Admit it. At some point, you’ve blindly undertaken a popular training program without a clue as to its validity. When I was a young lad, I did it, too. We think because something is out there via paper, print, or the Internet – especially if it’s coupled with photos of well-built physical specimens who supposedly used that program – it must be effective, right? Not necessarily.

This is one mistake many of us make or have made when it comes to physical training – just going with the latest trend because everyone is doing it. We’re human and not infallible. We all screw up from time to time. But your goal should be to minimize mistakes and learn from the missteps you do take. If you make the wrong decision, then correct it and move forward.

Blindly following a mainstream training program is one common mistake. What are other mistakes well-intended trainees make? Here is a short list of what I believe are the common training transgressions.

1. You’re not directly addressing your goals

Two wide spread examples of this are fat loss and muscle strength. As a society, we are accumulating an inordinate amount of fat deposits. What do we typically do when we want to counter this?

Initiate an exercise program and pay more attention to disciplined food selections.

Good move! However, the exercise program many of us pick entails some low-demand activity like walking, jogging, yoga, Pilates, or powder-puff circuit training. And the food intake side of it often looks like a fad diet or extreme calorie restriction.

To optimally expunge body fat, activities that are higher in intensity and physical demand should be employed. This includes intense circuit training, strength training, and interval training.

Regarding food intake, a sensible diet incorporating the right balance of good carbohydrates, lean proteins, and healthy fats should be used and in the proper amounts that create a caloric deficit. I know that is a general statement, but it will work.

2. You’re not lifting heavy enough

This is a much-debated topic and I’m sure I will get an earful no matter what I suggest, so I’ll try to keep it simple. Whether you’re using low (two to seven), moderate (eight to fifteen), or high (sixteen to 25-plus) repetitions and using single or multiple sets (two to four), all these approaches will benefit you provided you work hard and recover from the stresses they create.

“Hard” means you worked each bout to the limit.

That means if your goal is a hard set of eight reps, it should be difficult to obtain those eight reps. If you could have performed twelve reps, what exactly did you accomplish?

If you perform either one or four sets, assure each one is demanding as per my previous statement. Performing multiple sets at a low intensity level is not time efficient.

3. You’re training with high injury-risk methods

Safety should be first and foremost in any training program. Think about it. If you’re performing specious and unsafe activities and you’re experiencing recurrent injuries, is that not counter-productive? Hell yes, it is.

If you’re involved in a sport that entails explosive and ballistic activities, then that is your prerogative. Good luck and best wishes. Understand, though, the human body can only take so much.

By nature, sports that have a greater inherent risk can lead to a greater risk for injury. We’re talking about collision sports such as football, rugby, wrestling, MMA, Olympic lifting, and competitive CrossFit.

I completely understand those activities may be your passion, but know there is a risk when performing them due to the ballistic and joint-compromising nature of them.

If you’re simply attempting to lose fat, become stronger, or improve your level of conditioning, opt for safer and more joint-friendly methods.

You don’t need to engage in unnecessary explosive and ballistic activities. You’ll lower your risk of injury and prolong your training career if you eschew high-risk training methods.

4. You’re not training hard

At some point you need to train hard to alter your current status. Half-assed efforts or being intolerant to the pain of proper training will not cut it. Your body wants to remain as it is. It resists change.

For any change to occur, an abnormal stress must be place on the system targeted. Whatever training mode used, it should at the very least create an overload on the targeted system.

For example, if you’re attempting to improve cardiovascular endurance, then you need to engage in activities that actually challenge that energy system. This would mean working hard in extended activities over a long duration.

If your goal is improved high-intensity, short-duration ability, then overload yourself with high-effort, short-rest-period events. Examples would be:

• :30 hard effort and :30 rest performed for 15+ repetitions
• 1:00 hard effort and :30 rest
• :20 hard effort and :10 rest
• :45 hard effort and :25 rest

And don’t forget strength training. You need to train hard when strength training, too. The inability to perform another perfect repetition is objective and measurable.

Yes, it’s going to be painful (it’s temporary pain, so deal with it), but if you halt a set because it’s beginning to get uncomfortable or you reach some arbitrary number of repetitions, you just sold yourself short.

