Getting yourself to the gym in the first place should be rightfully celebrated as nothing short of a worthwhile achievement. The amount of willpower that you and so many others have had to summon from the very depths of your soul to get to the gym after exhaustive workdays is nothing to kid around about. Seriously, the struggle can be real and so painfully relatable. The period of time between home and the gym can feel like a lifetime on certain days. With all of that being said, the last thing that you want to find yourself dealing with is the sneaking suspicion that you haven’t made the most out of your time at the gym.
Making sure that you’ve taken all that you can benefit from out of that gym visit requires its own foolproof game plan. With all the health and wellness authorities that populate this massive online space, the task of finding the right tips to add to your workout arsenal can feel daunting. Fortunately, we’ve rounded up all the pointers that you need to make the most out of your future trips to the gym and avoid workout injuries like shin splints, tennis elbow, runner’s knee, sprains, and more.
1. Don’t sleep on the importance of sleep.
You’ve probably battled through those days at the gym where it felt like you were wearing a weight vest made out of sleep deprivation. Maybe you had too much caffeine the night before, and the land of dreams didn’t welcome you into its arms until the sun was already rising. The point is that you’ll have that much harder of a time clocking in a great workout if your eyelids are busy getting all the reps because they can’t stay open in the first place.
Plus, your body won’t be able to operate at its optimal level. This can quickly give way to you ending up with one of many unfortunate common gym injuries. We all become terribly careless when we’re lacking in sleep. So, make sure that you get at least 7 to 8 hours of sleep before your next workout. It’ll be that much easier for you to get motivated.
2. Mix up your workout with weight lifting.
As it turns out, strictly committing yourself to only cardio workouts can end up working against your favor. Yes, there was a study that came right out of Harvard School of Public Health that included 10,500 adults. Of these 10,500 adults, those that ended up spending 20 minutes a day weight training ultimately gained less abdominal fat over the course of 12 years than those who only did cardio. Plus, the whole process of having to repeat the same routine over and over at the gym can really take the wind out of your sails. Variety is absolutely the spice of a healthy gym life.
So, consider incorporating some light bench presses, squats, or barbell training into your workouts. With enough squats, you might redefine how you fill out your favorite pair of womens underwear. You won’t even need that much weight to reap the benefits. Just make sure that you don’t end up overusing your muscles. Nobody likes having to deal with an overuse injury.
3. Make sure you properly hydrate.
Your body is made up of 60% water. Thus, it’s no surprise that without enough water in your system, your body’s innate ability to ensure that all your organs and cells are functioning as they were meant to function becomes jeopardized. The best way that you can make sure that you’re hydrated while you’re carrying out your workouts is to weigh yourself before and after your workouts. You shouldn’t lose any more than 2% of your total body weight. Proper hydration is also a great way to keep your energy levels up. Your workout routine is terribly susceptible to losing steam if your body is crying out for water the whole time.
We’ve covered a few easy and highly effective ways that you can get the most out of your visits to the gym. Maybe this article served as the necessary wake-up call for you to double down on proper sleep before your workouts. Or maybe you were too busy clocking your steps in on the treadmill to consider the benefits of weight lifting and physical therapy. The best way for you to avoid those future gym injuries is to train smart. You’ve already taken an athletic step in the right direction.
To read more on topics like this, check out the Life Tips category
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