So you’ve tried Zumba, pilates, Spinning and every other class but it hasn’t seemed to work. You’re still in the same shape you are when you started.
Or maybe it worked for a while but then you stopped getting results.
So what do you do? Do MORE of the same thing..because it worked the first time.
What makes up an effective fitness program?
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail
1. Have a plan
People who are successful in the gym have one common habit. They have a plan set out for what they are doing. A personalised program that is designed for them that focuses on improving body composition.
What should the program be? Well it should have resistance training and focus on compound movements that work multiple muscle groups, burn calories and improve lean muscle tissue.
2. Progress
The program has a progression from one exercise to the next and focuses on progressive overload. i.e Lifting more weight, doing more reps or using advanced techniques
3. Performance
Technique is learned on all exercises so the person engages the right muscles, performs each rep in a slow, controlled manner and doesn’t use excessive momentum to lift the resistance.
4. Recovery
The program allows for enough volume of exercise to stimulate improvements without doing too much. This can be somewhat individual. But at least there is a recovery period of 24-48 hours in between each session. The more intense the exercise, the greater the recovery needed in between workouts.
5. Nutrition
The best training program will be unsuccessful if a persons diet is not good or their over consuming. Without going into great detail, Nutrition should be good 90% of the time, with 10% allowing for some degree of flexibility. The key is for the the diet to be sustainable and one the person can adhere to over the long term. If you are doing a diet for 4 weeks that you can’t see yourself sticking to long term, then you will fail. And your weight will yo-yo up and down. See this blog post for more on clean eating.
6. Measure
So how do you know if you are making progress or need to change something?
Unless you are measuring your progress and tracking progress in the gym you have no idea. The best way to track gym performance is to use a workout diary or personal trainer.
For bodily improvements, you should take circumference measurements and photos every 4-6 weeks to monitor progress.
7. Change
After a certain point in the program, you’re body will adapt to the Exercise. A good general guide is to change up something every 4-6 weeks. Look at changing the exercises, angles, tempo, sets and reps or including some advanced techniques like the ones in my book .
If you are getting bored with your routine and need help with your training then e-mail me at info@theexecutiveedgecoach.com