Search From Over 10,000
   Pages of Fitness Content!

Healthy Training Experiences - 8 Key Exercise Components To Follow

Many people have joined the fitness frenzy which I call necessity. With awareness higher than ever on health, wellness and overall lifestyle change many individuals are taking advantage of the overwhelming choices that exist to get you fit, but are these individuals properly armed to make their exercise experience a safe and effective one?

Besides the actual training, the demand of proper form and technique, the required knowledge of variables such as sets, reps, and weight percentage there is more. The subconscious details such as proper hydration, pre and post workout fueling, warm up, cool down and things like that are all going to affect your training plus how you feel during and after your training.

Some people never realize why their sessions are less than enjoyable, and find themselves forcing into the gym to get that training in yet possibly resulting in injury or mild discomfort from hunger or lack of energy, just to name a couple of examples. These small details can make or break your exercise experience. Injury can put you out for months!

1) Proper hydration is the number one rule normally broken. We are all told how we should get a minimum of 8 glasses of water per day, but no one ever notices the word "minimum" which is the key. In reality 2 to 4 liters is best, and if you are a caffeine drinker, pop drinker or intake sugars through fruits or fruit juices then you should go for the high end water intake. We need water just to function properly, but once you factor in the digestion, activity (loss of fluid through sweat) and excretion you need much more than 8 glasses and are selling yourself short by far! First tip is to eat your fruit not drink it, just stick with water for fluid, and if you can't drop caffeine or pop then cut it down as much as possible, you will notice a marked difference in your daily life let alone the training part of it. Once you are thirsty you are dehydrated and it's already too far, your urine should not be dark yellow or smell since that is another sign of lack of hydration. Imagine how this affects your exercise?

2) Pre and post exercise fueling also confusing? If you train early in the morning and are looking to burn fat you can eat after your training, and one of the prime choices of athletes is oatmeal, although there are other alternate grain cereals that are great, but for those avoiding milk, oatmeal is the way to go since it is lowest in fat and simple to prepare. Eating right before you train for most is not a comfortable feeling and can cause some stomach discomfort, so for the most part you should give up to an hour to let the food settle, but walking is a great way to settle food and is a very passive activity as well as a good warm up before you work out. If you are not looking to burn any fat then you need to fuel in order to train. Aside from the many carbohydrate drinks, energy bars and shakes available, you can always go with something as simple as a handful of trail mix and a banana. After your workout is an even better time to replenish your carbohydrate stores with the above mentioned shakes, bars or some replenishing electrolyte drinks. You should also get some protein in after training, low fat choices are best. One suggestion is a blended mixture of protein powder, a banana pre frozen, a teaspoon of light peanut butter or sprinkle of cocoa with some milk or yogurt (soy milk or soy yogurt is even better). If you stick to whole foods you can't go wrong.

3) Warming up is one of the most commonly left out practices in exercise and weight training. Light cardio is the easiest way to fit in your warm up before you begin to train, but there are so many other choices such as doing abdominals first, or using common movements such as skipping rope, jumping jacks, and on the spot jogging. The reason warm ups are such an important factor is to prevent injury to the cold rested muscles and to prepare the cardiovascular system for the increase in movement by getting the heart pumping and blood circulating thus warming up the muscles and joints in preparation for the exercise to come. Your warm up should be no less than 5 minutes or as long as it takes to get a light sweat on the forehead or brow.

4) Cool-downs are just as essential as warm ups, again to avoid injury and bring down the heart rate safely avoiding possible light headedness or fainting. The most popular form of cool down is light cycling followed by stretching which is also not done religiously but should be. Taking a minimum of 10 minutes for a cool down is your safest choice. Stretching should never be skipped especially to avoid post work out fatigue in the muscle since stretching helps promote circulation and removal of lactic acid build up which is a normal occurrence (waste product which is the result of the energy used to by the muscle).

5) Lose the pride. Here is a mistake we all make. We are unsure of an exercise or see someone doing an exercise we have never tried or been taught and wish to try it. The answer here which you have all probably guessed correctly is to ask. Research exercises before jumping into it. Most of us don't because we are ashamed that we don't already know how to do it, which is so silly, or we are afraid and intimidated to ask. Get over it, the only person you will hurt is yourself if you do it wrong, so rather than fear some harmless pride swallowing you should fear the pain of injury and the blow your ego will take when everyone sees you hurt yourself! I, as most trainers, am always available for answering just these types of questions so use my expertise rather than injury yourself.

6) Adjust your equipment. Don't assume you will fit the machines as well as the last guy. There are adjustable settings for seat height, incline and decline. The pectoral deck usually has adjustments to bring the pads further forward if you have tight shoulders. The knee pads adjust on the lat pull machine. The height of the thigh support on the hyper extension is adjustable, so make use of these options, and if you are not sure then consult the weight room instructor, after all you pay to use the facility and for a minimum of at least these simple equipment questions.

7) Rest. Adequate rest can vary from person to person but you can still train 6 days per week and rest the muscles used for up to 48 hours. Training 2 days on and 1 day off is the most common combination in my experience of personal training. How ever you plan your session out make sure you utilize proper rest between the days that the muscles are trained and between the sets of the exercise. Rest between exercises is also suggested in larger bouts than the rest between sets. Even circuit training which is a number of exercises (on average 8) done non-stop (1 set of each exercise consecutively) still needs a rest period after each large bout. Without proper rest the result could be overtraining, muscle loss, injury, and fatigue in exaggerated form.

8) Use spotting for your more intense training. There is no use in attempting overload at the border of failure without a proper spotter. If you are an experienced weight lifter with a couple years of training under your belt and are looking to start some training that requires heavier loads then you must ask someone to spot you. Ask a friend to come along who has some experience in training or make an appointment with a trainer, you can't lose. There is nothing wrong with higher intensity training, but you can pretty much count on hurting yourself if you try any of this lifting alone without a wary spotter watching your form and ready to help with the lift or even take over. You should only overload to a weight you know you won't drop.

These are just some of the most basic tips that will make your exercise sessions productive. Results are the product of a well thought out plan that is executed successfully. Apply these 8 key components to your program and feel the improvement within weeks. Exercise will be a part of your lifestyle just as is eating so you may as well do it effectively to your advantage.