Getting Fit Fast!

In order to get in shape fast, we need to tear down the roadblocks that stand in the way of our fitness results. How do we do that? By avoiding the most common female fitness mistakes. Here’s the breakdown:

Mistake #1 – Working out too long
Many of us have rather extreme personalities. With that comes an “all or nothing” attitude which can get new gym users in trouble fast when it comes to getting fit. Just because you want to prove to yourself that you’ve made a solid commitment does not mean you need to spend two hours completing your workout routine. Not only is this counterproductive but it’s a strategy that’s headed for failure right from the beginning. Going from zero workout time to two hours per session will have you making excuses and skipping workouts within the first week.
If you’ve just joined the gym and are spending over an hour there per day, stop immediately! You can achieve much faster results with a streamlined, hard-hitting workout session. It should look something like this:

• Warm up with 5-10 minutes of cardio, something that actually makes you work, like the jogger treadmill set on an incline or the stair machine on the fat burner setting.
• Your strength training routine should involve 1-2 exercises for each muscle group with 2-3 sets of 8-10 repetitions of each. In the beginning, you may want to perform more reps with less weight until you build some strength and are able to add more weight. Always start with a warm up set, followed by your working sets.

With this quick and easy workout session, you should be in the gym no longer than an hour. Also, keep the following tips in mind:

• Form is key. It’s better to perform less reps with correct form than the other way around.
• Machines are perfect for beginners because they provide more stabilization during your movements.
• Keep challenging yourself or you’ll reach a plateau. Continue to add either reps or weight. Your body is a genius at adapting to routines. After a couple of months, change up your workout routine using different machines to target your muscle groups. Most gyms have at least 4-5 different machines for each muscle group.

Mistake #2 – Working out too often
Less is more when it comes to achieving female fitness results. Weight training every day will not only slow down your results, but it’s also dangerous. Your muscles need recovery time after lifting. Listen to your body’s cues. When your muscles are sore, they are still in recovery. Don’t train until they don’t hurt. By overtraining you will be risking atrophy and possibly cause your muscles to shrink.
It’s during the rest and recovery period that your muscles are actually built, so look at that time period as part of the entire workout process. Especially for beginners, two to three gym visits per week is more than enough to achieve the fitness results you are looking for.

Mistake #3 – Trying to Spot Train
Full body workouts are not time savers but they are practical as well. With full body workouts you don’t have to think about whether today is your legs and butt day or your arms and chest day. Every time you visit the gym, you’ll be working every muscle. During your off days, every muscle will be in repair mode.
A lot of women’s fitness mistakes (and frustration) comes from attempting to spot reduce trouble areas. If you are already at your ideal weight, you may be able to work on certain areas and tone them up, but not if you are overweight. Fat is not lost in “areas” so although weight training a particular muscle group will build that muscle, it will still be covered by a layer of fat until you shed the extra pounds.
We recommend that you stay away from trying to spot train. An ideal women’s fitness routine will incorporate all muscle groups. Your body likes to grow proportionately, so by favoring certain muscles, you won’t experience the best or fastest results.

Mistake #4 – Isolation Exercises
The best and fastest weight training routine will focus on the larger muscle groups, using compound exercises. Compound exercises move your body through multiple joint movements. This ensures complete muscle fiber stimulation and you’ll see much faster results than individuals who focus on a single joint using isolation exercises.
Examples of compound exercises would include dips and lunges, military press, bench press, and barbell squats.

Here’s a sample workout:

Notice it includes each of the main muscle groups and uses compound exercises. Perform three sets of each exercise. One warm up set with 10 reps and two working sets with 6-8 reps per set.
LEGS: Barbell Squats
BACK: Pull Ups (weight-assisted or using the pull up machine) & Bent-Over Rows
SHOULDERS: Military Press
CHEST: Bench Press
Total Exercises Performed: 5;  Total Sets Performed: 15
Each set, including the brief rest in between, should last about two minutes. This adds up to a 30 minute weight training session. Add your 5-10 minute cardio warm-up to this and you have a complete female fitness routine in under 45 minutes. A 45 minute session at the gym, three times per week (with guaranteed results) is much easier to fit into your life schedule than a two hour daily session.
The key to success to fast fitness results is a simple, practical routine that can be completed quickly so you can go on with your day. Incorporate this routine with a healthy, nutritious, clean diet and you’ll never have to say, “How can I get fit?” again!