What you need to know when working out in the gym. Exercises in the gym: advice from a trainer

Let's discuss issues that arise during classes in gym .

Here are the answers at 11 such questions.

If anything remains unclear - write in comments, I will try to answer you promptly.

How long should you rest between exercises (sets)?

From a minute to three. If this is an exercise for a small muscle (arms, shoulders), then a minute is enough, if for a large one (legs, back), then it will take more time. It also depends on your fitness level. Over time, even heavy exercise will not require long periods of rest, provided you exercise regularly.

We know what it means, but many users who do bodybuilding at home get it confused. Rest does not necessarily mean not exercising all day. Restoring us may mean sleeping a respectable number of hours, controlling the intensity as we said so as not to destroy the body alive, and even eating enough to replenish the body's energy. It doesn't understand the days of the week, no matter if you train on Monday, Wednesday or Sunday. He only understands stimulation and recovery, so we have more reasons to train headlong.

How often should you train the same muscle group?

More experienced athletes can answer this question for themselves. For beginners, the interval should be at least three to four days.

What is better not to combine during one workout (types of exercises or muscles worked)?

The body somehow gets used to monotonous workouts, so every few months it is necessary to change the muscles trained in one workout.

It's good to feel involved in it, if we become obsessed, it should only be when we're training or planning our next sessions, but enjoying life a little, since you're probably not going to dedicate yourself to it. If you're young, you'll probably feel robbed of parties and alcohol. There's no need to stress that this is a bad thing, we all know that, but don't make the mistake of getting so close to extreme home suitability that you forget other factors that mean you'll end up regretting the decisions you've made in a few years.

For beginners, there are no incompatible muscle groups; for more advanced athletes, I would advise not to add any other muscles to your leg training day.

You can get more information in the article with tips for working with simulators.

What is overtraining and how to avoid it?

Overtraining is a state of the body in which the load exceeds the ability to recover. That is, a person gets tired physically and psychologically. In this case, you should take a break for a couple of weeks, during which you can do light training for all muscles at once, eliminating heavy exercises, reducing working weights and reducing the number of exercises for one muscle group to 1-2.

There are times for everything, but you always need to be clear about what you want to achieve, and doing so will take you closer or further away from those goals. Chest, biceps, back, shoulder, leg, triceps. This is an example of the typical work that the vast majority of people do in the gym. Well, some of them miss a leg and start again. Have you already found an unforgivable error in this common example? In fact, the mistake is "in what it is not": abdominal work, although more specifically we should call it core work.

Many people skip this work and then problems arise in the long run and no one understands how by going to the gym 4-5 days a week they end up with back problems. The truth is that core work is much more important than the rest of our body, since it is the “center of gravity” of our body and interferes with almost 100% of our daily movements.

High-quality restoration helps to avoid this condition: good dream, proper nutrition, vitamins and minerals in the required quantities. Also, do not forget that training 5-7 times a week can simply “drive” you and give the opposite effect.

Is it true that you gain muscle mass best when you experience muscle pain as a result of exercise?

The body's stimulus for gaining muscle mass is stress conditions under which it feels that the muscle tissue it has is not enough to adapt to such a load. It is usually impossible to achieve such conditions without pain.

Why is it so important to train your core?

Many people believe that wearing a noticeable belly is a symptom of great health and a strong physique. But let's get to the important stuff: why is it so important to do core work in the gym or at home? To answer this question, we must understand that the core function is to stop movement.

What makes the “best” squat exercise?

If we are talking about the abs as such, we must first point out that since this is a group of groups, there will therefore be no “best” exercise for the abdominals, but we will need to perform several exercises to work the sections of the abdominal muscle.

The main thing is to distinguish the desired burning sensation in the working muscle from unwanted pain in the ligaments and joints. And remember that training, I repeat, only provides an incentive for growth. And weight is gained during rest.

What is circuit training in the gym?

This is an intense workout that works all or almost all the major muscles of the body. In 1 circle there are about 10 exercises, one approach each (without rest or with minimal rest).

That's why " best exercise Abdominal" would be more like "the best abdominal exercises" and would be the one that allowed us to work as effectively and safely as possible in all sections. But we will see later the big mistakes that are made in these exercises and how to solve them to avoid possible injuries.

If we want to get more specific and talk about "core work", things change. In this case, given that the musculature of the abdominal area we must add muscles such as the spinal erectors, multiphasic, spinal stabilizers and even the buttocks, the exercises to perform the changes are very significant.

After the circle, the person adds 3-5 minutes of cardio exercise and/or rests. Typically 5-6 laps are performed per workout.

