For many of us, there’s nothing like a good, old-fashioned workout to blow those cobwebs away, getting us into a better frame of mind. Regular exercise helps us to sleep better, improves our chances of conceiving a baby and helps us to deal with stress. While experts recommend that we all do thirty minutes of medium to high impact activity such as running, swimming, or cycling at least three times a week. Lots of us choose to hit the gym, pool or track much more often, which means it can come as as a total mystery as to why, although we may be getting fitter, we aren’t necessarily becoming slimmer, losing as much weight as we’d like or becoming significantly more toned.
Depending on your lifestyle, career, genetics, bad habits and even personal strengths and weaknesses you may find it easier, or harder to lose weight than someone else. However, there are a few mistakes that many of us, whether we’re fitness rookies or practically professional athletes keep on making and they aren’t necessarily the ones you’d have picked. These errors are incredibly common, and it may explain why you seem to have plateaued far too early. Try mixing your workouts up, hiring a personal trainer or banning yourself from committing one of these exercises based cardinal sins.
Not Drinking Enough Water
Seriously, you’ve got to stay hydrated otherwise water weight can cause bloating. You may think that the more water you drink, the more sluggish you’ll feel, but unless you’re drinking gallons … that’s simply not true. It’s good to sweat during a workout, not ridiculously so, but it shows that you’re working hard enough to increase your core temperature yielding that internal “cooling” response. One of the reasons people feel sick, dizzy or light-headed during workouts is because they aren’t properly hydrated. Drinking plenty of H2O has endless benefits and is something you should prioritize.
You’re Consuming More Calories Than You Burn
While exercise is the only thing that can make you strong, flexible, athletic with great endurance … your consumption habits are the boss when it comes to you weight/size. If weight loss is a priority for you, then you MUST make yourself familiar with The Exact Formula for Weight Loss. It’s not a diet, “fix” or other short-term gimmick. It will teach you how to eat the right amounts of the right foods for the size you’d like to be. Learning how to make yummy snacks and meals like turkey salad, or spaghetti squash is a smart move for eating within a caloric budget. So is meal planning and learning to eat out at restaurants without going overboard. You can never out-exercise poor eating habits.
The best way to keep track of food intake is by using a fitness app, such as MyFitnessPal to track what goes into your system. You’ll be surprised when you realize how much you’ve been consuming up until now. You’ll also find how easy it is to actually squeeze in a variety of yummy filling foods on a budget when you’re committed.
You’re Avoiding The Scale
While doctors caution against obsessive weighing as this can lead to eating disorders like bulimia and anorexia, it’s important that you don’t leave the bathroom scales to gather dust. A healthy, once a week weigh-in shows you exactly how much progress you’re making, what you need to cut back on and how to improve in the weeks ahead. Knowing your actual, and your goal weight also helps to reaffirm your SMART goal mentality.
Medical experts suggest that to lose weight and you should be aiming to lose around a pound per week. Which means that if you’re following a regular, approved fitness plan or taking part in something like a Weight Watchers program you should lose around a stone (16 pounds) in three months. Mind you, everyone’s metabolism varies so that figure may tend to differ especially as weight plateaus so you may need to mix up your eating habits, fitness regime or length of workout to get results. Studies have also shown that regular weigh-ins help to motivate many of us, while having the numerical consequences of what a week’s worth of junk food does do your body staring at you is thought to be a big deterrent.
You’re Not Warming Up Properly
Believe it or not, it is possible to warm up incorrectly from rushing through stretches, skipping certain muscles and using inactive poses to warm the body. While there’s nothing wrong with looking at a piyo workout review for inspiration, or doing low kicks or arm circles as these are great for reducing the chances of getting a stitch. Statistics also show that those who warm up using a slower, easier version of the exercise they’re about to undertake are less likely to injure themselves. Just make sure during your workout that you haven’t pushed yourself so hard that you can barely get through the workout itself!
Flickr Image At: Håkan Dahlstrӧm
