Train Smart, Not Hard: 6 Tips for Making Your Workouts More Effective

Perfecting the human body takes ample time, focus, dedication and regimens that maximize potential. Whether this pertains to diet or exercise, the need to improve overall performance and effectiveness is crucial. After all, nobody wants to waste their time pursuing strategies that deliver minimal gains when other, better options exist!

Throughout human history, most people have found effective cardiovascular and strength training regimens through essential daily work. In today’s modern life where much of this is no longer required from people, getting creative in terms of how best to achieve such results requires some creativity. Being able to formulate a workout regimen that delivers maximum results – especially with hundreds of unique claims and workout ideas floating around the internet – can be challenging.

To make things simpler, we’ll review 6 specific tips that you can use to ensure that your workouts are more rewarding – and that you’re being as efficient as possible when exercising.

Vary Your Daily Workouts

While plenty of people spend time debating which exercises and routines produce the best results in the least amount of time, even the most excellent regimens can lose their effectiveness in certain situations. Most notably, people who consistently do the same exercises ultimately get less and less benefit from them over time, all the while failing to properly work out other key muscles. When certain muscles become over-developed, that by definition means other muscles are (relatively) under-developed.

As such, ensure that your workout regimens alternate each day. When muscles are unevenly exercised, this can create unnecessary pain, strain and even workout-related injuries. By alternating your workouts, you’ll ensure that your body’s muscles are equally perfected, avoid potential damage and get the most benefit from each workout session.

Use Mass Gaining Supplements

Exercise without the proper fuel will not deliver the kind of gains or expectations most have when expecting their regimens to produce results. In fact, exercising without the right balance of nutrients, hydration and supplements can actually harm the body. Everything from low blood sugar to a less-than-optimal burning of energy sources within the body can occur (and that doesn’t include the risks such as dehydration).

Ultimately, those seeking to gain mass and perfect their muscles should also consider how mass gain supplements can play a role in working smarter rather than harder. Some individuals have difficulty gaining weight or muscle, while others simply struggle to consume the needed number of calories per day through conventional food sources. A non-GMO mass gainer in particular can help dramatically supplement daily diets and exercise routines, making it possible to bulk up more quickly.

Avoid Unnecessary Breaks

In the grand scheme of things, most forms of exercise – regardless of method or duration – provide some benefit to one or more aspects of the body. Whether this be jogging, weight training, swimming or something entirely different, even just a few minutes of activity each day can quickly add up over time in terms of burning calories and toning muscles. However, evidence suggests that taking frequent breaks during each workout routine actually reduces the effectiveness of the overall workout.

Experts recommend taking anywhere from 30 to 60 second breaks between each set of exercises. Anything beyond that is wasteful, allowing your body’s heart rate to lower more than is ideal for exercising in general. For strength training, slightly longer breaks may be needed, while cardio exercises should feature shorter breaks.

Consume the Right Ingredients at the Right Time

Having a healthy diet and daily routine is essential to getting the most out of each exercise, but there are several factors within this to consider. Not only is it important to consume the right meals and supplements on a regular basis, but when these items are consumed, they can have an equally important impact on workout results.

For instance, pre-workout nutrition may feature water intake (though usually not right before the workout) as well as a variety of supplements designed to boost performance. Even for simple, commonly-available substances like caffeine, people can enjoy a boost in their workout energy levels when consumed approximately a half-hour before beginning.

For a post-workout consumption, protein helps repair muscle and encourage faster growth, while carbohydrates can help with overall recovery.

Ensuring that everything consumed both before and after a workout is optimized for performance is yet another way to ensure that you’re working smarter rather than harder.

Always Do Some Pre-Exercise

Virtually everybody knows that it is a bad idea to immediately jump into a workout without prior prep. However, the amount of pre-exercising that many fitness lovers participate in is often insufficient for optimal results. When our bodies are not sufficiently warmed out prior to a major workout, the risk of injury, the amount of post-workout discomfort and even the ability for the body to efficiently transport nutrients can all be affected.

Pre-exercise stretches are arguably the most crucial component of any pre-workout regimen. Obviously, the types of stretches will vary considerably depending on whether you are weight lifting or running, but many of the same broader muscle groups still receive similar attention. For running, some common pre-workout stretches include jumping jacks and light jogging. For weight lifting, hip rotations, walk-outs and jump rope are common examples.

Monitor Your Vitals

To make sure each minute of your workouts lead to optimal results, ensuring that your body’s vitals are running at peak efficiency is ideal. Often referred to as “exercise intensity”, the amount of physical exertion as measured by oxygen levels, blood pressure, heart rate and other indicators can shed light on whether you are truly working out in an efficient fashion. It can also help better identify potential health concerns both when exercising and not.

Exercise intensity – when optimal – means you’re getting more done in less time. In other words, working smarter rather than harder! Many gadgets and devices can now be purchased and used during exercise to monitor heart rate, blood pressure and even oxygen levels; these metrics can then be used to guide your exercises and ensure you’re exerting yourself at optimal amounts for the quickest gains.

Spending all day in the gym doesn’t mean you’re getting more value from your exercises. Working smarter rather than harder can not only help deliver the desired workout results, but it can also leave you feeling healthier and with more free time to do the things you love. Be sure to adopt these six tips and recommendations as parts of your exercise regimen for maximum results!