These Simple Workout Tips Will Make You Achieve Your Fitness Goals

Losing extra weight and improving your physical fitness is a worthwhile goal. These simple workout tips will help you achieve your fitness goals:

Warm-up

You can prevent a wide range of injuries by warming up properly before your workout. Your warm-up will depend on what you're doing for your workout. Is your preferred workout powerlifting? Take time to do lighter sets to increase blood flow and activate your central nervous system. A quality warmup will get your mind and body ready to push yourself and achieve your personal fitness goals. If you're participating in a particular sport, here are a few warmup ideas that will help you get started:

• Long distance running: Standing leg swings (2 sets of 10 on each leg), High knees to heel kicks (2 sets of 20), Walking lunges (2 sets of 10)
• Tennis: Jog around the court (3 laps), Side shuffles sideline to sideline (2 sets of 5 on both directions), Arm circles (30 seconds forward, 30 seconds backward)
• Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: Shrimps (2 sets of 10), Front roll to break fall (2 sets of 10), Back rolls (2 sets of 10)
• Rugby: Walking lunges (2 sets of 15), Neck and shoulder rotations (3 sets of 10), Bodyweight squats (3 sets of 10), 30-yard sprints (4 repetitions)

Remember that the goal of warming up is to mentally prepare and physically prepare yourself to get the most out of your workout without getting injured.

Recovery

Don't forget to cool down and take time to recover after a workout or training session. Here are a few things to do depending on the time you have immediately after pushing yourself:

• Cool down run/walk to gradually bring down your heart rate
• Stretch the different muscle groups of your body
• Use a foam roller to work out any knots you have particularly on your back and hip flexors
• Ice achy, painful joints

While you may not feel as hardcore as you would want to be when you take time off, proper recovery actually increases performance in the long-term. You are more likely to achieve your fitness goals when you take care of your body.

Hydration

Dehydration is never a fun experience. Some of the symptoms of dehydration include constant thirst, feeling tired, fainting, dark-colored urine and fewer trips to the bathroom than normal. In order for your body to function properly and efficiently, you need water and electrolytes. Sports drinks can be helpful in replacing minerals lost through sweat. Drinking water throughout the day will be more effective than binge drinking water on the way to the gym.

Putting it all together

This may seem like a great deal of information so creating a gameplan will help you implement these tips. One reason why many people do not cool down after a training session is they do not schedule enough time to do so. If you only have an hour to work out each day, set aside the last ten minutes of your workout to cool down, bring down your heart rate and stretch. Dynamic warm-up exercises will get your heart rate up quickly in five minutes at the start of your training session.

Integrative Medica specializes in complementary and alternative medicine. Patients that come into Integrative Medica can feel comfortable knowing they are receiving the most effective alternative medicine treatments available. Contact us for your next appointment!