5 key tips for successful training
Successful training is a combination of a few factors. It is not only about getting sweaty, burning a lot of calories, and just attending high-intensity training. It is a matter of discipline, correct breathing, good alignment, nutrition, and having fun while doing it! When these topics work together you will be able to succeed in any of your fitness goals. Let’s look at them a little bit more:
Consistency
To grow and achieve your goals, you need to become consistent in what you are doing. To become consistent you need to be disciplined and create habits. Everyone is capable of this. It is just a matter of putting in the effort. A key here is to have a clear goal or a vision of where you want to go. It can help control the mind so it doesn’t hold you back with doubts and excuses. It is hard to start, but don’t let it hold you back.
Breathing
Proper breathing during a workout is key to gain more out of the class. There is a big difference between taking deep breaths and shallow breaths. Shallow breath, or also called chest breathing is the drawing of minimal breath into the lungs. When our breath is shallow we won’t be able to deliver as much oxygenated air to our lungs. When our muscles are not provided with enough oxygen they will fatigue much earlier and can not use their full power in the exercises. Diaphragmatic breathing, deep breathing, will help ensure core activation and deliver enough oxygen to the muscles. You will be able to put more effort into the movements and improve the quality and outcome of the exercise. Read more about Diaphragmatic breathing here.
Nutrition
Good nutrition can help your body perform better and recover faster after each workout. Food is your fuel and we need to consider carefully how and what we eat before we exercise for it to be beneficial for us. Our approach is all about choosing clean, whole foods before a workout. If you have a full meal you want to wait at least 2 hours before working out, but if you prefer having a snack wait at least 30 minutes before working out. Your snack should be easy to digest and contain mainly carbs and some protein. Ideas for snacks would be a banana, eggs, whole grain crackers, oatmeal, chia pudding, or apple slices with peanut butter.
Good alignment
The right alignment is important to do the exercises correctly. Knowledge of how to perform the exercises is a key for success because a proper form will help you gain more out of the exercise. A good alignment will not only help you improve the outcome of the exercise, but also prevent you from getting injured.
Enjoy your workouts
First and foremost you need to enjoy the type of workouts you choose. Having fun while working out and feeling the endorphins pump up after a workout is essential for your successful workout journey. It is not only the workout type you choose but also the environment that matters. Feeling comfortable, calm, and happy in your environment will play a big role in making the workout enjoyable.
Working out is about so much else than just getting sweaty and burning calories. You deserve to get the most out of your training every time. I recommend that you look at one of those factors and see if you can improve some of them. Let’s see where it takes you on your workout journey!
Hi! I'm Sara, the founder of Withsara. I have been a fitness group instructor, Barre teacher and Yoga teacher for over 10 years. I am also a certified Nutritional Health Coach from IIN in New York, USA.
After giving birth to my two beautiful daughters, I have had to build up my body twice after my pregnancies. With my experience, I have created a workout that is a great combination of low impact, functional movement, pilates, barre, and yoga. It builds up deep core strength, creates sustainable and lasting change, relieves physical tension and mental stress, and gives you an overall healthier and happier body.
