Stop Doing These

Hey ladies, it’s been a while. Between vacation, family life, and a new job for Alan, life has been crazy. But I’m getting back into the swing of blogging (I promise).

Photo credit: @karlieraephotography

Today I wanted to talk about seven things that are probably hurting your progress in the gym. I’ve been guilty of all of these at one point. Which ones resonate the most for you?

1) Changing up your workouts every week. Instead, follow a progressive program that runs for at least 12 weeks. I enjoy watching “swipe through” IG workouts for inspiration and education, but they’re not a substitute for a real program.

2) Doing low weight / high reps to “tone” the muscle. Ok, let me back up for a second. Low weight and high repetitions is a good tactic for endurance. But for building muscle (aka “toning”), you’ll want to lift pretty heavy and aim for sets of 6-12.

3) Thinking the scale is a good measure of your progress. Nope. The scale isn’t the best way to track your progress, and you’re much more than your weight, anyway. Instead, I’d recommend tracking your strength gains, how you’re feeling, and how your clothes fit.

4) Skipping meals. Yikes, big nope to this one. Food is fuel, and you need plenty of it for muscle building. Women over 30 typically need at least 1,800-2,200 calories a day. You guys probably know this by now, but if you’re looking for almond mom chic, look elsewhere than my account.

5) Skipping rest days. Muscle is built outside the gym. You don’t need to work out 7 days straight; honestly, 4 days is enough. And while I’m on the subject of rest, be sure to get some sleep - at least 7 hours a night (I know it’s hard, but try).

6) Avoiding carbs. Carbs are the body’s main source of energy and should make up the largest percentage of your daily calories at 45-65%. Plus they’re delicious. Most of your carbs should be coming from plants, fruit, and whole grains.

7) Comparing yourself to others. We are all different and your journey won’t be like anyone else’s. Benchmarking your progress against someone else’s only brings down your focus and confidence. It’s you vs. you always sis.

As always, if you found this helpful, please share with a friend. Follow along on IG @haileighsenatore and TikTok @fitwithhaileigh. Thank you for being here, I appreciate you. <3