The Art of Having Fun

Happy & Healthy: The Best Workouts to Reach Your Personal Fitness Goals

by

7 years ago

The month of January is in full swing, and we all know what that means—hitting the gym, getting serious with our diets, and recommitting to the goals we may or may not have achieved in the previous year. I had so much fun discovering the satisfaction in getting healthy and shaping up in 2016, and I only plan on continuing that journey this year. That said, another thing I have realized this past year is that not all workouts are created equal. While getting your heart pumping one way or another is always a good thing, simply getting to the gym and hopping on the treadmill may not help you reach your specific fitness goals, which can lead to frustration, and sometimes giving up. Well this year I did a little research so I know exactly what I’m getting myself into, and I’m targeting my workouts toward each of my goals to make the most of my time spent sweating. Keep reading to see which workouts will best help you (and I) reach our fitness goals and see the change we hope for in 2017…

The Best Workouts to Reach Your Fitness Goals | Gray Malin

1. TO SLIM DOWN

The first obvious answer that comes to mind when we think of losing weight is doing cardio—lots and lots of cardio. While cardio is definitely essential to slimming down and getting healthy, many people misunderstand that when it comes to cardio, sometimes more is NOT actually more. Many who rely solely on something like running on the treadmill to lose weight often hit a plateau, and aren’t burning as many calories as they think they are. Instead, incorporate things like HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) and strength training with your regular cardio. HIIT is short bursts of intense energy followed by short recovery periods, and allows you to burn more calories in less time. Who doesn’t want that? Strength training (a.k.a. resistance training, or using weight to build lean muscle mass) is incredibly effective for losing weight because it not only decreases fat, but also increases your metabolism, meaning you will be burning more calories on a daily basis! Long story short, most experts recommend exercising 3-4 times a week, with about 20-30 minutes of cardio per session to effectively lose weight. The key is to get your heart pumping, challenge yourself, but also pay attention to your body. Keep in mind that overexerting yourself can be damaging to your body and prevent you from reaching optimal results, so make sure to carve out time to lay back and take a rest day! Your muscles need the time to recover, and so do you. Find something you love, and stick with it. (One of my favorite workouts for cardio is SoulCycle. It always kicks my butt, but somehow leaves me wanting more!) The Best Workouts to Reach Your Fitness Goals: To Get More Flexible | GrayMalin

2. TO BECOME MORE FLEXIBLE

This one is much easier said than done! It seems that when we were kids, we were flexible as ever and never had an ache or pain from exercising. Nowadays, I find that my muscles are stiffer and it takes more effort to really stretch them out. There are so many benefits to stretching, and there are even exercises that focus a large part on flexibility. (Yoga, anyone?) Yoga is in fact one of the absolute best exercises to increase flexibility, and for good reason! All of those poses, aligned with your breathing, help your muscles to relax into positions that you wouldn’t normally practice otherwise. And with consistent yoga practice (at least once a week), you’ll be more limber in no time. Yoga not only increases flexibility, but also builds core strength and centers your mind—sounds like the perfect package to me! The key to becoming more flexible is holding a stretch for several breaths, or at least 30 seconds at a time. This can also be done by doing simple stretches after your regular workout routine, when your muscles are warm and more willing to be stretched. Aside from yoga and after-workout stretching, Pilates is another great practice to help you get flexible (and tone up too!), as well as dancing, because it allows your body to cover a wide range of motion. The Best Workouts to Reach Your Fitness Goals | Gray Malin

3. TO BUILD MUSCLE & STRENGTH

When it comes to building muscle, it’s no secret that weightlifting is the way to go. In order to build strength, you have to have weight for resistance. Whether this is your body weight, dumbbells, or a machine, don’t be afraid to challenge yourself, but don’t push yourself to injury. (And always make sure to have a friend spot you wherever necessary! Safety is always first.) These exercises can include anything from bench presses to pull-ups, and countless options in between. If you’re looking to build muscle, make sure to focus on 1-2 muscle groups at a time, and give them time to rest afterward (for instance, don’t do two days of biceps and triceps in a row). The key here is to make sure your body is balanced—even if you’re only trying to grow one muscle group, don’t neglect the others, because many exercises actually benefit several muscles at a time and can help you reach your goal quicker.

4. TO PRACTICE ENDURANCE

Endurance can be one of the most difficult things to master, and I don’t think there will ever be a day where I am not practicing it! Endurance includes doing any activity (usually lower to medium intensity) over a sustained period of time, such as running, swimming, cycling, etc. However, these are by no means the only exercises that will build your endurance. Endurance is best built by doing a combination of things, with little rest in between. Now, I don’t mean you should go to the gym and do as many things as possible until you pass out. Do something like this—start with jumping rope, followed by a mile run, then squats, and repeat, with minimal rest in between. If you physically must stop, don’t hesitate to take a break, but endurance is often about mind over matter.

The Best Workouts to Reach Your Fitness Goals | Gray Malin

5. TO TONE UP

Toning up can also be a challenge, as it combines a few different requirements to really see results, and doesn’t rely on a scale to track progress. Not only does clean eating help you drop body fat and tone up quicker, but cardio is necessary to make way for those hard-earned muscles to show! To tone specific areas of your body, use more isolation exercises, where you are focused on targeting one muscle at a time, while working as few others as possible. If you’re looking to tone your whole body, try circuit training and body weight exercises that get your heart rate up, require some resistance, and increase metabolism. Pilates applies again here, as it is a great exercise for toning up and challenging your muscles in targeted ways. In the end, don’t rely on the scale while toning up—simply track your progress in a visual way, like taking routine pictures in the same place and pose each day. I hope some of these tips resonated with you all, and that you try something you may have not thought of before. My best piece of advice would be to find something you love and stick with it. Consistency yields greater results than anything, and if you love what you’re doing, it won’t even feel like exercise.

Good luck!

Xx GM

Photos: Nicholas Scarpinato