With the festive season fast approaching, New Year’s resolutions will start to be made. Fitness related resolutions are one of the most common, and of these, 73% of people gave up before achieving their goal. A lot of people who set their fitness resolutions are not frequent gym or exercise participants, so what are the 5 biggest mistakes that people make when they are starting a new exercise routine?
Overtraining
Most new exercisers go in with an “all or nothing” mentality, and it isn’t uncommon to overdo it in the first couple of weeks. People who have been sedentary, and even those who are looking to increase their activity from their usual levels, need to do so gradually. Pushing your body too much too soon significantly increases your risk of injury. It is important to allow for sufficient rest between workouts, this means that if you train legs on Monday, you should wait until at least Wednesday before training them again, but this isn’t to say on Tuesday you couldn’t train upper body. Allowing 24 hours before repeating a similar workout allows for your body to rest and recover. It is also important to allow at least one 24 hour period with no physical activity per week.
Not using proper technique
Whether you’re starting running, yoga, or the gym, all exercises have a correct technique which helps to optimally load your body, whilst not increasing injury risk. Deviating from the correct technique will not only make you more likely to suffer an injury, but you also won’t see the same results as if you used the correct technique. When first starting a new exercise routine it is recommended to have a few sessions with a personal trainer, instructor, or coach. This will allow you to get used to the correct technique and any other individual advice.
Skipping a warm up and/or cool down
This is a particularly prominent issue among younger age groups, and those who are limited on the amount of time that they have available. Warm ups are designed to help prepare your body for exercise, while cool downs help to prevent muscles soreness and promote recovery. Warm ups should start with some light aerobic exercise, and be followed by gentle stretching. When completing weight training it is recommended that you start with a warm-up set of each exercise where you use a lighter weight. This helps to engage the muscles which are about to be worked and allows them to prepare for additional load being placed through them.
Doing the same thing at each workout
Doing the same workout every time is not only going to get tedious, but also increases risk of burnout and injury. By having variation in your workouts not only will you keep things interesting, but by training in different ways you will continue to see consistent health benefits with fewer plateaus in progress. For example, just because you want to start running longer distances and working towards a marathon, doesn’t mean that you should never complete strength training or mobility training. There are multiple components to achieving all fitness goals, and having a well-rounded programme that includes variation will allow for greater progress and success.
Expecting results too quickly
When starting a new exercise plan, people are often hoping for quick results, however in reality progress takes time and consistency. The time it takes to see results will vary by individual, but it is important to stay consistent. It is likely you will start to feel the benefits of your new training before you are able to see any physical changes. Setting realistic goals and staying consistent will lead to you making longer-lasting changes than a “quick fix diet” or following an extreme programme. To find out more about setting realistic fitness goals, check out our previous blog post “New Year’s Resolutions and Fitness Goals”.
This blog post is not designed to replace a full assessment from qualified healthcare professional, and outlines just a few things that people commonly do wrong when starting a new exercises programme. If you would like to discuss a new fitness programme, or to book an appointment, contact us.
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