You mean other than the mirror? Everyone has some specific goals in mind when they start a workout, but it’s easy to become discouraged when you don’t see results fast. “Success is not found solely through hard work, but smart work,” says Martin Rooney, C.S.C.S., the creator of trainingforwarriors.com. That’s why Rooney suggests the 80-20 rule for exercise (based on the Pareto Principle), which suggests that 80 percent of your results will come from 20 percent of your work. In order to help narrow your focus and figure out what exercises are right for you, Rooney offers four common signs to determine if you’re using your time efficiently. If you find yourself in any of these situations, Rooney recommends that you try something different to get back on track.
1) You perform exercises that don’t contribute to your goals
If your goal is losing fat, you probably should be focusing more on some sort of resistance training. If you want to be a marathon runner, you should be setting up a schedule to increase mileage. The key point is that in order to know what exercises you should perform you need to have a concise goal. Once you experience success, then you can set a new goal and take on new exercise challenges. Trying 100 different exercises spread across 6 different goals might seem like a great way to add variety, but it will only lead to frustration and a high likelihood of failure.
2) You perform exercises that you don’t believe will work for you
The mind is an important part of any exercise program. You need to believe in your program and what you’re doing, or else it will be hard to remain focused and see results. So if you have doubts, be confident and ask questions about why you’re doing certain exercises to make sure they’re right for your goals. Just make sure you don’t confuse “what’s right” with “what’s difficult.” Exercise is meant to be hard, so you should expect to struggle and not always make instant progress.
3) Exercises are taking too much time and energy to learn
While you can’t expect instant results, you should make general progress with time. After all, the goal of a good workout is to make some progress every week. So if you’re struggling with the same exercise for months, or not becoming stronger or improving your endurance, it probably means you’re doing an exercise (or training plan) that’s too difficult. Taking a step back to master a more basic movement will pay off in the long run. Remember, mastery of anything means that you’re making progress, which is the sign of a good program.
4) You find yourself in a negative mindset when training
This might be the most overlooked aspect of exercise. Your workouts—whether they involve running, walking, lifting weights, or playing sports—should be fun. If you’re not enjoying the process, then you won’t remain consistent and won’t see long-term results. Your end goal should be focused on living an active lifestyle. While you’re bound to have bad days when you don’t feel like doing an activity, you should generally enjoy the process and look forward to exercise.
- Adam Bornstein
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