“So I should be sleeping more? I thought sleep was a waste of time!”
Yes, I’ve thrown out pathetic statements like that in the past. I struggled to figure out this whole working out thing. There’s nothing more confusing than trying to get in shape. I made every single mistake in the book.
Are you making these same mistakes as a rookie to fitness? Let’s look at my mistakes to see if you’re making the same ones!
Fitness is exciting.
The weight loss/weight gain/look sexy industry is freaking HUGE! Supplements are huge, as are the magazines, and everything else that’s involved in the process. This is why as a rookie it’s easy to get caught up in the hype.
It’s easy to make mistakes and waste years getting nothing done. It’s easy to blow a small fortune on supplements and useless crap.
I have good news for you. Amazing news. I’ve already made all of the fitness rookie mistakes for you!
What are the most common mistakes that we all make as fitness rookies? What should you be watching out for?
Mistake #1: Eating crap after a workout.
You just worked out. You’re body is exhausted and your mind might be fried. So what do you do? You treat yourself to pizza to reward your hard work.
You trained like animal, so you can get away with a slice of pizza. Right? Ugh I wish. Eating is a huge percentage of your physical appearance and performance. Training is great but you can’t out-train a crappy diet. It’s really tough to burn those calories from the poutine on the treadmill.
I’m proud of you for working out. That’s so cool. But please try not to spoil your fitness goal by eating like a pig.
What can you do about this?
Grab a protein shake if you have to (not the best option). Whatever you do, don’t ruin your hard work with a pulled pork poutine (my weakness). Working out is not a justification for eating like crap. I’m a huge fan of cheat days/earned meals. Those are awesome. Plan for them. Just please try not to eat like crap after very workout.
Mistake #2: Eating food that’s labeled as being “healthy.”
When something is healthy it doesn’t need to be labeled as “healthy” or “good for you” in fancy font size 200 right on the cover.
You won’t see these labels on a can of tuna or a container of egg whites. We know that they’re healthy. We don’t need signs or labels to help us. When something is truly healthy, you’ll know. You won’t need a fancy advertisement.
It’s crazy how insane the advertising is on kids’ snacks. A healthy double-marshmallow-brownie-low-in-trans-fat. Wtf? Do you really think that this is good for you? Of course it’s not. It’s horrible!
What’s the solution here?
If you’re going for a cheat meal that’s awesome. Enjoy it. Don’t try to eat healthy by buying crappy food that’s labelled as “healthy.” You going to date a hooker if she wears a shirt that says “wife material?” HUH?
Just because something is labelled as being healthy, that doesn’t make it healthy. I can label as sleeping over in my bed as good for you, but that won’t make it true.
I say that you eat food that makes you feel good. Don’t worry about “healthy” labels or “low in sugar” crap.
Mistake #3: Buying every fitness magazine.
Stop buying fitness magazines.
There’s no possible way to gain two inches in 24 hours. This rule applies to your penis and your biceps.
Believe me, I could use two inches… on my biceps!
What’s the solution here?
Your first workout for today should be to toss out your fitness magazines in the trash can. You can squat them, press them, or launch them. Whatever you do, dump those useless fitness magazines and stop buying them. Stop looking for shortcuts. Stop looking for the next 3 weeks to an 8-pack guide. You have the rest of your life to get in shape.
Bust out some pushups or try to pull yourself up. Don’t worry about curling a 15lb dumbbell 1,000 times in hopes of gaining size. Stop buying magazines.
Mistake #4: Relying on supplements.
Don’t get me wrong, supplements can be great and can help you blast through a plateau. But that’s not until you’ve peaked and have been training for a decent period of time. You should never start off with supplements. You should especially never take supplements while NOT working out.
On the other hand, many supplements are a complete waste of time. $80 for a ton of caffeine? Why not just drink a cup of coffee instead of putting this concoction into your body?
What should you do as a rookie?
Stop relying on supplements! Build a habit first. Be consistent with your workouts and your eating. When you plateau, consider your options when it comes to supplements.
If you want to start with some supplements, I’m a huge fan of vitamin D in the morning and fish oil with my meals. Don’t worry about supplements like detox teas that promise you to get abs by next week. The only thing that will be lighter will be your wallet.
Mistake #5: Worrying about fancy apps.
I don’t have any apps on my phone. I don’t have an app that tracks how many times I blink per second. I don’t have an app that tells me what to do. I just lift and try to perform better than I did last time.
If you want to keep track of your workouts, you can just use your notepad on your cellphone. No need for anything fancy. I currently use a free app that makes it easy to track my lifts just so that I know that I’m pushing a little more ever session. Stop worrying about apps for everything.
What should you do instead?
Just workout. Stop playing around with apps. Ensure that you’re not missing workouts because consistency is everything when it comes to trying to get jacked.
Use the mirror too. See how you feel. Track your progress with pics to ensure that you’re actually getting results instead of wasting your time.
Mistake #6: Getting useless feedback on your training/diet.
“You shouldn’t go too low on your squats.”
A guy at the gym had the nerve to lecture my brother for squatting low. I’m jealous of his low squats. I have no idea where this dude came from.
Everyone is quick to voice their opinion. Giving advice is easy. Accepting it is difficult. Every single human being has an opinion on health and what’s good for you.
I get this all of the time. Someone judges how I eat or the way that I train.
So I ask questions when I feel like being a jerk (most of the time I just politely nod my head and thank them for the advice because I don’t care to argue with every single person in the gym):
- Oh, so my egg whites are bad for you. How many cigarettes did you smoke today?
- Working out puts a strain on your body? What about the case of beer you drink this weekend?
- My workout sucks? What do you do that’s better?
There are times where I receive a profound answer and learn something new. Awesome. Most of the time people just want to complain and feel better about their lack of progress.
What should you do to avoid this rookie mistake?
Once you find a routine that works for you, stick to it. Listen to everyone and nod your head. Don’t let them change your mind.
Mistake #7: Not setting goals.
Do you want to lose weight or gain it? Do you want abs? Do you want to put on 20lbs?
Make up your damn mind! Your goal can’t be to look like Arnold (in his prime of course). You need realistic goals so that you have a reason for training and getting into fitness.
What are your goals?
By the end of the year I want to be to able to perform 20 consecutive wide-grip pullups and 100 consecutive pushups. Is it possible? Nope. That’s what makes it fun my friends.
What’s the solution here?
Set some goals and work towards them. You need to know where you’re going if you ever want to get there.
Those are the seven biggest mistakes that all fitness rookies make. I want you to avoid them if possible.
One day you’re going to look back and laugh at all of the stupid things that you did. This is what makes working out so much fun.