Does a gym goer need to buy sports nutrition or any special products?

Here everything depends only on the needs of the body this person. We know very well that when physical activity We need large quantity protein in the diet than a non-exercising person. If you can't eat a lot of protein foods, protein shakes can help.

What basic exercises are recommended?

We'll talk about 3 exercises primarily to perform in our abdominal routine: crunches, bicycle crunches, and captain's chair or legs. In my opinion, and we will now explain each part, the only exercise that would be properly recommended is the abdominal wheel, since the others, while not being overly functional for what we are interested in, carry the potential risk of injury in the long run.

This is an exercise that, when performed with movement, allows us to work the rectus muscle very well. Depending on the degree of difficulty we want, we can lower ourselves closer to the floor until we almost touch it with our stomach or instead of kneeling, start standing up. Of course, we must be careful not to perform this exercise if we have pathologies in the shoulders or back.

Before training, some people lack vigor and drive - pre-workout complexes (something like energy drinks for athletes) can help here.

More known fact- 2-3 hours before training, it is advisable to eat complex carbohydrates, but not everyone has the opportunity to do this. In this case, a protein-carbohydrate cocktail will come in handy. So sports nutrition is quite suitable for both experienced and beginner athletes.

But let's get to the reason why we should no longer engage in this exercise. There are more and more studies that talk about the compressive forces they are subjected to when we perform this movement, noting that for every 5 degree flexion of our column, the compressive force between the discs increases by approximately between 10 and 20%.

A classic version of the previous exercise, the purpose of which is “supposedly” to work on oblique abs. Here we will see two critical points by which we must avoid this exercise: on the one hand, as we mentioned in the previous paragraph, the bending of the column causes an increase in the pressure between the discs, but on the other hand, this pressure strengthens this exercise it will add torsional force. pacified by the twisting motion we make to touch the elbow to the opposite knee.

Do I need to change anything in the training program after a break in training (vacation, illness, etc.)?

Yes, working weights. There is very little chance that after a week of absenteeism, much less illness, you will come and immediately start doing everything the same as before the break.

But if you reduce all working weights by 20 percent and rest a little longer between approaches, then the body should accept it very well. And after just a few workouts, return the working weights to their previous level.

Captain's chair or leg lifts

Originally designed to work, but again incorrectly and with average risk of injury.

What abdominal exercises should you do in the gym?

Now there are a few exercises that everyone should include in their abdominal routine that can strengthen all the core muscles while minimizing the risk of injury. Without a doubt, the best exercise to include in the crunches of life. They directly affect the rectus abdominis muscle and in turn recruit the entire back musculature to maintain a neutral back position and posture.

Is it worth coming to class today if you had to drink yesterday?

If it was a glass of wine, then you shouldn’t skip the workout. If you really had a lot of fun yesterday, then it would be better to pause for at least a day:

firstly, training after alcohol gives excessive load on the heart
secondly, alcohol impairs protein synthesis in the body, in other words, it prevents our muscles from growing

What to do if the expected result from exercise (weight loss) does not occur? Change coach? Switch to a different training program?

First of all, look at yourself - do you completely obey your trainer, do you eat as he says. If your discipline has nothing to reproach, then there are two options:

They also have the advantage of being able to count on something that makes us not miss them. My advice after seeing the articles and videos published recently is that you do the plates between 8-10 seconds instead of searching for a position for minutes and minutes.

Like the front plates, it has options to avoid boredom. And when performing it, the recommendation is the same: the plate lasts from 8 to 10 seconds. This is perhaps an unknown exercise to many, but if it works well, it requires a lot of effort from all the muscles that make up the core.

Even this ratio of calories in the diet to exercise is not suitable for your body (here it’s up to you to decide whether to cut calories or add gym visits)
you have a hormonal imbalance

Is a swimming pool beneficial after the gym?

A swimming pool after the gym is useful, as well as separate from the gym. After training, swimming in the pool can replace cardio exercise.

This can be done both on a pulley and with elastic bands, and if we want to work at different angles, we can raise or lower the height of the pulley or elastic band so that the force that pulls us is not always in the same plane, if not , then it comes from diagonal directions.

The best workout in the gym. . Everything has its first time in life, and by deciding to give up a sedentary life through exercise and good nutrition, there will be many fears, doubts and problems that you will have to face. On the other hand, weight training will help correct your body posture, mainly due to the imbalances that occur when you perform improperly during office work.

You might also be interested in a review of fitness apps and services.

