Fitness is all about getting out of your comfort zone. That’s what you told yourself when you signed up for that gym membership or purchased some equipment for your home gym. But, getting out of your comfort zone for working out is easier said than done.
If you aren’t careful, you will start slacking on the fitness routine you mapped out for yourself after a few weeks. You’d decide to take just a small amount of carbs until your stomach begins to bounce again when you walk.
In any case, as someone who wants to build muscle mass or get rid of those extra pounds, your workout routine should be all about training your body to attain the new form you want for it. You’ll need a few tips to get out of and stay away from your comfort zone as you push for this.
Are you ready to attain that perfect dream body structure? Here are some fitness tips that would help you:
1. Maximize free weights
You’ve probably downloaded the pictures of your all-time favorite TV stars, and a glance at their ripped abs and pecs gives you hope. While that physique is achievable, you should start slowly and work your way up to the top.
The easiest way to achieve this is by starting with free weights. The great thing about free weights, like dumbbells and kettlebells, is that you can easily handle them even as a beginner. Free weights can help you build that body you are looking for, as using them exerts different muscles simultaneously.
2. Create a routine and stick to it
It’s easy to create a routine but sticking to it seems impossible. However, to achieve your goal, you need to stick to a strict regime. Proper exercise and diet can have a profound positive effect on your overall health. That is why you need to make separate routines for both.
At first, you may need to enlist the services of a bodybuilder and nutritionist. The bodybuilder will help you with a customized plan for muscle gain, while the nutritionist will draw up a meal plan for you. Different types of diet will work for different exercise goals. For example, when building muscle you want to stick to a high protein diet (like the adkins or even a relaxed version of the keto diet).
When you have these in place, focus on making a habit out of the routine. When it becomes a habit, it gets easier to keep up with your workout and meal schedules.
3. You don’t need intense workout sessions every day
If a professional fitness coach drew up your plan for you, you’d notice that they only included workout sessions for you about 3-5 times per week.
Do you know why? Exercising creates a strain on your muscles. As a beginner, engaging in heavy workout sessions every day can give you terrible injuries. Therefore most of your sessions should be spaced out; to give your body the needed time to heal and get back in prime shape before you go in for another session.
4. Working out at home? Install a wall clock in your home gym
While you may want to roll your eyes at this, it is necessary. When you start working out and performing your reps, you want to make sure that you hit the time frame allocated for each set. Also, you don’t want to lose track of time in-between reps (as you take your stops to catch your breath), nor do you want to be late for other appointments because you got sidetracked in your home gym.
5. Ensure that you train every muscle group weekly
Except if your goal for gaining muscle mass is to start looking like any of the superheroes from the comics (with broad chests and shoulders and tiny legs), ensure that, at least once every week, you train all muscle groups of your body. It’s necessary to put equal pressure on your upper and lower body.
So, while working on your chest and shoulders, build your arms, core (torso), and legs as well. It means that you should include equipment that allows all of these in your home gym.
6. Increase your weights as time passes
While you should start small, the aim isn’t to keep hitting the same weights forever. As time passes, you should carefully start lifting heavier weights like bench presses and dumbbells. These extra weights allow your muscles to stretch and expand. As you feel your muscle mass beginning to grow, you may want to consider increasing your repetitions too. One of the foundational laws of bodybuilding is the law of repetition continuum, which states that the number of repetitions performed at a given magnitude of load will result in specific body adaptations.
In simple English, it teaches that the weights you can only lift a few times tend to build more strength than lesser weights. It’s what you seek to achieve as you increase your weights and reps.
7. Build a home gym that reflects your goals
Every piece of equipment in your home gym should be a reflection of your goals. A comprehensive home gym should contain squat racks, pull-up bars, resistance bands, and weights like dumbbells/kettlebells.
If you are short on space or funds and you don’t have the money to purchase this equipment one after the other, you should look for functional compact trainers or all-in-one trainers.
8. If you can, hire a fitness coach
The thing about hiring fitness coaches is that aside from being in your corner and helping you achieve your bodybuilding goals, a fitness coach would serve as your accountability partner. Knowing that there’s someone to push you and to whom you would answer is one way to ensure that you never slack on your fitness goals.
It is easy to set goals. Keep yourself accountable by hiring the services of a fitness coach.
Summary
If you want to increase your muscle mass and live a healthier life, you need to pay attention to your workout routine and meal plan.
These eight powerful tips can help you get out of your comfort zone in your fitness journey. Sign up for a local gym membership if you can. If you would rather bring your gym to your home, check out our list of 14 best home gyms that are great for your home space.
