Helpful Advice for Avoiding Beginner’s Fitness Mistakes
Posted: May 31 in Lifestyle and Activity by Staff
If you’ve recently jumped back into a fitness routine, whether to tone up after bariatric surgery or just to start leading a healthier lifestyle, the process can be a little overwhelming. With countless exercises and equipment to choose from it is hard to tell if you’re doing everything the way it’s supposed to be done.
It’s only natural to feel a little unsure about how you’re supposed to use what seems like hundreds of machines at the gym, but don’t spend precious workout time worrying. In case it’s been a while since you’ve hit the gym, here are some helpful tips on how to make sure you’re preparing and engaging in your workouts in the best possible ways to ensure weight loss success.
Start Out Slow – If you have just had surgery for LAP-BAND, it’s best to skip out on abdominal exercises or lifting heavy weights for the first six to eight weeks of your recovery. This will help give your incision and port sufficient time to heal before engaging in more strenuous activities. Once you’ve received clearance from Dr. Bagnato, feel free to try out any exercises you are interested in.
Variety is the Key – As you begin to ease back into the wonderful world of fitness, don’t feel like you have to dedicate yourself to one type of exercise. In fact, it’s better to engage in a variety of exercises to keep your body from becoming adjusted to one particular activity in general. Pick three to five workouts to switch between in order to maximize your muscles worked while avoiding injury due to overuse.
Listen to Music not TV – Many gyms supply fitness goers with tons of big screen TVs to watch, but be careful to not become so enthralled with reality TV that you forget to give your workout your all. Instead, try listening to music while you work out so you can stay focused on the activity at hand and increase your intensity levels. As you begin to increase intensity your body will be able to burn more calories and ultimately help you lose more weight.
Lift Weights Appropriately – Pay extra attention to the speed at which you lift your weights. Many people tend to speed through their reps as they rely on momentum to make their workouts easier. In order to build muscle and burn fat, your moves must be done at a slow controlled pace. Try lifting up for two seconds and bring them down for two seconds—there’s no need to pick up the speed when you’re lifting weights.
Working out shouldn’t stress you out so it’s important to realize you’re going to have ups and downs as you begin to exercise. Don’t get down on yourself if you’ve had a bad week and try and focus on the big picture. Instead of dissecting what went wrong, try and point out all your signs of progress. As you begin to lose weight after LAP-BAND you will find it easier to exercise and ultimately be able to increase your weight loss as you will feel more energetic and confident during exercise.