Every girl who dreams of losing weight and wants to have slim figure, at some point thinks about the gym. Let's face it, if you take the issue of building a slim body seriously, you simply cannot do without working out at a fitness club. However, even after purchasing a membership and spending days in the gym, many girls do not achieve the desired result. Why is this happening?

What effect does weight training have on our body?

Do you want to know where the magic happens with the scale? Well, it's not that complicated, with a little logic we will understand it: when we expose the muscles to "extra" weight, the muscle fibers that compose it begin to tear. The body, through protein synthesis, will continue to repair these small tears, causing the muscles to become more resilient and, of course, larger.

Depending on your goals, you should formulate a specific procedure for each activity. For example, if your goal is to increase muscle mass and strength, the routine will be based on higher weights, but with a small amount reps, whereas if the goal is to develop resistance, you should choose a more comfortable weight but do more reps.

Experienced fitness instructors pay attention to typical mistakes that the fair sex makes in the gym. By making such mistakes, lovely ladies not only do not improve their appearance, but also risk developing health problems. Read the information below and think about whether you are working on your figure correctly?

How to start training with weights

Find a place to travel

When you have such a variety of equipment at your disposal, you may get confused and not know what to use, so since you are new to weight training, you should choose those that provide stability, ease of use and, above all, less risk of getting injuries.

Most of the time, on the same machines, they give instructions for use: once you have improved your physical state with machines that you can start training with. When we start training with weights, we get excited and we want to do every exercise there is, even with heavier weights than we can resist. This is a common occurrence when we are still starting out. However, in this case we must focus on developing good movement technique. Don't rush to increase the intensity, it is important to advance the resistance while maintaining proper execution.

8 mistakes in the gym that prevent you from losing weight

1. Fear of weight
Most girls, when they come to the gym, are not at all eager to grab dumbbells and “pull” weights, and all because they are afraid of “pumping up.” According to the ideas of such girls, weights will make their muscles rounder and their shoulders “grow”, which means that a male figure will begin to form. However, experts have long proven that this is impossible. Strength exercises are simply necessary for the appearance of an elastic butt and an athletic figure through the processing of fat mass.

When you have perfected your technique and gained better muscular endurance, you will be ready to increase the weight, in addition, you will also start to notice results, and of course, you will avoid injury. There are gyms that include a trainer, but other places you'll have to pay for their advice. Is a personal trainer really necessary? Although you are a beginner, this is probably necessary.

Heavy training can be quite challenging, especially for the injuries you are exposed to; therefore, the trainer will facilitate the development of a specific procedure according to your needs and physical problems that you may experience. In turn, they will correct shortcomings and errors when performing each exercise.

In order for fat to be stored in minimum quantity a person must have a well-developed muscle mass. In addition, it is spent on restoring the body after strength exercises. a large number of energy, which means fat is burned. Therefore, do not avoid strength exercises and be sure to include exercises with dumbbells and work on weight machines in your workouts.

Not the most professional are exempt from injury, it is more common than we think, mainly when we learn to use weight. Accidents with weights do occur, but their prediction is based on using a light weight at the beginning. In general, when we start pushing our muscles, we forget that there are very small muscles that are not developed, and when they are exposed to weight that they cannot tolerate, they tear. Besides, human body not only consists of muscles, but there will also be essential elements that you must consider, such as tendons and ligaments; who are highly prone to injury with poor technique or underweight.

2. Passion for cardio exercises
For beginners who come to the gym to lose weight excess weight, there is a false opinion that the main emphasis should be on cardio exercises, that is, on aerobic exercise. In fact, endurance exercises are only an addition to strength training exercises. To systematically lose excess weight, it is important to devote 70% of your time to cardio exercises, and the remaining 30% to spend on strength exercises. Moreover, it is important to alternate loads so that the muscles warm up and warm up in a timely manner. In this case, you will minimize injury when performing strength exercises, and your muscles will hurt less after exercise.

For beginners who have just joined the gym, it is enough to do 3 cardio exercises per week, each lasting 30 minutes. Over time, the duration of such loads will have to be increased, because when jogging on a treadmill or pedaling on an exercise bike, glycogen is burned for the first 15–20 minutes, and only after its reserves are depleted does subcutaneous fat begin to “burn.” Ideally, you should aim for 45-60 minutes of cardio and 15 minutes of intense strength training. This combination will bring maximum benefit and bring you closer to your goal.

