09.28.07
Tips to Better Workouts
Sometimes it seems like no progress or very little progress is being made after so many tough workouts. However, there are a few things that get in the way of peak performance that affect overall results. If corrected, workouts could definitely have better results. Here are some places to begin making changes.
Change Your Workout Shoes
Your feet need to be properly shoed depending upon your workout routines. And stores do sell several types of shoes, each specifically designed for certain functions with different types of support features: walking shoes, running shoes and cross-training shoes.
So if you are using a treadmill or stair stepper or even walking or jogging, you may be wearing the wrong shoes. Not only will your feet suffer discomfort, you can have back pain and other heath issues to deal with on top of everything.
So head to your local athletic store or shoe store to get sized up and shoed. Ask the sales representative on hand for help. And if all else fails and you are still unsure, at least choose a cross-training shoe to be safe for multiple activities. Don’t go for the cheapest shoe, necessarily, but rather one that offers plenty of support and that looks sturdy; i.e. not held together with glue.
Don’t toss the old shoes out, though. Save them for lawn mowing and other outdoor working activities.
Poor Equipment Handling and Posture
Many say this is the worst problem among athletes, a combination of incorrect posture and equipment handling. With poor posture, you are not handling your equipment properly and this means you are not working your muscles correctly as the equipment was meant. Results include not only pain and stiffness for your body at a later time, but a less than optimum workout by using the equipment incorrectly.
So practice good posture. Stand up straight, shoulders back, head up high. And stop slouching, slumping and hunching over.
Overestimating the Intensity
Many who work out feel that they’ve lost so much time, once they look around the gym and spot younger people – and even older ones, senior citizens, who could race circles around them without losing their breath. Pent up frustration and anger at being over weight and out of shape makes these people grab too heavy of weights and dive into weight lifting, increase reps too many times, increase resistance on equipment too high. Results are then pain – lots of it – and soon, all too often.
First of all, you need to slow down and realize that everyone has to start somewhere. Even if you just had a time out for holidays, you need to gently get back into things without overdoing it.
Take this test: speak in short sentences, taking a breath after each one. If you can do this while working out, you should be fine. If you’re breathing too hard, however, and need more breaths, like between words, your workout is too intense and you need to tone it down.