There is nothing more frustrating than putting the blood, sweat, and tears into your workouts and feeling like you are going nowhere.
You didn’t lose that ten pounds, your milestones are not getting met, and the bicep definition has not come.
The Paseo Club is a social club in the Santa Clarita Valley that supports members of all experience levels in their fitness journeys. We offer many group, small group, and private fitness classes.
Instructors often hear members express frustration with their gains, wonder what they are doing wrong, and ask how they can correct their approach.
In this article, we will tell you the most common obstacles that hold people back from experiencing progress in their fitness journey. We will look at some familiar topics, such as diet, and new concepts, such as the importance of rest days.
The top 7 reasons you do not see results from working out
1. Issues with Diet
Diet issues are the main reason people do not see results when they start a workout program.
Working out without focusing on proper nutrition can lessen the quality of your performance, hinder you from losing weight, and even cause you to gain weight.
But do not let the number on the scale fool you. Muscle weighs more than fat, so your scale might reflect a higher number than expected. It does not mean that you are not making progress.
Check that your clothes still fit. It is not uncommon to gain weight but drop clothing sizes.
If this is not the case, you must implement an eating plan alongside your consistent workouts.
Eating healthfully not only helps you reach an ideal weight, but it also helps you perform better, sleep better, and recover faster.
2. Vary your workouts
Both cardio and strength workouts are necessary for overall fitness.
Cardio makes your heart stronger, lowers blood pressure, lowers your chance of getting diabetes, and a host of other benefits.
Strength (or resistance) training is beneficial for building muscle, endurance, and burning calories.
To make the most progress in your workouts, it is critical to alternate between cardio and strength training.
After strength training, your muscles need to recover. Therefore, you should do strength-based exercises one day and cardio the next. If you do not have several days a week to work out, some people combine cardio and strength workouts on the same day.
3. Rest and recover
Your body needs at least one day per week to recover, and depending on the intensity of your workouts, you may need more. People who do a lot of HIIT training or heavy weight lifting often take two days per week to rest.
Recovering allows your body to increase blood circulation and repair muscles, tendons, and ligaments.
When you recover fully, you have more stamina and energy to exert yourself to your capacity, making the most significant strides in your workouts.
Recovery and rest do not mean you have to be completely sedentary. Walking, hiking, or riding a bike are great ways to recover actively. A yin yoga class or other mobility and stretching program is also a great way to use your rest days.
4. Goals are unclear or unrealistic
You need to set clear, precise goals and be sure they are attainable in the time permitted.
The best way to create achievable goals is to consult a fitness trainer and get their advice. A trainer can review your diet, training program, and additional factors such as recovery, sleep, and stress.
If you set an unrealistic goal, you will set yourself up for failure and disappointment. Ultimately, this undermines your self-confidence and reduces motivation.
Examples of some unrealistic goals are:
- Daily workouts
- Rapid weight loss or gain
- Large increases in weightlifting
- Aspiring to have the physique of a celebrity
- Calorie counting and strict caloric restrictions
- Every meal eaten is perfectly balanced and completely healthy
- Six-pack abs (this is genetically impossible for many people no matter how you train or what you eat)
5. Monitoring progress incorrectly
There are specific ways to monitor your progress. Monitoring should occur weekly or every other week. If you monitor yourself more often than that, you will get frustrated.
Weight gain, improvement in strength, and losing inches are very gradual, and results will not come quickly, especially if you are over the age of 40 or 50. Your metabolism slows, and your body takes more time to respond to changes.
If you are trying to lose weight, you should weigh in once per week first thing in the morning.
6. Inadequate or non-existent warm-up
Do not begin any strength or cardio workout without a proper warm-up. Warming up is advised to prevent injuries and to achieve your best performance.
If you don’t warm up properly, you may not perform at the level that is necessary for hitting your goals.
7. Not working out correctly
When you are reviewing your workouts, make sure you are including these components:
- Warming up and mobilization
- Rest days without heavy cardio or lifting
- Cardio and resistance (strength) training
- The correct form of the movements to reap the full benefits
- Varied workouts so that you do not do the same activities over and over
- Interval training with brief bursts of exertion alternated with rest (HIIT, Tabata, etc.)
Your workouts need to be thought out carefully to maximize progress. Your goals, age, fitness level, health, injuries, and more are all factors in what you can attain.
If possible, seek the advice of a fitness trainer or professional. A trainer can instruct you about what workouts to incorporate, frequency and intensity, and how to accomplish a specific goal.
Last thoughts on how to get the results you want from your workouts
No one goes to the gym to get mediocre results. We all want to get a little leaner, a little faster, lift a bit heavier, or show more skill.
But getting the best possible effects from your training can be more nuanced than anticipated. There are several factors to consider when you train, including what you eat, how you work out, and how to set realistic goals.
By reading this article, you should understand how to attend to these additional components to have more success with your journey in fitness.
The Paseo Club is an eight-acre facility with indoor and outdoor exercise spaces, tennis and pickleball courts, and a junior-Olympic pool. There are over 60 fitness classes available each week, and instructors teach group, small group, and private classes.
If you would like to learn more about the fitness resources at the Paseo Club, schedule a tour of the grounds.
To better learn about how to support your health and well-being, check out these three articles.
- The 7 steps for optimum nutrition while training
- What is the Greatest Results Program at the Paseo Club?
- Why High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) Workouts Help You Lose Weight Faster