3. Daily monotonous exercises
Using the advice of non-professionals, or creating a training program for themselves, many girls, when they come to the gym, perform the same monotonous exercises. And then they are surprised that they failed to lose weight at all! A huge disadvantage of the same type of exercise is that the same muscles are in constant voltage, and besides, they often get injured, and therefore simply do not have time to recover by the next lesson. As a result, the girl feels tired after training and doesn’t see any progress at all. And this becomes a serious obstacle to losing weight.

Muscle growth and its formation in place of adipose tissue occurs only with full recovery and overcompensation, and therefore give each muscle group involved in the exercises a rest for at least 2 days, especially if you are doing strength exercises. When you come to the gym next time, work out other muscle groups, and let these rest. This alternation will be optimal for losing weight and converting fat into muscle, because everyone knows that muscles grow during rest, between trips to the fitness club.

4. Exercise beyond measure
Some representatives of the fair sex simply exhaust themselves with training, thus hoping to get the maximum result in the minimum amount of time. short time. In fact, such an obsession with the idea of losing weight does not lead to good things! If you go to the gym every day and work up a sweat, your body will slow down metabolic processes, and will also begin to intensively produce the “stress hormone” cortisol, which will contribute to the accumulation of fat. As a result, you will only make things worse for yourself!

Think about what exactly you would like to get from training? If your goal is beautiful abs, you shouldn’t do crunches every day. It is enough to perform 3-4 approaches 15–20 times 2 times a week and the desired result will not take long to arrive. Remember, rest is no less important for the result than the training itself.

5. Long rest
Another obstacle to losing weight can be an unreasonably long rest between workouts. Many girls naively believe that the result of losing weight depends on the time spent in the gym, and therefore between approaches they allow themselves to walk around the gym, chat with friends or talk on the phone. As a result, there is no need to talk about any weight loss, because the result depends not on time, but on the quality of the workout.

Professionals recommend avoiding long rests between approaches, because during this time the muscles cool down, which means that all preparatory work for burning fat is reduced to zero. Rest between approaches should be 1–1.5 minutes and no more. And when performing this or that exercise, it is important not just to lift and lower weights, but to concentrate on pumping a specific muscle group. By the way, before classes it is advisable to turn off mobile phone, because he calls, as a rule, at the most inopportune moment and only distracts from doing the exercises.

6. Bend to the side
Most girls are sure that to reduce their waist they definitely need to do oblique abdominal crunches or side bends. This is actually a huge mistake and here's why. Oblique crunches really help men achieve perfect proportions, with a narrow pelvis and broad shoulders, however, this exercise strengthens and significantly develops the oblique abdominal muscles, which, increasing in size, expand the waist! That is why, when performing oblique bends with weights, you will never achieve a wasp waist. Remove this element from your exercise program, leaving straight crunches, which are useful for forming an elastic tummy.

7. Nutrition before and after training
Of course, exercising on a full stomach is unhealthy. In this case, you will experience discomfort from food that has not yet had time to be digested in the body, and simply “jumps” around the stomach. However, you can’t train on an empty stomach either. Firstly, you need energy for a full workout, and secondly, if you exercise on an empty stomach, you may simply faint. This is why you need to eat before classes, but eat right! Let it be scrambled eggs from one egg, with the addition of a spoonful of boiled oatmeal, or a couple of spoons of cottage cheese with raisins and a cup of coffee. This food will give you a boost of energy without filling your stomach.

Not eating for two hours after training, supposedly because subcutaneous fat is actively burned during this time, is another common misconception. It is necessary to eat, as the body needs to restore strength. Another thing is what exactly to eat and in what quantity. So, in order not to disrupt the weight loss process, after training you can eat a handful of strawberries, a pear or an apple, low-fat yogurt or cottage cheese. And after an hour and a half to two hours, you can eat some heavy carbohydrates - a couple of spoons of porridge with a piece of boiled beef, fish or chicken. All this will benefit your body.

8. Water during training. To drink or not to drink?
Finally, many representatives of the fair sex make the mistake of completely refusing water during training. Water balance is very important for the body, both during rest and during training periods, and therefore you must drink water during exercise! All professional athletes drink water when working out on exercise machines, stopping the intake of liquids only a few days before the competition in order to adjust their weight.

A person who drinks water while working out in the gym promptly compensates for the fluid that his body loses through sweat. If there is no such compensation, the body will get tired and simply will not be able to perform the tasks assigned to it. Moreover, refusing water can lead to dehydration and will threaten to slow down your metabolism, which means it will become an obstacle to losing weight. And in addition to this, you will experience dizziness and fainting.

Take note of these tips and stop making mistakes when working on your figure in the gym. As a reward for this you will receive beautiful body with attractive shapes. Health and beauty to you!

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