5. You’re over-training or under-recovering

It’s a double-edged sword. You need to work hard, but you also need to rest properly. Run. Lift. Practice. Run more. Lift more. Practice more. When will your body get a much-needed break?

Hard training stimulates a potential adaptation to the imposed demand. Your workout may create a positive improvement in a quality such as endurance or strength, but to allow for its development, adequate recovery time must be given.

Additionally, how do you maximize your efforts in multiple training components? After a vicious leg day in the weight room, will you be recovered adequately for a quality conditioning day? And what about sport practice? If you’re still hung over from the effects of a previous workout, don’t expect to be a hundred percent.

Employing exercises and training sessions that continually tax the system without allowing time to adapt can result in fatigue, regression of ability, and injuries. Train hard, but rest hard. It’s better to be over- rather than under-recovered.

Mistakes. We all make them. Learn from your training missteps and you’ll better achieve your goals.

The post 5 Common Training Mistakes and How to Fix Them appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

A lot of things work. There are a number of ways to get from point A to point B. Going back to the basics will take most trainees a long way toward reaching their potential. Hard work, dedication to consistency, and strict attention to nutrition and recovery are the keys.

Sounds simple, right? However, many trainees ignore those time-proven steps and fail to reach their goals due to one or a combination of these:

• Overreaching and having unrealistic expectations. It’s okay to aim high, but be realistic. Not everyone will win Olympic gold, let alone their local lifting competition or endurance event.

• Ignoring genetic limitations. Face it, you have limits to how much you can alter your physical attributes. Your speed, strength, quickness, and endurance can be improved, but you’re limited by your genetic make-up such as skeletal structure (short or tall), muscle mass (thick or thin), and muscle fiber endowment (fast or slow twitch).

• Making simple training missteps. Many training gaffes are correctable. Shore them up, and you will improve the chance of maximizing your potential, including that goal of becoming leaner.

What are these common and correctable training mistakes? Here they are, in no particular order.

Lack of Specificity

If you want to get better at something, then do it. Want to run faster? Then practice running faster. Want to improve your ability in a barbell squat? Then squat with a barbell. Want to improve your cardiovascular endurance? Then perform activities that stress what I call the “musculo-cardio” system. High muscular demand creates a high stress on the heart and lungs, so emphasize the large muscles of your body when exercising.

If you are trying to maximize fat loss, exercise itself does not make a huge dent into burning fat. It’s the post-workout demand that is important. Dig a deep hole during your workout to create a situation where your body needs to tap into your fat reserves to get out of that hole, post-workout.

Lack of Intensity

It’s exercise, folks. Proper exercise should be physically demanding. To make alterations in your body—whether in strength, endurance, or muscle mass—you need to push yourself beyond your current status. You must create a stress (overload) on your current physical capacity to move to the next level.

Demanding exercise is not fun, but that is what you need to make changes. So run harder, push through those demanding resistance training repetitions, squeeze out one or two more repetitions during a timed circuit exercise, or decrease your recovery time between sets.

If your target is cardiovascular endurance, interval training has been proven to be an efficient means of augmenting it. Focus on these variables:

• Progressively increase the number of bouts.
• Decrease the recovery time.
• Increase the intensity of effort. This can come from increasing your speed or increasing the distance or duration of your intervals.

And for the love of Arthur Saxon, if you’re resistance training, push your sets to the maximum, safely. If you’re capable of 15 repetitions but stop at 11 because “you’re too tired,” you sold yourself short. Yes, it may hurt a bit more, but it’s temporary. Don’t be soft. Get a competent training partner, push yourself safely with the goal of as many proper repetitions possible, and enjoy your gains.

Skipping the Weights When You’re Trying to Lose Fat

People hate to hear it, but it is the truth: fat loss is 80% diet and 20% appropriate exercise. Exercising hard and creating a calorie deficit is the general formula for weight loss. That approach will work when it comes time to stepping on the weight scale. But is scale weight the only desirable outcome? No, it’s not.

To optimally shed body fat, choose resistance (strength) training above all others. It stimulates the growth and maintenance of muscle tissue, and leave you in better shape in the wake of a calorie deficit. Always remember, resistance training builds or at least maintains your body’s shape, but ignoring it and over-doing traditional “cardio” will go the opposite direction: less scale weight, but an emaciated body.

