Every health club has one: The dedicated gym bunny who shows up day after day, week after week, but never seems to get in better shape. Don’t let that person be you.
If you’re going to put in the time, you deserve the payoff, right? To help you get the most out of every workout, we asked top trainers, exercise physiologists, and sports nutritionists for their best tips and moves. Their cutting-edge ideas and oldie-but-goodie reminders will help you get toned faster and burn more kilojoules with every session. Even if you use only a few of them, you’ll soon be that woman at the gym who shows up looking better every time!
VISUALIZE YOUR WORKOUT
Before your next session, take 10 seconds to picture yourself powering through it, says sports psychologist Jason Selk, the author of 10-Minute Toughness. It will serve as a warm-up of sorts for your muscles, preparing them for the work ahead, and can improve your form.
MAXIMIZE YOUR REST TIME
Give your strength workout a surprising boost by spending the time between sets stretching the muscle you’re working. A study published in the Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine found that subjects who stretched their hamstrings five times a week for six weeks not only improve their flexibility, they also significantly strengthened both their hamstrings and quadriceps.
HIT THE HILLS
Even if you’re doing intervals once or twice a week, following the same plan every session eventually takes less effort as your body gets fitter, says trainer Brett Hoebel, the creator of the RevAbs exercise program and founder of Hoebel Fitness. He suggests varying your interval program with one of these 3 treadmill plans.
- Flat sprints- Set the treadmill at a constant 1 percent grade and run or walk fast (you should be completely out of breath) for 30 seconds. Recover at an easy intensity for 60 seconds. Repeat 9 times.
- Hill drills- Run or walk for 30 seconds at an 8 percent grade followed by 60 seconds at a 1 percent grade. Repeat 9 times.
- Constant climb- Set the treadmill at an 8 percent grade and walk or run for 30 seconds at a moderate pace (you should be out of breath) followed by 60 seconds at a slower pace, still on the 8 percent incline. Repeat 9 times.
DON’T PROCRASTINATE
Hate doing push-ups or lunges? Knock them off at the start of your workout. If you wait until you’re tired, you’ll probably skip them. Of course, people often dislike exercise because it’s hard, which means you’re not as strong as you could be (and that’s exactly why you should be doing the move!), says Tom Holland, a sports performance coach. All the more reason to do them first, then move on.
SURF-AND-TURF IT
Exercising on land and in water in one session is a fitness-boosting, cardio-sculpting workout, says Lauren Goldberg, a personal. Try it: Grab a kickboard and do flutter kicks as fast as you can for the length of the pool, then jump out and do 20 walking lunges or 15 jump squats along the side; repeat the entire sequence 3 to 4 times.
BEAT YOUR BEST
At the end of your cardio workout, take note of the calories you burned. Next time, do the same activity but try to beat that number by 10, 50 or even 100 calories. Do it by increasing your speed or incline/resistance.
TARGET ALL YOUR MUSCLES
Varying the amount of weight you lift will help you work more muscles fibers and improve your definition, strength, and endurance, says exercise physiologist Chris Jordan. A sample plan: On Monday, do 3 to 5 reps per set with heavier weights; on Wednesday, use lighter weights and do 12 to 15 reps per set; and on Friday, do 8 to 10 reps per set with moderate resistance.
STAY FOCUSED
If you’re distracted during your workout, your form will suffer and you’ll tire faster, says Selk. The moment your mind starts wandering, do this to find your center again: Inhale slowly for 6 seconds, hold for 2 seconds, then exhale for 7 seconds. Repeat as many times as necessary until you regain your concentration.
HOLD YOUR TONGUE
When doing crunches, rest your tongue behind the top row of your teeth, suggests trainer Steve Zim, the founder of zimfit.com. This will help prevent neck strain so you can maintain good form and work your abs harder.
STRETCH YOUR HIPS EVERY DAY
Too much sitting can result in tight hips, which can sabotage your form and guarantee an injury, says Mark Verstegen, the founder of the Core Performance Center in California. To reduce tightness, do a hip flexor stretch at the end of a long day: Kneel on the floor with your right knee on a soft surface and place your left foot in front of you, knee bent 90 degrees. Shift your body forward slightly as you squeeze the right side of your glutes. Hold for 2 seconds, then release and repeat. Do 8 reps, then switch sides and repeat.
INTENSIFY YOUR SQUATS
This strength-plan staple is guaranteed to sculpt your legs and butt but can get boring after awhile-and it’s easy to let your form slide. Try these 2 tips to keep the firming coming.
- Add a band: To target the stubborn outer hips, place a resistance band around your thighs just above your knees and press your legs out as you squat, says Kevin Brochu, a strength and conditioning coach. This keeps your glutes activated and improves your form.
HAVE MORE FUN
Instead of hitting the autopilot button during your cardio sessions, create secret competitions with the people around you (can you run faster that the guy two treadmills down?) Or try to match the girl who’s so good, she could be teaching the class. Nobody will know but you. And your body will be better for it.
WORK YOUR CORE WITH EVERY MOVE
Once a week during your resistance workout, do 2 strength exercises for each major muscle group, but make one stable and one unstable, says Jordan. For instance, do a seated shoulder press (sit holding weights next to your shoulders and extend arms overhead) followed by a side shoulder raise standing on a balance disk (hold dumbbells and raise arms out to each side to shoulder height).
SHOCK YOUR BODY
To turbo-charge sculpting, perform a full-body strength workout every day for 7 consecutive days (choose different moves for each session), says Holland. While you wouldn’t want to do this all the time, it’s okay to work the same muscles in back-to-back workouts a few times a year, he explains.
PILE ON KILOS
If you want the needle on the scale to drop, wear a weighted vest during cardio and strength workouts, suggests Goldberg. It will increase the intensity of any exercise and burn extra kilojoules.
NUDGE UP YOUR PACE
Get fitter, burn more fat and kilojoules, and increase your speed by doing a tempo cardio workout – a session at your top “race” pace – once a week, advises Jordan. Try it: Warm up, then go as fast as you can for 20 minutes.
BEAT UPPER ARM JIGGLE
For seriously toned triceps, try this: Hold a dumbbell in each hand and bend forward from the hips. Tuck elbows to sides, forearms perpendicular to floor and palms facing in, then rotate your palms up as you extend arms behind you. Pause for a second, lower, and repeat. Do 2 or 3 sets of 10 reps. This targets the long and lateral heads of the triceps, the areas that tend to wiggle when you wave, says top Hollywood trainer Gunnar Peterson.
AVOID PLATEAUS WITH LESS REST
The shorter the period between strength sets, the more kilojoules you burn. Recover for 20 seconds after your first set, 30 seconds after your second set, and 45 seconds after your third, suggests Westcott. Gradually adding time with each set, as you get fatigued, helps you recover more completely despite the short breaks.
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