What to do if you are not making gains at the gym
There are plenty of reason to workout. You feel better, you get fitter, or stronger, and you look better too. But what do you do when you are putting the time in at the gym, but you have reached a plateau? Then your whole workout regime can seem like an exercise in futility. But don’t give up, there are ways to get back on track. Read on to find out what they are.
Be mindful of your diet
The first reason that you can be going ‘hell for leather’ in the gym and not seeing the results that you want is that your diet has got out of whack. Don’t stress, though, this isn’t an excuse for you to start punishing yourself for the occasional bowl of ice cream.
Instead, make a food log for a week. This will show you just exactly how much, and what types of food you’re eating. Then you can make a plan for the times in your week where you are eating the wrong sort of things, or even not eating enough. As this can affect your results as well.
Switch it up
Another reason you might not be seeing the result you want after working hard in the gym is that our bodies are incredibly resilient. Especially when they are fit and healthy. That means they can pretty easily become used to whatever punishing regimen you choose to put them through. This in turns means that the extreme results you see, when you just began this sort of workout tail off, once your body has become more resilient.
The best way to deal with that is to switch up the type of duration of exercise that you are doing. For example, High Intensity Interval Training is fun and exciting. It also burns shed loads so calories in a much quicker time that a steady intensity workout. Or try swapping a bike ride for an exercise class? Or a session on the running machine for a swim instead?
Remember each different activity works your muscle groups in a slightly different way. This stresses the body, and restarts the process where it has to work harder. Which should allow you to see more gains.
Another great way of switching your routine up is exercise at a different time, so if you have been going in the morning, you can go at lunchtime or in the evening instead. This is sometimes enough to get things moving again.
Two’s company
Another reason you may not be seeing the results that you want when you workout is that you have lost your focus. It’s easy to do. Going to the gym can easily become just another job that you need to tick off your list every day. Instead of some time in which to focus on your physical well-being.
If you sense this might be the problem, then why not recruit a friend to come and help you with your workouts? Having someone there that you know is always a great way to get refocused on how much effort you are putting in. The added bonus is that they get the benefit of getting fit too!
Some outside assistance
If all else fails, then it may be time to call in some outside assistance. A personal trainer can be employed to take your through your routine, and show you where you can tweak things to improve your overall results.
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