Too Much Mindless Cardio

I loathe the term “cardio.” As I write this, I’m doing “cardio,” as I have been throughout the day. I have been inhaling oxygen, my heart has been beating, and sending oxygen to my muscles and organs via my circulatory system to keep me functioning. Boom. I’ve been nailing that cardio thing all day long.

All jokes aside, here’s the typical scenario:

Trainee: “Sure I’ll do some resistance training, but I need to get my steady-state three-mile run in first.”

Although doing something is better than nothing, postponing resistance training to hang your hat on that low-intensity three-mile effort is not the optimal choice. Go ahead and feel good about doing those three miles. But if you don’t properly resistance train, you’ll lose scale weight but look soft. The evidence is quite clear: low-level running or walking burns minimal energy. The total calorie burn will be less when compared to other shorter-term but high-intensity options, such as circuit resistance training.

The bottom line: if you want to look better and bring back your clothing line from 10 years ago, your exercise choice should be less low-effort “cardio,” and more high-effort resistance or circuit training.

Risky Exercises and Improper Technique

Would you rather be healthy and able to train consistently for years, or nagged by injuries and unable to do much of anything? Training on a regular basis is satisfying. Training sporadically due to down time from injury is unsatisfying.

I know all activities have some element of risk to them, but some more than others. If you are the average Jane or Joe Schmoe desiring to “get in shape,” improve your stamina, and lose a few inches in your belly, there is no need to engage in potentially harmful activities, such as:

• Olympic weightlifting
• Powerlifting
• CrossFit-type training
• Obstacle Course/Tough Mudder-type training
• Excessive long-distance running
• Any other extreme, joint-compromising training

Believe it or not, you can train hard to get in better shape without lifting ultra-heavy weights, engaging in explosive, joint-compromising exercises, jumping across a ditch, or running 50 miles per week. Proper exercise selection should allow for optimal stimulation with minimal undue stress on your body’s structural integrity.

At the gym, here is rule number one: if in doubt, slow it down. Yanking and jerking weights can easily compromise joint integrity. Google weight training injuries, and you’ll see what I mean. Perform exercises under control. That is, slow the movement speed to a level that does not create havoc on your muscles and joints. In fact, slowing it down will more efficiently recruit muscle fibers.

Running—a seemingly innocuous activity—can be harmful over time. Running is a single-support event. Your bodyweight is absorbed by one leg on each ground contact. Tally the number of single-leg ground contacts in a running session, and multiply that by the number of sessions in a week, a year, and number of years. It takes a toll in the long-term. Shin splints, stress fractures, and ankle, knee, and hip joint issues eventually result.

If you’re just trying to lose a few pounds and improve your conditioning level, there is absolutely no need to start a running program. Shore up your diet and hit the weights. If you’re hung up on “I gotta do my cardio,” use a device that is low-impact, like an elliptical or climbing device, but don’t spend an inordinate amount of time using them.

If you are required to run, sprint, or perform high-stress agility drills (athletes), use a progressive program that allows your body to adapt to those stresses. Be smart, use impeccable technique, and assure proper recovery time between training sessions. Make every attempt to use progressive training to minimize the potential for joint trauma.

Exercise Won’t Trump a Lousy Diet

Cheap calories are everywhere: hardware stores, gas stations with their attached convenience stores, your local grocery stores, even department stores. Standing in the check-out line? Candy bars and soda stare you down. They win, and you lose. You succumb to the temptation and make that purchase. Add those calories to your other daily intake.

The calories burned by exercise are minimal relative to the calories from bad food consumption. How about an example:

Take an active, 30-year old female, 5’ 5”, and 150 pounds. To maintain her current bodyweight, she requires approximately 2,180 calories per day. To reach that, she could eat three regular meals of 527 calories each, and a mid-morning and mid-afternoon snack of 300 calories each.

Her workout consists of 30 minutes on the treadmill at 4.5 miles per hour, then she “hits the weights.” The 30 minutes on the treadmill burns approximately 260 calories. Add to that a half-assed resistance training routine (a lot of abs and a Planet Fitness-type of effort on some upper body exercises), and maybe another 150 calories are used. The total approximate calories used in the hour would be 410.

