Its the first day of 2018, i cannot believe how fast 2017 went already. If you know anything about the new year and January, you know it is a time of New year resolutions. January is typically a month where people set goals for the new year and hope to achieve them. One common resolution is usually getting fit, losing weight, staying active etc. To be honest, most people set these goals and fall off before the middle of the year. Have you noticed the first few days of January are so packed in the gym? So funny, everyone gets a gym membership in hope to stay fit but it all trickles down as the weeks run by.
I have 10 workout tips for beginners that i believe will be very helpful for you. Some of these amazing infographics are from heritage businesswear brand, T.M.Lewin to hopefully help you. So let’s get started!
10 workout tips for beginners
Proper clothing
It is important to have the right outfits to workout. Using the wrong things can hinder and frustrate effective workout. You can check out places like Target, Athleta, Fabletics, and Lululemon for workout clothes. Some ideas of clothing could be water repellent ones, especially when sweating a lot. This would help prevent them from sticking to your body. Another great reason for water repellent clothes is working out in the rain or snow. Have you ever had to go running and its raining? I had to during my marathon training, it was so annoying not having the proper clothes for rain.
Color
Have you noticed that the color Red brings out a lot of confidence? I do not have a lot of red workout clothes but when i wear a red dress for an event, i feel ten times taller lol.
Warm-up
Get a warm-up in before working out. It is very important to warm up before working out to loosen your muscles and prevent injuries. I usually try to warm-up by doing a few minutes of cardio before working out. If your gym is close to your home, try walking, cycling or running to the gym to warm-up. Also, Instead of doing slow paced warmups or regular stretches, try doing medium intensity moves to warm your muscles up. For instance do some jump jacks, squats, lunges. Check out my post on ways to burn more calories without spending more time in the gym.
Peppermint infused-water
An article i found showed that Mint is great for its for its analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, antioxidant, and vasoconstrictor effects. In other words its great for improving exercise performance. You could add some drops of peppermint oil into a glass of water and drink before working out.
Plan Ahead
There is nothing better than having a plan for your workout. This comes in various ways such as planning your workout for the day, your workout clothes, after gym outfit or clothes for workplace etc. Having a plan helps stay organized. Try sorting out all your clothes into your gym bag the day before for your workout especially if working out in the morning before work. Without a workout plan, i find it hard to stay focused in the gym, i end up doign random workouts and not getting the results i want. Without a plan, you get to the gym and see so many people doing different things, then you begin to feel intimidated and confused on what exactly you should be working on. Hence you also lose time trying to figure out what to do.
Pre and post workout nutrition
Make sure to consume something before a workout to fuel your body. Try eating about 30 grams of carbohydrates before a workout. You can find this in a banana, or oats, smoothie bowl. The post-workout nutrition is equally important to help repair and build muscles, prevent protein breakdown and replenish glycogen levels. I wrote a post about pre and post workout nutrition here.
Cool down
Make sure to cool down and stretch after working out to reduce the chances of injuries.
Music
Have a solid music playlist for the gym. I love working out and listening to music. Without my music, i honestly cannot stay focused or push to my best. A great playlist will keep you pumped throughout, plus it helps reduce interruptions from people that want to gist.
Do sets of workouts
You could do this in two ways, one, target different muscle groups and work them out in sets. For instance, do a workout for one muscle group, then immediately do another muscle group without a break. This is great for burning fat as it makes your body work harder to deliver blood to all the various muscles. You could also target the same muscle groups for muscle definition
Keep a workout log
This helps you know how you did, what to change or improve the next time. For instance, if you carried 15 pounds weights and it felt light, you could increase it next time. Without logging your results, its hard to know how to improve or push yourself. I love being able to look back and see where i started and where i am now.
What are some steps you take to get an effective workout, did you find these workout tips for beginners helpful?
