Top 9 Mistakes Girls Make in the Gym.

Unifitness takes a look at the top 10 most common mistakes made by women in the gym.

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The following article is in no way intended to be read as sexist: we at unifitness just felt we had some advice to offer to maximize your workouts after seeing these mistakes time and time again in the gym.
 
 
1. Doing the same work out every day: many newcomers (or even old timers who haven’t had the correct advice) don’t realise that muscle needs to repair. By doing the same routine each day, you are never going to achieve the strength or toning gains you want. It is recommended to leave 24-48 hours between working each muscle set again.
 
2. Not using weights: it is a common misconception that if you use weights you will become all “beefy”. If you are looking for weight loss, your results will be far greater if the muscle that is hidden beneath fat is toned and trained. It is also a little known fact that the more muscle you have the more calories your body burns by itself! It is important to remember that women will only develop large muscles by using substances like testosterone: the use of weights will lead to a feminine toned physique and also help protect against osteoporosis!
 
3. Not drinking enough water (this is relevant to the males too): increasing water intake is a big focus of unifitness. Some quick facts: water flushes out toxins, prevents dehydration (you can train for longer), reduces fatigue, keeps skin clear and keeps your metabolism higher! 
 
4. Too much cardio: yes, you can spend too much time on the cross trainer! In fact too much can make you ill, so any obsessive runners out there take note. Cortisol is produced by too much exercise; cortisol destroys muscle, which in turn will decrease your metabolic rate. It is advised to do half an hour to forty minutes a day.
 
5. Over-exertion of the abs: many people still think that by just doing abdominal work they will achieve the “dream stomach”. However to acquire this toned physique, then the body fat on the stomach must be reduced. Over training of the abs can extend the stomach and give a fatty appearance. It is also important to remember that abdominal exercises do not burn abdominal fat. It is advised to train your abs two to three times a week.
 
6. Avoiding sweating: we regularly see the machines clogged up by those working at a snails pace, wanting to maintain that pristine look they entered the gym with. This is useless and, to put it bluntly, is a waste of time for you and those waiting to use the machines. It is understandable that many are self conscious on the running machine, our advice for this is to find a couple of pals with the same target as you and go for a late night run when the streets are empty of anyone you think may judge you: don’t forget your high visibility clothing though! It is a little known fact that the fat burning zone is roughly 70% of heart rate max (220-age/100 x 70), if you can find and use a heart rate monitor this will tell you. The highest fat burning will be in the 65-75% range and your appearance will be no more than a mild glow: most importantly you should still be able to chat.
 
7. Protein: women need protein as it maintains the lean mass, which as we know is what burns the calories. Milk based proteins can be good for ladies as well as the calcium which helps with bone maintenance and form the defense against such diseases as osteoporosis in later life.
So stop avoiding protein shakes! How can you expect your muscle to efficiently repair after a work out? You won't be reaping the benefits of your hard work unless your nutrition is up to scratch – a post gym protein shake is the perfect place to start.
 
8. Keep your form: it is easy to see someone doing an exercise and just assume you know how to as well, many gym goes employ poor form which in time will lead to injury, so please remember if in doubt ask one of the personal trainers on hand – it is their job after all.
 
9. WATER: we feel it’s just so important that we have said it twice!
 
We hope the list above will help you keep maximize the efficiency of your work outs, which will vastly increase results keeping you confident and on track to hitting those goals you have set. Good luck.