3 Things I Wish I Would Have Known When I Started My Fitness Journey

Number 1 : Changing up your workouts every week will hinder your progress

Starting out I was convinced that I had to change up my workouts constantly because I was under the impression I had to ‘trick’ my muscles into growing.

Plot twist – that is not the case. It wasn’t until 2 years after the fact that I realized I wasn’t progressing because I wasn’t allowing my muscles to get used to movements and grow. If I were to restart I would have gotten a workout program or started a guide that lead me through 4-8 weeks of training the same way. Within those weeks I would try to increase the amount of weight I was using and get better form, then watch the progress start!

Number 2 : Cardio doesn’t build muscle

I used to go on the stair stepper every single freaking day and do glute kickbacks on that or walk sideways trying to grow my glutes. That however, does extremely little for any type of growth and I would have been much farther along if I took those same minutes and worked on resistance training movements targeting the glutes.

Cardio is a great tool for weight loss and digestion, or warm ups and cool downs, but it doesn’t help you build muscle. In fact, it tears muscle down!!

Number 3 : You don’t need to train 7 days a week

College me was at the gym as often as I could be. I thought I would lose all my gains if I took a day or god forbid 2 off the gym during the week. 

Your body needs rest. During your rest days your body rebuilds it’s muscle, helps fight fatigue and soreness, and allows you mental clarity to get back after it the next session. I found that I love training 4-5 a week and that is something sustainable for me for the rest of my life!

If you are a beginner struggling with these common beliefs or habits and are dedicated to changing your body into it’s best physique this year. Join Embrace the Sweat as a 1-1 client or in our membership site. I will walk alongside your journey to make sure you are on the right path!