10 Things to Stop Doing in the Gym

Before we get down to the list, I have to tell you something. I have adult attention deficit disorder. Well, I'm not exactly sure. I'm concluding from the 12 online tests that, by the end, tell me it would be beneficial to seek the care of a mental health care specialist.

I'm also a Virgo. So I guess that makes me a highly critical, yet organized multitasker? 

Regardless, my brain is always going and my eyes are always scanning. In fact, I spend a good portion of my day just watching other people.  

Wait, that sounds creepy. What I mean is, I pay attention to what they are doing, how they are doing it then analyze why their left ear is lower than the right. Eventually I get back on track and question the routines of others, like the overweight older gentleman packing an extra tire around his midsection. Is his body really in need of shoulder shrugs at this point? Hey lady who spends every day doing an hour of low-intensity cardio, after two years, are you really seeing the fat-loss results you're striving for?

I often wonder if these people are doing more harm than good.

Below is a list of 10 things I think you should stop doing immediately, unless you want adverse effects.

No. 1: Crunches 

• Quit it! Most of us spend our days with poor posture, which is amplified when being hunched over a computer or a steering wheel for eight hours. Crunches reinforce that poor posture while curving the back and yanking the neck (because most people don’t do them correctly anyway).   

• Hit it! Do a variety of planks. This will not only work your entire core, but the rest of your body as well.  

No. 2: Long, slow cardio for fat loss

• Quit it! Being able to do an hour of running or hour of elliptical is great. But if that's all you're doing, you're never going to accomplish true fat loss, which—I hate to break it to you—comes from hard work, not reading Vogue on the treadmill. 
• Hit it! Incorporate interval training. This is much quicker and more effective for fat loss. Catch up on Vanity Fair another time.

No. 3:  Machines that make you sit

• Quit it! Like I said in a previous article, most of us sit around 15 hours a day. The last thing you need to do is sit while you work out.  
• Hit it! Take those same exercises and stand using dumbbells, resistance bands, the cable machines or even your own body weight. Standing not only alleviates stress and compression on the spine, you will burn more calories by simply using more muscle.    

No. 4: Using heavy weight  

• Quit it! Put down the jumbo weights unless you can use them without compromising good form. I used to challenge meatheads who were curling ridiculous-sized dumbbells to use half the weight but to keep their back straight and to not swing. Most couldn’t do it. The long and the short of it: They simply were not strong enough.  
• Hit it! Check your ego at the door and use appropriate sized-weights. In my opinion (and most other woman), general fitness and lean muscle is far sexier that 42-inch, steroid-injected biceps. Just throwing it out there fellas.

No. 5: Training like a body builder

• Quit it! That type of training involves long periods of rest and recovery between sets. Not to mention the workouts take forever.   
• Hit it! If you are looking for fat loss while still trying to gain strength and endurance, opt for more circuit training, or at the very least, super setting.  

No. 6: Doing the same routine day in and day out

• Quit it! Do you want to stay exactly the same? Your body needs to be challenged in order to change physically and metabolically. Keep doing what you're doing; keep getting what you're getting.
• Hit it! Get crazy! Take different classes offered at your gym or change up your workouts every couple of weeks. 

No. 7: Not making time to rest

• Quit it! If you don't give your body the proper rest, it will pull the plug on your entire fitness operation. Rest is imperative if you want to change your physique. It’s the only time when your muscles grow and develop, not when you’re actually working out.
• Hit it! Get plenty of sleep at night and schedule rest days away from your workouts.

No. 8: Not eating before a morning workout

• Quit it! Eating something before a workout does not prevent you from burning fat. All it does it reeve up your metabolism and give you 10 times the physical and mental energy to get you through.
• Hit it! All you need is a small snack or meal of combined lean protein, whole grain carbs and healthy fat. My all-time favorite: toast with natural peanut butter.

No.9: Static stretching before a workout

• Quit it! There's been no evidence that suggests stretching before a workout actually prevents sore muscles or prevents injury. In fact, recent studies are finding that static stretching beforehand could actually inhibit your performance. 
• Hit it! A dynamic warm-up of simple movements that prepare you for whatever it is you're doing that day. Make sure you always stretch after a workout to prevent knots and tightness.

No. 10: Staying inside your comfort zone

• Quit it! A real workout is work! Don't forget that. If you want results, if you want a flat stomach, if you want to fit back into your perfectly tailored suits, then step outside your comfort zone and do some flippin' work! To put it bluntly: Get off your bum, move more, eat less, sweat a lot and complain very little.