As someone who is serious about feeling and looking your best, you want to make every workout count.
You probably already try your best to do so. You likely have a carefully curated playlist to hype you up. You fit in gym time around your busy schedule. And, you’ve resisted those urges to skip that one exercise you hate.
While planning out when and how you’ll exercise is helpful, it doesn’t guarantee that you’re getting an optimal workout. The following are 5 ways that guarantee you’re getting the most out of your exercise time.
1. Run Hungry
Whether you’re working to slim down or bulk up, looking leaner is probably also part of your goal. One of the best strategies for lowering your body-fat percentage is working out shortly after waking up. By doing this, your body starts in a calorie deficit and your glycogen levels are low, which will allow the body to easily transfer to a fat-burning state.
2. Don’t Over Eat
A vast amount of the calories you consume go towards normally bodily functions. Typically, 70 to 75 percent of the calories expended in a day goes towards your needed basal metabolic functions. This includes everything from keeping your heart beating, to growing your nails.
When you go to the gym, you expend a lot of extra energy, which can result in a rumbling stomach or hunger pangs. It’s when this hunger hits that people give in to their urges and gorge on superfluous amounts of food.
To stave off that post-workout-induced hunger, increase your calorie intake by 20 to 30 percent of what your calorie tracker says. You’ll naturally burn of this specific percentage of those calories anyway. You can refuel your body without breaking your calorie count through a number of methods. You can eat small healthy snacks or try apple cider vinegar capsules to help suppress hunger.
3. Fuel Up To Build Muscles
While it’s beneficial to do cardio in a fasted state, you should definitely pre-fuel before a workout with weights. You need the energy to complete an intense session. Eat bananas, oats, and a fruit smoothie or a similar breakfast about a half an hour before heading to the gym. Protein is a good option for pre-workout fueling as it will easily absorb into your body.
4. Stay Away from Sports Drinks
There’s this widely held belief that sports drinks are a good hydration option after a workout. The truth of the matter is that a Vitaminwater after a run, or a Gatorade after cycling, often puts more calories into your body than you’ve burnt off. Plus, they are filled with unnecessary sugar. These drinks aren’t beneficial unless you’re doing an intense workout with an elevated heart rate for more than an hour. For the best weight-loss results, you should stick to water to ensure that you’re not consuming more calories than you’re attempting to burn.
5. Remember to Refuel
Getting nutrition into your body after working out is crucial to achieving your fitness goals. It’s important to refuel your body immediately after exercising to help replenish glycogen levels, increase protein synthesis and your ability to build muscle, as well as decrease protein breakdown. If you’re doing any type of resistance training then you’ll want a Greek yogurt or an egg-white omelet to get the most protein.
The Bottom Line
Achieving a fit and healthy process can be a difficult journey full of ups, downs, and plateaus. To fully get the results you dream of, you want to not only ensure your workouts are effective but also ensure that the foods you're putting in your body are the best options for you.