Mustapha Soweidan

Instructor Heidi Fluhman

HLAC 1030

Nov 30, 2017

Gym mistakes

you've decided to get fit by signing up to a gym. Lovely stuff. But and you probably

know this now the hard work truly begins. Those first few steps into the world of the

weights room can be daunting enough. Don't make it harder for yourself by making these

rookie errors. There's five to avoid. Your gains are waiting for you.

1. Too much, too soon

Don't have unrealistic expectations. Sadly, you're not going to be ripping the seams of your

shirts after a single week in the gym. "People expect massive results instantly, which often

leads to them overtraining and injuring themselves or quickly losing interest," says PT Matt

Bryant. Feed your urge for instant gratification by setting yourself achievable short-term

targets and goals. Three workouts a week and a kilogram or two of muscle gain or weight

loss (depending on your goal) is a great starting point.

2. Static stretching

Bending down and touching your toes before a run is little more than a dangerous waste of

time. Static stretching discourages your muscles from performing at their peak. "View your

muscles like blue tac," says Bryant. "Cold blue tac snaps when stretched; warm blue tac

becomes longer and softer." Swap your toe-touches for dynamic lunges to get more spring

in your step.

3. Useless warm ups

Pedaling on the static bike for 10 minutes might get you hot under the collar, but when you

hit the bench your chest will still be cold. "If you're going to run then warm up by running.

If you're going to lift weights then first mimic the actions with bodyweight moves," says

PT Lee Ashford. Warm ups must match the training you're about to do in order to get blood

flowing to the right muscles and reduce your risk of injury.

4. Reps over ROM

It's range of movement, not number of reps, that is key to increasing strength and building

muscle. "Squats, for example, should go as low as you are able while maintaining a neutral

spine," says Bryant. "If youre not doing this, then it's not a proper squat." The same can be

said for all exercises. If you want optimum muscle activation you need to maximize both

range of movement and muscle time under tension. When you can no longer complete a rep

slowly and with perfect form, it's time to take a rest period.
5. Machine head

Weight machines allow even complete beginners to lift a large amount of weight and are a

good place to kick off your resistance training. But unless you soon start to incorporate free

weights into your workouts you'll stop improving. "A Smith machine, for example, offers a

very limited range of movement and doesn't involve any balance," says Ashford. Free

weights, on the other hand, allow you to use natural movement, activating more muscle

fibers and leading to greater muscle gains.