That hour of work is completely nullified by the consumption of any of these:

• Ten minutes with a bag of chips (160) and a 20oz soda (233): 393 calories. Oops.
• Five minutes with a double cheeseburger: 430 calories. Yikes.
• Seven minutes with a peanut butter crunch protein bar (260) and a 16 oz. sports drink (107): 367 calories. Ugh.
• Even ten minutes of “good” eating—a medium pineapple mango smoothie (250) and ¼ cup of unsalted peanuts (214): 464 calories

It all counts, at the end of the day. The take-home message? Ten minutes of any calorie consumption can wipe out an hour’s worth of exercise.

Inadequate Rest

Training too often and not allowing for proper adaptation is not over-training, but under-recovering. Proper exercise should be demanding, and put your body in a hole that it needs to rise out of to accrue a positive adaptation. So many people hit the gym or running venue too often, and don’t allow for their previous session’s demand to kick in and elevate them to a higher level.

If you experience a laceration to a body part, you need to clean the wound, cover it, and let biology run its course in order for the healing process to take place. That takes a few days, at least. Similarly, when you perform a kick-ass training session (which leaves your body “down in the hole”), you need to allow adequate time to reap the rewards of that training.

The average person may sit at a desk for hours each day, head home and plop their butt on a sofa and watch television. Yet, they need adequate nutrition and sleep just to recover from being alive. Now look at your day. You might have a profession where you’re physically active. Then pile on the stresses from your workouts. How is your body going to deal with all of that if you’re training too frequently? Work hard, but rest hard. If in doubt, take an extra day between sessions, or plan on periodic training breaks to let your body heal, recover, and adapt.

Too Much Core Training

Two major categories of error exist, here:

1. The belief that performing a menu of midsection exercises facilitates fat loss. It is 2017, people. It was proven years ago you cannot spot-reduce fat, yet it’s still attempted. I think it’s a mental hang-up for some.
2. The belief that an excessive amount of midsection exercises will improve athletic ability. Make no mistake, a strong core will improve athletic performance. But don’t waste time performing countless exercises and repetitions. Keep it simple: address trunk flexion, extension, and safe rotational exercises using minimal exercises and reasonable set and rep prescriptions. For example, you can do one set of 15 reps each of weighted crunches, back extensions, and Russian twists. Boom! Done.

Besides, what exactly defines the core? Is it solely the abdominals, obliques, and lumbar spine? Some consider the lats and gluteals part of the core as well. In that case, if you’re performing multi-joint leg and upper body pulls, you’re already working your core. Squats, deadlifts, and standing presses engage your midsection musculature and lend themselves to improving core stability.

Poor Recovery Strategies

An exercise session should create a significant demand on your body. Now it’s time to enable adaptation to that demand. Adequate rest time and nutrient intake are paramount.

Immediately after your workout, you should supply your body with appropriate nutrients to facilitate the recovery process. The longer you deprive your body of nutrients, the longer it will take to recover. It doesn’t need to be complicated. A combination of a protein and fast-absorbing carbohydrate is ideal within 30 minutes after your session. One inexpensive, simple, but effective option is chocolate milk. Other simple options:

• A protein shake and an apple
• A banana and a hard-boiled egg
• Milk and cereal
• Cottage cheese and whole wheat crackers
• String cheese and carrot sticks

Many don’t understand the importance of sleep. You overload your cardiovascular system with a quality interval training session, or pound your muscles in an intense lifting session. Either way, you’ve now dug a deep hole. It’s now time to rise out of that hole. A nap here or there will help, but it is far more important to get quality nights of sleep on a consistent basis. Your body regenerates and grows during those valuable hours of deep sleep. Failing to do so will result in less than optimal gains, training regression, and even illness.

Remember, the average, inactive, non-training person requires adequate sleep just to recover from being alive. Your consistent, demanding training, on top of your other daily activities, requires special attention to quality sleep time to gain benefits from your training endeavors.

Lack of Planning and Accountability

I have always been a big believer in establishing a set training plan or template that gives you guidance over a period of weeks. Doing so will keep you focused on your goals and eliminate wavering and guesswork. You might not be able to follow it exactly as prescribed, and adjustments may need to be made along the way. But it at least offers structure and purpose.

