You train hard, you eat right, but you're still not seeing the muscle gains you want. You may be one of the many people who have bad habits that are preventing optima ls gains in their training, strength and physique.
Here are the top 14 bad habits that may be sabotaging your gains in the gym.
NOT PLANNINHG AHEAD
Success is a planned event. Getting a better physique is not going to happen on accident. If you want results in the gym you have to plan for them. Plan ahead for each day. Prepare your meals beforehand so you have access to your food and you’re not running through the drive-thru because you’re starving. If you’re not getting results, you didn’t plan accordingly. Did you get your cardio done for the week? No, why? You didn’t plan ahead. You missed a meal and had to eat Wendy’s, you didn’t plan ahead. Have the no excuse attitude and get it done.
You should always perform your compound movements first in your routine. Once you start getting tired out then you should switch over to more isolation movements to help further hit the muscles
TOO MUCH WARMUP
Excessive warm ups drain your energy and focus before you get to your heavier lifts, and that compromises their effectiveness
NOT PUSHING HARD ENOUGH
Progressive overload is the most important aspect of muscle building. If you’re not training with progression you’re not working out, period! Muscle only responds to load and training volume. If you’re doing more work with more load your muscle will have no choice but to adapt and grow bigger and stronger. If your focusing on “confusing the muscles” or you’re not committed to your training program your results will be slim to none in the long term.
Changing your body means pushing it beyond the limits it’s used to. You don’t need to work till you puke or collapse on the floor, but every workout should be a challenge. The harder you push yourself, the more muscle you have on your frame, and the leaner and more ripped you will be. Heavy lifting will help build strong rock hard muscle. Don’t get caught up doing light weight for high reps in an attempt to lose more body fat. That does not work. Stay true to your heavy compound movements.
USING BAD FORM
The opposite of not pushing hard enough is going too far, which usually means using weights you can’t lift without cheating. When you cheat and use bad form your muscle is not getting the optimal load. Take every exercise through a full range of motion for maximum contraction - unless you’re injured, and have a spotter handy to allow you to push yourself and also critique your form.
STOPPING TOO SOON
Most people to dot realize that the gains start with the extra reps you do AFTER it gets difficult. 90% of people training stop when the lift starts to hurt, and stoppinmg their defintely sabtoages gains. Once you feel you can not do anymore, attempt to do at least 1 more. Thed reps after this point are truely the ones that matter most and provide the gains.
NOT TRAINING OPPOSITE MOVEMENTS
Neglecting certain movements and muscle groups (most commonly the back, hamstrings and glutes) can cause muscle imbalances which can lead to overuse injuries and sabotage gains.
NOT USING COMPOUND MOVEMENTS
Isolation movements are great and definitely have their place in training but you should always be striving toward progressing in the basic compound movements. Compound movements are movements that incorporate multiple muscles at once such as squats, dead lifts, rows, and bench press. With compound moves, you will be hitting multiple muscles at once which in turn will release more muscle building/ fat burning hormones in your body. You will have a systematic response and you will be placing a greater demand on your body for more muscle.
TRAINING TOO LONG
A common physiological response to training is the release of certain hormones into the bloodstream, such as testosterone and dopamine. “Training more than 1 hour per workout can put the body into a negative hormonal state for the average person. Training too long, without proper nutrition and recovery can lead to overtraining, adrenal fatigue and performance decrements in the long term. All of these things, both individually and when coupled together, make for a negative effect on your goals.
BEING A CHATTY KATHY
Talking during a workout can decrease the metabolic, or fat burning, effect of your workout. The reason? When rest intervals increase, the body will cool down, leading to a slowed metabolism. Also, talking during a set of squats and shifting your focus from the exercise form to the conversation “can lead to form breakdown, and in turn, serious risk of injury. Your goal is to stay active with short amounts of reps to increase the intensity of your workout.
NEGLECTING NUTRITION
Some people believe that nutrition plays a 50-85% role in optimal gains. Whether its 35% or 80% good nutrition plays a major role in your strength, recovery, muscle gains and body composition. You can NOT out train bad nutrition.
NOT EATING ENOUGH
“The amount of energy in the form of food you put into your body will dictate your gains,” Behar says. For example, if you want to build muscle, you need to take in more calories and eat more of the right foods. Without energy to burn, the body turns to the most readily available source: muscle protein.
EATING AT THE WRONG TIMES
Of the many bad habits, this is the one that most people know they are guilty of, but do anyway. The biggest excuses are lack of time and not feeling hungry.
It’s well documented that having a nutrient dense breakfast will help you burn fat and boost your metabolism and mental acuity for the whole day. It is also well documented that the meals eaten after a workout are the most anabolic and promote the mot muscle gaain.
Tomorrow morning, eat a steak and eggs breakfast with nuts on the side. The best way to learn is to actually do it. Watch how your day goes and how energized you feel. The mental alertness, focused energy, and sense of control over your hunger will be the biggest noticeable differences. The following morning, try a bowl of cereal or a piece of toast. The difference will speak for itself.
NOT GETTING ENOUGH CARBS
What I mean here is…make sure you are taking in enough quality carbohydrates (oatmeal, rice, potatoes, Quinoa, whole grain bread, fruit, etc.) every day so that your muscles are full of glycogen (which is stored carbohydrate). Without adequate glycogen stores the muscles will also be low on water content and thus will not pump maximally. Make sure you load carbs back in after every workout as the body is most responsive to insulin at this time, which will push carbs directly into muscle cells.
SKIMPING ON SLEEP
Proper amounts of dleep is essential. It is where you recover and grow. Certain hormones, the most important of which are growth hormone and IGF-1, which help us build muscle and burn fat, are active when we sleep and not active when we are awake.
I can tell you right now that if you are only getting 4-5 hours of sleep per night then both your muscles and central nervous system (CNS) are not adequately recovered. This lack of recovery will negatively affect your strength, stamina, energy levels, muscle firing capabilities and your PUMP. If you want to get that blood flowing then make sure you are sleeping a good 7-9 hours per night – especially on nights you will be training the following day!
Conclusion
Long-term success in the gym isn't difficult to achieve if you follow standard, tried and true training principles and couple it with adequate dedication, consistency, and recovery. However, if you look around any gym, you’ll see tons of guys looking exactly the same as they did last year.
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About the Author Jeff Behar?
Jeff Behar, MS, MBA is a well-known author, champion natural bodybuilder, and a recognized health, fitness and nutrition expert with over 30 years of experience in the health, fitness, disease prevention, nutrition, and anti-aging fields. As a recognized health, fitness and nutrition expert, Jeff Behar? has been featured on several radio shows, TV, and in several popular bodybuilding publications such as Flex, Ironman and in several highly regarded peer reviewed scientific journals. Jeff Behar is also the CEO and founder www.MuscleMagFitness.com and www.MyBesthealthPortal.com.
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