Do you want to get the best results from your workout routine without becoming a total gym rat? From the most effective lifestyle adjustments to the best collagen supplements for joints to help you recover, here are our 12 favorite tips.
If you are already enjoying your workout routine but feel like it isn’t sustainable, these tips may be the secret to helping you reach your 2021 fitness goals. When you see faster results, you have more motivation to continue. So what are you waiting for? Let’s see how you can make 2021 the year you stick to those resolutions all year long!
#1. Keep Workouts Under 40 Minutes
The longer your workout sessions, the less likely you will find time to keep up with them. While 30 to 40-minute sessions are optimal, don’t skip days just because you only have 15-20 minutes. Consistency is more important than the length of each session. Just remember that the shorter the workout is, the more intense it will be to get the results you want.
#2. Work Your Way Up to Higher Intensity Workout Sessions
You can’t go straight from couch potato to CrossFit. That is a sure way to get hurt. However, even if your initial workouts are just walking, you want to walk faster to make it a more intense workout gradually. Then you can graduate to things like HIIT. These are high-intensity workouts that give you a short rest interval between exercises. It lets you maximize the benefits you get when dealing with a limited amount of workout time.
#3. Get Enough Protein
Your muscles are going to use the protein you take in to rebuild after a workout. So whether you are doing aerobic exercises or weight training, you need to increase your protein intake. One of the most efficient ways to do this is with a protein shake. Warrior Strong Wellness offers one of the top protein shakes for after your workout in our Pure Hydrolyzed Multi-Collagen Protein Powder. It is also among the best collagen supplements for joints, so it should not feel as sore between workouts.
#4. Increase Your Water Intake
Hydration is crucial for your fitness routine. Don’t just drink before, after, and during your workout routine. You need to stay hydrated all day long. Drinking water before bed is a good idea because that is when you go the longest without taking in water. It may mean getting up once at night, but even then, you may want to drink another glass of water before you go back to sleep.
#5. Remember: You Need Carbs for Energy
Going low carb when you are working out may seem like the faster way to a slimmer waistline, but you may not stick to your goals or workout long enough to do much good for your body without the energy to work out. Don’t cut out all carbs. Just eat smarter carbs and avoid things that contain refined sugars and flour.
#6. Lift Slower
It can be tempting to pump those weights up and down to get in as many reps as you can during your workout. However, raising and lowering your weights at a slower pace actually makes the muscles work harder. Try counting to five as you lift a weight and again as you let it back down.
#7. Increase Your Weight
Early in a weight training routine, you need to concentrate on form. It is easier to do that with a lower weight. However, once you establish a routine and the motions are muscle memory, it is time to ramp that weight up. If you want better results in less time, maximize the weight you use while maintaining proper form and follow the previous step to raise and lower the weights slowly.
#8. Go to Failure
Rather than having a specific number of reps to do and performing multiple sets, you can decrease your workout time and improve your results by doing one long set until muscle failure. Remember that you don’t want to lose your form, so failure occurs when you can’t perform another rep the proper way.
#9. Focus on Compound Exercises
Use compound exercise to work a full muscle group rather than an individual muscle. Maneuvers that work entire muscle groups for multiple muscles include pushups, squats, lunges, dips, rows, and other similar exercises.
#10. Keep Your Muscles Guessing
You can’t do the same routine every day for weeks on end. To get an effective workout, you need to mix it up and give your muscles something different to do. This includes your cardio, so if you like to run, just try to throw in a different cardio routine once or twice per week to mix it up.
#11. Do Circuits Instead of Sets
If you want to do multiple sets instead of one set to failure, as we recommended earlier, circuits are a good alternative. Instead of wasting time standing around between sets, move on to your next exercise and work for a different muscle group. Then you can come back for your next set.
#12. Join a Community That Helps You Succeed
Fitness is a lifestyle, not just something you do for half an hour per day. You need the right mindset, coaching, and motivation to succeed. Becoming a part of Warrior Strong Lifestyle 365 may be just what you need to succeed. Join the waitlist today to get priority registration when our new classes open!
About The Author
Warrior Strong Wellness
Warrior Strong Wellness provides innovative and high quality transformational supplements and raises awareness and funds to fight childhood cancer by giving a portion of our proceeds to childhood cancer research. In our weekly blogs, we share wisdom about wellness and living a Warrior Strong lifestyle.