Many people train randomly and without structure. They go with their gut, and blindly “do stuff.” Doing something is better than doing nothing, but if you’re going to do something, do it logically. For example, design an eight-week plan. Include progressive strength training twice per week, and interval conditioning or skill training three times per week. This format will give you structure to work with, and lead to more objective gains as opposed to just randomly “doing stuff.”

In addition, documenting the results of each planned training session is critical if you want to realize results. Record the details of your training sessions: the amount of resistance used, your running time, the number of repetitions achieved, the recovery time between exercise bouts, the number of bouts performed, etc. Be specific, as it will help you progress from one training session to another.

Training Is Hard Enough Without Mistakes

Even in this day of modern technology and an abundance of sensible training advice, many well-intended people are in need of sensible advice and guidelines to achieve their goals. Don’t fall prey to the aforementioned training gaffes.

Don’t over-complicate your training. Keep it simple and avoid setbacks due to poor planning. Evaluate your current training program to see if you are making any of these errors. If you’re guilty of any one of them, it may be time to change your routine.

Looking for a plan to keep you on track?

An 8-Week Training Plan for the Beginner Rower

The post The 10 Ways You Sabotage Your Fitness appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Editor’s Picks

Why Your Excuse About “Not Having Time” Is Just Wrong

Endurance coach Graeme Turner hears a lot of stories about how there just isn’t enough time to train for a triathlon, Iron man, or other endurance events. But he doesn’t believe these stories one bit. Here’s what he recommends as far as fitting your endurance training into the 24 hours you’ve got each day.

The Fitness Customer Is Always Wrong

In other businesses, the customer may always be right – but according to coach Eric C. Stevens, that’s not how the fitness industry works. He sees that far more typically the training clients think they know how to get what they want, but the truth is, they wouldn’t be coming to see you if that was the case.

How to Coach the Newbie Who Just Won’t Slow Down

You’ve probably coached one of these clients at some point. Or maybe you were this client at some point! You know, the way-too-enthusiastic client who wants to do way too much, too soon. Coach Mariah Heller gives some great tips on help to help newbies get through this phase successfully.

Training for Long-Term Success With Eva Twardokens

In this second episode of our Breaking Muscle Radio podcast, we spoke with former world-class skiier and current world-class coach Eva T. about the difference between athletes and trainees, and how we can all go about staying healthy and training for the long-haul.

Conjugate Method: A Better Way to Plan Your Training Week

Trying to have it all and getting frustrated? Well, coach Andrew Read says you can have it all. Sort of. I mean, not really, but you can likely get a whole lot closer than you currently are by following this simple program that combines a variety of fitness and strength goals.

3 Training Approaches That Will Destroy You

You’re doing it wrong. Yes, that’s right – you. You’re doing it wrong if you’re coming at your training in any of these three ways outlined by strongman and strength expert Chet Morjaria. Which one is you? Or maybe one of your clients?

Looking for Free Workouts? Click Here!

The post You’re Doing It Wrong: 6 Better Ways to Train appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

The Curse of Information

You have a ton of information at your disposal: hundreds of thousand Internet sites, thousands of fitness magazines, the always-humorous television infomercials, and the advice given by the local gym freak who normally lacks a formal education. (Looking the part does not mean you know the part.) But all this information can sometimes make following the straight path harder, rather than easier.

What follows is discussion on two critical areas you might be transgressing in yet you’re unaware of it. On the surface many things look appealing. After all, it may look like a rock, feel like a rock, and be thrown like a rock, but it could be a chunk of fossilized elephant dung. So, it’s imperative you don’t engage in a specific exercise or a trendy exercise regimen simply because of popularity. I advise you to search deeper and think below the surface to discover the bottom-line truth of all your training components. Stay vigilant, my friends, and you will avoid wasting your time. It’s time to face the music on two areas that can have a huge impact on your training pursuits.

Mistake #1: Your Training Is Not Supporting Your Fat-Loss Goals

You’re attempting to lose that spare tire at your mid-section or that flabby junk in your trunk. The first thing that pops into your head is, “I’ve got to do more steady-state cardio.” I loathe that term. Heck, I’m doing steady-state cardio as I sit here hammering on a keyboard. I am inhaling oxygen, my heart is beating, enriched blood is being sent throughout my body, and I am remaining alive. That is the essence of the cardio-respiratory system. However, sitting on my tush and moving my fingers over a keyboard burns very few calories above the baseline basal metabolic rate.

