these days.
What I mean is if you do 4x10 on DB Bench on Mondays and 4x8 on BB Deadlift on Thursday and do this same thing every week you will not see the results you could if you varied your tempo, volume, intensity and effort.
Not to mention the exercise choice. If you are stuck doing conventional deadlifts since you came out of the womb then you would be AMAZED if you began adding phases of sumo stance, romanian, or even single leg variations.
They all go long ways in completing your training, so start thinking about adding new variations in your next program!
I love mixing up bench presses for:
1. Squeeze Presses
2. 1.5 Rep Presses
3. Incline/Decline
4. Alternating DB
5. Forced Negatives
6. Explosive
7. Ring/TRX
8. Deficit
....The list goes on!
So don't be stuck in the same monotonous training methods and start thinking about these things and if you can tweak and add to get the most out of your sessions!
Until next time,
Train hard, Be Smart, and PAY it forward!
Coach Mikey
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