7 Tips For Having A Great Workout

We’ve all had lackluster workouts, but if you take care of these seven tips that will absolutely minimize the times that you don’t hit the gym raring to go and make huge progress.

1. Don’t be a slave. Schedules written down on paper look wonderful. They appeal to the idea of symmetry and neatness that all of us have, but your body doesn’t care what day of the week it is or what the paper says. If you need to adjust things because you’re not recovered, don’t be afraid to do so.

2. Pick and time your food. Everybody has different reactions to food and a different timetable that their body operates on for digestion and use of energy. So pick the food that you like that makes you feel the best or strongest and eat it at the time that makes the most sense or usefulness for your workout. Again don’t be a slave. Just because Mr. Northeast Uzbekistan likes to eat oatmeal one hour and thirteen minutes before his workout doesn’t mean that it’s right for you. But be smart as well. Heavy garlic, tomato sauce, meatballs and sauerkraut four minutes and fourteen seconds before your workout probably ain’t the best idea.

3. Exercise often works on perpetual momentum meaning the better the shape you get in, the better your workouts get. The better you recover, the more consistent they are. That being said build some momentum building time into your workouts. If you’ve been doing nothing but heavy power training and suddenly decide you can’t live without running a marathon, even though you haven’t run farther than from the couch to the refrigerator in the last year it’s probably not a great idea to go out and try to run 26 miles first thing tomorrow. Build up and give your body some time to get a running start at adaptation.

4. Stay hydrated. Most people don’t drink nearly enough caffeine free liquid, let alone water. The quickest way to fall out during your workout or to have a crappy one to start with is to not have liquid in your system. Your car won’t run long without oil and you’d never drive it without it. Why would you do the same thing to your body.

5. Get warmed up. Sometimes even when you don’t feel like a good workout if you spend some time getting the blood pumping, getting a sweat going and raising your core temperature, and getting your muscles and joints limbered up, you’ll suddenly feel like working out and your strength will suddenly be better. Not only is it protective of injury, it’s a mental boost and performance enhancer.

6. Mental pre/Qi Gong. Visualizing what you’re going to do and then immediately following through with it without ever allowing yourself to doubt your visualization is the key to effective mental preparation. The deep breathing and energy recruiting movement exercises of Qi Gong can help you get to a deep level of focus within the mind and a place of unified, muscular, mental, spiritual and subtle energy in physical effort focus. These are high level techniques but they are simple to apply and can be a huge boost to your workout.

7. Have fun! Doing something that you really like within the context of something that brings you long-term gains and is safe is the key to being enthusiastic and productive in your workouts. Cover the bases of strength in all areas of the body and in levels of max, intermediate and endurance expression. Set your program up so that it fits within your life and with the equipment you have access to. Beyond that do what you like to do. The more you like it, the better you’ll be at it. The more fantastic your workouts will be.