Here’s a suggestion. Don’t think of attacking your fat stores as a cardio thing. Think of it as, “What high-demand activity can I do to maximize energy expenditure above my basal caloric needs?” Going for a three-mile run or plodding away for 45 minutes on an exercise machine is better than nothing, but is it optimal for your fat loss goal? It absolutely is not.

The high-demand and maximal energy expenditure mentality should supersede the “cardio” approach. Remember, higher-demand activities burn more calories per capita as compared to lower-demand, lengthy activities such as conventional steady-state cardio. The greater the activity demand, the greater number of calories used. The greater number of calories used, the better you chance of expunging body fat. This approach increases the size of your toolbox.

• You can change that three-mile steady-state run into a Fartlek workout.
• You can slice those three miles in half and do 12 x 200 meter/220 yard intervals.
• Add high intensity circuit training to your program.
• How about interval training using multiple bouts of :45 hard effort followed by a :20 downtime?
• And don’t forget strength training. It builds metabolically active tissue, gives you shape, lowers your risk of injury, and can be used in circuit training programs

Working longer and slower is a step backward. You’re using a smaller percentage of your total muscle fibers (mostly the slower-to-fatigue type – the reason you can go for a long period), it does not maintain or build muscle mass and shape, and it’s simply a poor choice for optimal fat loss.

Mistake #2: You’ve Gone Ballistic

With this mistake, you’re attempting to improve your explosive power solely with ballistic efforts. Ballistic in this case refers to excessive speed, rate of change of speed, and momentum. For example, many of you go to the gym and, literally, throw resistances and other objects at relative high velocity and momentum. If that is your sport or event – and you’re practicing and replicating competition-specific requirements – it’s justified. However, if that’s all you do, then you’re selling yourself short. You shouldn’t neglect one critical component of improving explosive power. I’m talking about increasing the force factor through proper strength training.

You may recall a power expression is a byproduct of these components:

1. Muscle force
2. A given distance the force is applied through
3. An amount of time the force is applied

There are various combinations here, the optimal combo being increasing force and velocity while decreasing the time. Power is improved when one or two of the components are enhanced, while the other one or two remain constant.

To improve the distance and time components you must practice the skill requirements (which often involves throwing, yanking, heaving). Technique, timing, and efficient force output should be the focus. To improve the force component you need to strength train properly. This means use greater tension-producing sets with heavier and slower-moving resistances. Heavier does necessarily mean extreme as in a one- to four-repetition maximum. But if a resistance can be moved too fast, then it needs to be controlled to minimize velocity and momentum. This is the safest and most efficient means of recruiting and overloading the greatest amount of contracting muscle fibers provided you train to, or very near to, volitional muscular fatigue. I’ve mentioned it before, but it’s worth reviewing Henneman’s Size Principle of muscle tissue activation.

It makes complete sense. Train the larger, greater force-producing fibers with protocols that are independent of any skill display or precise replication of the skill. You’ll better develop your strength and consequent force application potential. The distance and time components can be refined when you need to practice throwing and heaving resistances and objects.

These were just two examples of mistakes trainees make that can short-circuit desired results. Other examples exist, so assure your training efforts and methods parallel your goals. Take time to study the proven science as opposed to blindly jumping on the bandwagon. This will facilitate safer, more sensible, and productive training.

References:

1. Gordon, T., Thomas C., Munson J., and Stein, R., “The resilience of the size principle in the organization of motor unit properties in normal and re-innervated adult skeletal muscles.” Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology, 2004, 82 (8-9):645-61.

2. Carpinelli, RN., “The Size Principle and a Critical Analysis of the Unsubstantiated Heavier-Is-Better Recommendation for Resistance Training.” Journal of Exercise Science & Fitness, 2008, 6:2.

Photos 1 & 2 courtesy of Shutterstock.

Photo 3 courtesy of CrossFit Impulse.

The post 2 Mistakes That Can Harm Your Training Efforts and How to Fix Them appeared first on Breaking Muscle.