If you are taking the time to work out, then you might as well be getting the most out of it. Right? The reality is, most women don’t work out correctly. Before I dive into this, let me first say that I am a fan of any exercise! Moving your body is super important and most people are not doing this enough. This is partly due to our lives becoming increasingly sedentary and partly to do with the fact that most people view working out as a chore or as a necessary punishment for wanting to lose weight. 

But in terms of wanting to make body composition changes (meaning gaining muscle and losing fat), most just aren’t doing it right. This is no fault to women. Many have been told to focus on workouts that burn the most calories possible. We all know that the best (perceived) way to do that is by hours of cardio or HIIT classes. But if you are wanting to change your body composition, then strength training is really where it’s at. This doesn’t mean that you need to give up other forms of exercise that you enjoy, but it does mean that your main focus should be on strength training.  

Which leads me into telling how you should be strength training, because I realize that people have very different ideas and definitions for what strength training is. 

When I say strength training I mean lifting weights. And when I say lifting weights, I mean lifting heavy. Now, it is important to point out that lifting heavy is relative to each individual. This does not mean that you need to be squatting like a weightlifter (unless of course you can), but it does mean that the weight you are choosing should be challenging. If you have been lifting the same weight for the last year or more then you aren’t lifting heavy. If you can have a conversation while doing your set…you aren’t lifting heavy. If you can do 15-20 reps…you guessed it, you aren’t lifting heavy!

Disclaimer – make sure you know what you are doing or ask someone who does! Proper form and range of motion are super important to make sure you avoid unnecessary injury. 

The next thing you want to make sure you are doing is fueling your workouts. If you want the best results, stop lifting fasted. This is important. When you lift, the goal should be to increase strength and build muscle – both of these are better accomplished in a fed state. If you are someone who wakes up and heads to the gym living on a prayer and caffeine to get you through your workout then you are not getting the most bang for your buck. Before you say, “I can only work out on an empty stomach” – try it! Choose a pre-workout snack that is mostly carbs. Typically our stomachs do not do well if we try to put a bunch of heavy fat or straight protein into it before a workout. This is the only time I recommend a “naked” carb. I love applesauce squeeze pouches, That’s It bars, dried fruit, or rice cakes – try it and tell me how much stronger you felt during your workout. 

Next, make sure to refuel after your workouts. There is a lot of debate about your “refuel window.” Most people believe that it needs to be within 30 minutes of your lift – which is why you see all the gym bros leaving with their shaker bottles in hand. But if you aren’t an athlete then I don’t think you need to get caught up on the semantics here. My advice comes from a much more practical place. I like to say refuel within 1-1.5 hours of finishing your workout. If you wait any longer, you are going to get hangry and feel tired. You should feel energized after your workouts. If you don’t refuel, it eventually catches up with you in the evening, and that’s when it becomes harder to control those late-night cravings. Make sure that you are having a post-workout snack or meal that consists of protein and carbs. Do not skip on the carbs. You need them to refuel your glycogen stores and you need that little insulin spike to help build muscle post-workout (again…we are thinking max results!)

The other critical thing that you need to focus on is rest – which is broken even further down into 2 things; adequate sleep and rest days. One of the best things you can do to increase your workout results is to get adequate sleep. I’m talking a minimum of 7, ideally 8+ hours. This means you shouldn’t be compromising sleep to get in a workout. I can’t tell you the amount of women I see spinning their wheels with this one. Lastly, you need rest/recovery days. When it comes to lifting, more is not better. You want to aim for 2-4 days of lifting per week. This allows you to have some solid rest days in between. This does not mean that you can’t move your body on your rest days. You absolutely can and should! Try to do some low-intensity movement like yoga, hiking, long walks, swimming, low-impact cycle, etc. This type of movement between your lifting days helps to improve recovery.

So to sum this all up, the best way to ensure that you see results from your workouts is to follow these steps:

Lift heavy

Fuel your workouts

Refuel post-workout

Rest and recover

And because muscle is money (and one of the key pillars to a healthy metabolism) this is something that we cover in-depth in Metabolism Makeover!

Your MM Coach, 

Brianna