Gym mistakes you are making unknowingly and should avoid at all costs

And because of that reason, you will see guys joining the gym at the beginning of the year as a resolution. However, it’s one thing to join the gym, but another altogether to actually shed those kilos. You have to know what you’re doing at the gym and it’s necessary to have an instructor guiding you. You may go to the gym consistently, but unknowingly, you’re actually doing the wrong thing the whole damn time. Shame, right? And that’s why we have compiled 4 gym mistakes you’re making that may be sabotaging your weight loss plan.

1. Focusing too much on cardio and forgetting weight training.

Most people are under the impression that cardio is the best work out for fat loss. Sure, of course cardio will help burn fat and subsequently help you lose weight. But, interestingly, when you compare the total fat burning effects of cardio and weight training over the course of say 3 days, you will see that weight training has a significant advantage over cardio. The idea that cardio is for burning fat and weight training is for building muscle, is actually not completely true. So, ensure you’re incorporating both at the gym. In fact, do your cardio after the weight training because this way, you will use all the energy to lift the weights first and this will burn fat. Alternatively, you can choose to do both exercises on different days.

Weightlifting (Courtesy) ece-auto-gen

2. You’re afraid of discomfort.

We are all guilty of this – you run out of breath and take a small break, you get tired and do away with that work out or reduce the time. You have to challenge yourself through progressive overload which basically means, start small then pump it up with time. For instance, you could add more weights and do a shorter workout or do less weights and also cardio but in a back to back manner with no breaks in between – a high intensity training. If you’re not consistent and challenging yourself to do more each time, you will not see results.

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3. Doing the same workouts every time.

Normally, your body will adjust to whatever you throw at it, especially, with enough time and practice. When you do the same workouts again and again, you stop challenging yourself and your body and once your body has adjusted to that same workout routine, your results will diminish more and more. At the same time, this is not to mean that you should switch up your workout every single time you go to they gym as that’s not good either because you never give yourself a chance to adapt to the exercises, master them and make them harder, which is a necessary requirement if you want to see progress. What is well recommended is to do each work out plan or routine for 4 weeks. This way, you won’t adapt too much to the workout to a point where it starts getting easy and repetitive. Bottom line is, every 4 weeks, do a new work out plan and not just for weight training but also for cardio.

Yvonne at the gym (@collophotography) Pulse Live Kenya

4. Using way too many machines.

The best exercises for building muscle and burning fat are the exercises with a free range of motion which means you’re hitting multiple muscle groups at once. The bigger part of your workout should be coming from bar bells, dumbbells, kettle bells and your body. The rest of the machines should be used only to supplement your workout.

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5. Not doing warm up before cardio or a run.

You always need to do a warm up before you start your cardio and even weight lifting because failure to do this can cause a lot of muscle fatigue and even injuries. Warm up allows your muscles to stretch and prepare to support you throughout your run. Warm ups also allow you to breathe efficiently throughout your run - so your legs don't scream and cramp mid-way!