Have You Changed Your Workout Lately? 3 Reasons to Start Now
What does your workout plan look like each time you walk into the gym?
Are you following the same routine from several months (or even years) ago?
Do you find yourself looking at exercise as more of a chore and less of an enjoyable thing?
Changing up your workout is one of the most important things that you can do when pursuing a fitness goal. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, build muscle, or get stronger, your body needs consistent change. Let’s take a look at the top 3 reasons why you need to change up your workout variables.
- Never Get Bored
One of the primary reasons that people say they stop working out (or stop going as much) is because of boredom. Where’s the motivation in climbing the same treadmill each day for 45 minutes?
The first reason to start changing up your workout is to make sure you stick to it. Avoid boredom by introducing yourself to new exercises, training methodologies, and classes. By ensuring you aren’t bored with your workouts, you’ll be able to stick to them longer and achieve the results you want.
- Prevent Injury
You are always hearing about how people hurt themselves in the gym because they performed an exercise incorrectly. What about the people who perform an exercise with perfect form and STILL end up getting hurt? Chances are that if someone is an expert at a particular set of exercises, they will stick to just these exercises. While this may seem like a great idea because you know for a fact that you’ll be able to perform them correctly, it also may be working against you.
Overuse injuries are the one type of injury that you don’t hear about as much. This is when the same exercises are performed over and over again; not giving those muscles and joints a chance to properly heal. The result is a strain, snap, or break due to the muscle or joint being so overworked. Changing up your exercises can help you to avoid overuse injuries.
- Better Results
Our bodies are constantly craving a state of homeostasis. Exercise is a variable that our bodies must adjust to so that we can achieve homeostasis. This is exactly why people hit a fitness plateau. You may see great results in the beginning but then come to find yourself stuck after a few weeks. Why? The body has adjusted to those new variables. The trick to continue getting great results is to keep your body guessing. Changing up your workout variables helps you achieve those fitness goals while avoiding the dreaded plateau.
How Often Should I Change Things Around?
While this may be different for each person based upon lifestyle, genetics, and many other factors, in general, you should be changing up your workout routine every 6 to 8 weeks. This provides you with enough time to reap the benefits of the new changes then giving your body that much needed change to continue with great results.
Tell Us What You Think!
Have you recently changed up your workout?
What benefits did you notice?
Let us know in the comments below!