This blog post has been authored by Shana Leigh, Shana Leigh Fitness
Koodos to you on stepping forward and taking ACTION toward your fitness goals! That’s HUGE and will serve you well in all areas of your life. I’m proud of you! Now, as we move thru our health & fitness journey, we come to a crossroad where we will have decide to take our fitness education to the next level. Maybe you’ve seen some results, but it’s not quite what you’d hoped for. Remember, the journey could take longer than you hope, but if you keep going, it’s always worth it. Regardless if your goal is muscle gain or fat loss, you must give it time and remain patient above all else! Check out these 7 common errors that may help you adjust your sails, and continue onward.
1.) STRENGTH TRAINING
This is super important. Strength training aka lifting weights at least 2-3x weekly (more depending on what your goals are) is going to be THE THING that shapes, tones, lifts, and tightens your entire body. A lot of women think that if they lift weights, they will get bulky. I’ll let you in on a secret ladies: weights don’t make you bulky, cupcakes make you bulky.
Now, this doesn’t mean that you have to go ham-crazy lifting like a professional bodybuilder, but choosing to add some weight in that feels challenging for YOU (this includes using your bodyweight if you are just starting out) is really going to give you some incredible results a lot quicker than only cardio based exercise. Of course, the how and what will need to be tailored to your specific look and goals you are going for.
2.) CALORIES ARE TOO LOW
The women I work with in my online challenges and my 1-1 coaching clients are often amazed at how much food they actually get to eat and still get results! Low calories are one of the first things I look at when women come to me and say they are working out and eating healthy and not getting the results they want. We all know we need to start exercising to lose weight and make changes to our body, but when it comes to nutrition, we often think “eat less, lose more”, but that’s just not how it works. You see, our workouts (energy output) need to be supported by our nutrition (energy input). The easiest and quickest way to getting lasting, long term permanent results, is to eat enough to not only fuel our workouts, but to satisfy your hunger. If you’ve ever tried the starvation method, you know what I mean. You can only starve your self so long, before you can’t control it anymore and then go bananas eating everything in sight, only to feel guilt and shame, telling your self you’re a failure, and the process goes on repeat. The starvation method is too high stress and is not sustainable, for anybody.
Eating a balance of proteins, carbs, and fats at each meal will help you have control of your hunger and sustain you during the day and thru your workouts. Cutting out total food groups and crash dieting (quick fix) NEVER works.
3.) SLEEP
Probably one of the most overlooked things in most people’s fitness regimen. Sleep! You definitely want to get enough of it. Just like our nutrition, you can’t only be focusing on output with no re-charge. Don’t skimp on sleep! This is where your body recovers, and builds. We tend to think that we are burning fat and making changes to our bodies in the gym, but really, our results come during our rest time. In the gym, we are breaking the muscles and body down. During rest/recovery is where we are building things back up, and this includes our metabolism. Exercise is a stress on the body, and when we are stressed our body holds extra fat (energy stores) in case of emergency.
4.) CONSISTENCY
This one is pretty simple. Stay consistent, and you’ll get results. That means not staying on track all week and then blowing it on the weekends with beer and parties and over indulgences. Enjoy your life and take rest days as needed, but you gotta show up daily as the person you are working to become. Consistency always yields results.
5.) HAVE A PLAN
One thing that will help you to stay consistent is having a real program or course to follow. A week by week progressive program to help ensure you get results. If you ware walking into the gym without a real plan and just try to “wing it” every day, you’ll not only lack results, but even neglect muscle groups. I suggest committing to a program, created toward YOUR goal, that includes a strength training plan, cardio schedule, and meal guide. Every 3-4 weeks, you want to switch things up to continue to get results and avoid plateaus!
6.) STOP COMPARING YOURSELF TO OTHERS
Your journey is your journey. While it’s good to admire people who have achieved what you’d like to, you cannot compare your self to anyone but the person in the mirror. Why would you compare yourself to someone who started way before you anyway??! That’s simply foolish! When you take on a mindset of You vs. Who You Were Yesterday, you continue to improve consistently. This builds momentum and confidence! It’s hard to stay positive if someone is always reminding you of what you aren’t and being mean to you right? Don’t let that voice in your head be mean to you! Kick that voice in the ass and change your self talk and thoughts to ONLY that which lifts you up and makes you feel good about yourself. Someone who is constantly lifted up and encouraged can go very far in life. YOU are your own personal cheerleader!
7.) PROPER FORM
You definitely want to educate yourself on the proper technique of exercises. This will ensure you are working the right muscles in the right way. This will also help to prevent injury. There is a ton of “form videos” on YouTube and if you still aren’t sure, ask someone! I’m always happy to hear from people on my social media platforms, so you can always reach out to me! 🙂 And if I don’t know, I can send you somewhere or to someone who will!
Did you find these tips helpful? Let me know on Instagram and Facebook!
Love,
Shana
My name is Shana Leigh. I help women lose weight and keep it off without counting calories or following strict meal plans. I teach women how to incorporate the right exercise, nutrition, and mindset practices to set themselves up for long-term success. I am truly blessed to do my passion as “work” full time.