Are you one of those people who continue to trudge through the exact same workout routine that you always have and wonder why you are not seeing the results that you would like? Well, you are not alone. As fitness trainers, we find that all too often people are inclined to stick with the same routine year in and year out. Of course, doing something is better than nothing, but with the addition of a little bit of focused planning and self-reflection you could be seeing significantly better results.
First ask yourself: “What are my goals?” If you do not have objective, measurable goals it will be difficult to keep yourself on track while at the gym. We recommend that you keep your goals simple and SMART. SMART stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timed. An example of a SMART goal would be: “I plan to decrease my body fat percentage by three percent within the next six months.” Once you set a few goals, consider writing them down and keeping them somewhere you will see every day (perhaps set a daily reminder phone, or post a note on the refrigerator). This will help you keep your goals at the forefront of your mind.
Second, “How do I plan to reach my goals?” Here at Varta Fitness, we’ve noticed that even when you set objective and measurable goals, without a plan in place it will be difficult to reach them. If you are not sure of the best approach to reach your goals, consult an expert. Avoid what you see and hear in the media, instead ask someone who has a degree in kinesiology. Also endeavor to make fitness a part of your daily life, not simply something that you dabble in on the weekends. Take a step back to look at your fitness plan as a whole. Your workouts should include a balance of activities that evenly focus on Flexibility, Muscular Strength, Cardiovascular Endurance, Muscular Endurance, and Body Composition.
Lastly, ask yourself “Am I willing to work hard to achieve these goals?”. This likely could go without saying, but in order to achieve, one must to be willing to work hard. There are a lot of clichés that center around the basic idea that without hard work, nothing is possible. It is simple; you get out what you put in. If you only put in the minimum amount effort every time you work out you will only get the minimum amount of results. If you are trying to maintain your current level of fitness, maybe the minimum is enough for you. However if your goal is to improve yourself, rest assured that you will need to turn up the intensity a notch or two.
Additionally, consider adding a bit of variety to your routine. As was implied in the beginning of this article, doing the same routine over and over will not produce new results. Consider the following tips:
For your cardiovascular workout, try interval training! Interval training is a great tool to get you outside of your comfort zone. Basically, you alternate between a work interval and a rest interval, usually at a 1:2 or 1:3 ratio. Alternate between periods of high-intensity exercise (e.g. sprinting) and low intensity exercise (e.g. walking). If your cardiovascular activity has been low intensity, high duration for awhile this may be exactly the change your body needs.
For your resistance training routine, consider trying some new lifts, rearranging the order of your lifts, altering your tempo, changing the number of sets you do, and/or varying the number of repetitions you attempt per set.
In order to avoid plateaus, we recommend significantly changing your workout routine every six to twelve weeks. Although plateaus are something that we all face periodically in the world of exercise, by taking the time to rethink your goals and incorporating some of the aforementioned tips, you should be able to successfully overcome them.
