Fitness Tips for an Effective Workout

It's almost that time of year again, where we all start thinking of getting back into shape and testing out our New Year's resolutions. There are fad diets and people claiming to have the "perfect workout" that is going to get you in shape in the minimal amount of time.

The fact is, there is no perfect diet, or perfect workout. Everybody is different and you need to find what works best for you. That being said, here are a couple of my tips, from someone who has lost over 40 pounds, is a nutritionist and will soon be a personal trainer.

Do What You Love

This one is the most important to me. Just because spinning classes are popular, doesn't mean you should do it if you don't like it. You'll have a hard time sticking with it, and you won't get as many benefits from the activity if you hate it. For me, I'm a cyclist. But I know tons of people who can't stand it, but they find a lot of enjoyment in running. It's all about finding something you like and getting enjoyment out of your workouts.

Master Your Diet

A proper diet is something that you need to have in order to be successful with any fitness program. Of course it helps if you are trying to lose weight, but it's also important that you watch your diet if you are trying to put on muscle, or become an endurance athlete. Your diet affects your performance in multiple ways. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. Try to eat a meal that contains proteins and carbohydrates at least 2 hours before you exercise. This will make sure your body has enough fuel to get through your workout.

2. Right before you workout, drink a sports drink or a shake made with a protein source (such as whey protein powder) and a carbohydrate. Having it in liquid form will help your body digest it faster.

3. Try to eat something within 30 min after working out. It's important to include a protein source because your body will need repair after a workout, especially a resistance workout. Your muscles will repair faster, and get stronger faster as well.

4. If you are going to do a long race or a really long workout, try to carb load before hand. This means eating more carbohydrates than normal for three to four days before the race. This will cause your body to store more carbohydrate, which is a primary source of energy. You may notice a weight gain when doing this, but this is temporary.

Split Sets and Lower Reps

There are many ways to do weight lifting, and this is only my personal opinion, and what has worked for me. I am a big believer is split sets. This is when you separate your workouts and work on different body parts on different days. For instance, a leg day, a back day or a chest and abs day. If you get four or five exercises for each, and do them on separate days. To me, this was way more effective than doing a full body workout three days a week.

One other thing that has worked for me has been to do lower reps, especially if you want to build strength. I do really low reps such as 4-6 when I want to build strictly strength. If you want to build more muscular endurance, I would recommend 8-10 reps. This will build strength and endurance. If you can do more reps than that, I would recommend upping your weight. You want to do reps to failure, because this will help your muscles get stronger faster.

Hopefully these tips have helped you in your workouts, and made them more effective and fun.