I structure me workouts a certain way for a reason. There’s a good/optimal way to do things, and a not so optimal way to do things. That doesn’t mean one way is right, and the other way is wrong. Technically. It just means that there are ways to do things that’ll get you better results.
It’s important to know how to workout. And to know why you do this and not that. It’ll
The Warm-Up
I never used to warm up, and my workouts suffered because of it. It’d always take me a few sets to get into the right frame of mind, and to get my muscles and joints warm enough to actually start training with any real intensity.
Before we get into truly how to workout, we need to make sure we’re warming up. Spend 5-10 minutes, doing something full-body like skipping or a full body warm up routine, and get a sweat going before you start the real workout. It’ll prevent injury, keep you healthy long term, and help you train hard – which, as you’ll see soon, is the most important thing you can do in your training.
Focus on One Set at a Time
Humans are smart. We can, actually, get a little too smart. We know how hard the workout was last time, as we’re going to pace ourselves for that final set, so we don’t fail like we did in our last session. That’s not how to workout.
Focus on one set at a time. Perform that set as intensely as you possibly can. Kill it. Destroy it. Then rest, and do it all over again. Don’t worry about finishing or even thriving at the end of the workout, just train as hard as possible in each individual set, and each individual rep.
Time Your Rest Periods
This is a rule that should always be followed – unless you’re training for pure power (in which case you rest until you’ve recovered). Timing your rest periods is in line with the following aspect of how to workout – it’s all about intensity, the most important factor to a training session.
Keep your eye on that clock, and stick to whatever rest period you’ve set out for yourself.
Don’t Get Boggled Down By Rules
This is a huge point that often gets lost in the shuffle. We follow so many damn rules, that the intensity of a workout gets lost. Keep in mind that intensity is the most important factor of a successful workout. Whether you want to get in great shape, burn fat, or build lean muscle, intensity is the most important factor in a great workout.
Don’t let reps and sets get in the way of the intensity of a workout.
Choose the weight, then perform as many reps as you possibly can. If you go way over, awesome, then just choose a heavier weight next time.
Here’s a fact that gets lost because so few of us want to come to this realization: a workout should be really hard. It should be painful. You should sweat. It should get uncomfortable. That’s the nature of working out. We’re breaking down our bodies, to build them back up again. It’s how we get stronger, faster, healthier, and more energetic.
Don’t let rules stop you from reaching your goals.
Hard. That’s how you workout.