PHYSIOLOGICA - Heath, Fitness & Lifestyle. Fitness Beginner? Here's Five Vital Rules For Success;
Fitness Beginner? Here's Five Vital Rules For Success;
Are you amongst the hordes of people out there who have tried and failed to achieve what they want in the gym? Often the failure point is around the three month mark, does this sound familiar? Having been involved in the fitness industry since 1994 as a coach, personal trainer and gym owner, I've seen this more times than I can count.
Below I've compiled a list of five points which I think are the most helpful to beginners, followed closely they should help avoid the most self destructive habits and beliefs. Some may sound ludicrously obvious, but sometimes the most obvious things can be overlooked.
RULE 1 - Get Expert Help...
At the risk of sounding like I'm trying to boost business for my own role as personal trainer, GET HELP! I wouldn't dream of trying to take my car engine apart to fix or service it because I don't have the expertise needed to do it. So why do people assume that they can tackle the body with very little or no knowledge of how it all works?
When I started in the industry I used to try not to roll my eyes when people asked me "how do I get a flat stomach? Lots of sit ups, right?". Unfortunately I still hear this question more than 20 years later, it's apparent that all the books, tv programmes and multitude of YouTube videos still haven't made a dent in some peoples awareness of how their body actually functions. If you can afford it, buy a block of 5-10 sessions with a GOOD personal trainer (i'll be writing a blog on how to spot a GOOD personal trainer soon). If you can't afford a block of 5-10 sessions, at least have an hour session with them, they'll get you started properly with a simple programme. This leads us nicely onto RULE 2.
RULE 2 - Have a well defined goal...
What are you trying to achieve? What are your priorities? Are you just looking for general fitness (i.e. fat loss, muscle tone, improved aerobic fitness) or something more specific? Seems obvious but is often overlooked in the rush to get started. As RULE 1 - a trainer should help you get some goals - both short term (3-6 months) and long term (1-2 years) established.
The most common mistakes I see are novices blindly following the programme which a friend is using. They may have totally different requirements to you. For example: I've seen people train like bodybuilders even though they have no intention of ever being on stage in a pair of budgie smugglers and layers of fake tan.
SMART goals are really important (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and have a Timeframe) because some goals contradict each other, so don't set yourself up to fail.
RULE 3 - Don't live in the Gym...
Often people jump in with both feet and start by training every day. This normally results in over-training, painful muscles, DOMs (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) or impact related pain. These type of overtraining injuries or conditions are mostly due to training too often and without enough rest and recovery between workouts. Try to reign in your enthusiasm and commit to 3 workouts per week to start with a day of rest in-between. As your body gets conditioned, you can increase to 4-5 after 2-3 months.
RULE 4 - Be consistent...
Without doubt the quickest way to fail is to be inconsistent and skip sessions. The first few months are vital to your success so stick to your workouts. As per RULE 3, you don't have to live in the gym, but your gains will slow down significantly if you miss weeks. You lose top end fitness and strength very quickly, so then when you skip sessions, you're often chasing just to get back where you were, rather than progressing and moving forward. Try to plan ahead, and if possible go with a friend - research has shown you're much more likely to stick to a plan if you train with a someone else. You could even get a few friends together and hire a trainer, splitting to cost like this can make it much more affordable, and by pushing each other much easier to stick to.
RULE 5 - You have to enjoy it...
If you dread your training sessions, its very unlikely that you'll stick to them. To enjoy something you have to get better at doing it, so be patient. Running is a good example, its the default "New Me" plan, but does it suit you? if you're heavy, running could be very bad for your joints - swimming might be much more suited to you. If you're training for weight loss, you shouldn't be doing tedious hours of abdominal crunches. Find something you enjoy, do you get bored easily and need music to motivate you? Try spinning or HIIT classes. Prefer more sedate exercise or like the outdoors? Try swimming or hiking. Don't fall into the trap of thinking exercise is 20 mins running on the treadmill, some bicep curls to make the arms look good, crunches for the 6 pack and then hit the showers. It's way more fun or exciting than that so DON'T SET YOURSELF UP TO FAIL.