3 Common Mistakes When Starting a New Exercise Routine
No matter what or how you plan to start exercising, there are 3 common mistakes I see from many people that really prevent them from getting the best results or preventing them from falling back into old habits.
1. Start off slow!
I know this seems counter intuitive but starting slow is the best. One, this allows your body time to adjust to the new movements and weight as well as this is a super important time to address any muscle imbalances or weaknesses.
In prenatal and postpartum women, there are 2 main muscle sets that really need to be addressed to make sure you are ready to move on to more complex movements and heavier weights. (Will write another blog about this and how you can work them)
Core Rehabilitation
Posterior Chain, i.e. your glutes, back, hamstrings
Also, going super hard and being super sore does not mean your workout is better. It's actually harder for your muscles to repair and harder for you to keep a consistent routine when you feel like you can't move!
2. Properly warming up and cooling down.
Another big mistake I see when people start working out is not stretching properly! Yes,
there is a specific science on best ways to stretch before and after your workout. Dynamic stretching before a workout has shown to be the best to help prevent injury. I try to explain it as slow movement that accentuates the movements you plan on doing in your workout. For example, if you plan on doing a lot of lunges and hip flexor movements, doing slow walking deep lunges, feeling those muscles activate is a dynamic movement used for stretching. However, static stretching is what I tend to see most people doing before the workout. Cool down is when you should be doing static stretches where you are standing still and holding those nice longer stretches.
3. Trying to be perfect.
Don't worry about what you look like, if you have the perfect set up, or if your workout is perfect. Workouts don't have to be perfect. You just need to start and try. And it is perfectly OK to stop a workout early if your body is telling you its had enough. The worst thing you can do is keep pushing past that point and hurt yourself because you didn't listen to your body. If someone is worried about your hair, your clothes, or whatever not being good enough, let's be honest they are a**holes. Don't let people like that prevent you from doing what you want to do.
Â