Mistake 1: No plan
Any physical activity is better than none. But if you train without a plan, you risk making mistakes that hold back your progress. In that case, we don’t know the goal we want to achieve with our workouts. We also don’t know how often or how long we should train. The result? After the first four weeks, we feel a boost in strength and satisfaction from the results we’ve achieved. But later, progress slows down, and discouragement sets in.
It may seem that intuitive training is a good alternative to a classic workout plan. The catch is that only advanced individuals with knowledge, experience, and – most importantly – self-discipline to keep training consistently can really benefit from it. Instead of relying on intuition, it’s better to set up a workout plan with a trainer.
A well-designed workout plan should include a realistic goal that can be achieved within a set timeframe. What kind of goal? It depends on your individual needs and abilities.
Mistake 2: Poor diet
You build your fitness in the kitchen too. Very often, however, people believe that since exercise burns calories, there’s no need to worry about what or how much they eat. In reality, energy balance is just one of many factors that make up a proper diet tailored to your individual needs. And just like with a workout plan, quality – meaning regular and proper nutrition – is key.
A high-quality nutrition consultation starts with a thorough body composition analysis and blood tests. This helps identify your body’s key needs, spot potential nutrient deficiencies, and determine your basic daily energy requirements. If we want to lose body weight, it will be negative. If we want to build muscle mass, it will be positive. Next, a meal plan is created based on your individual needs and workout plan, with supplements added if necessary.
Just like a workout plan, your diet needs to be sustainable. An overly strict calorie cut (e.g., more than 500 kcal), hard-to-find ingredients, or meals that require special knowledge and extra prep time are the most common issues when planning a meal plan. That’s why it’s also worth consulting a specialist in this area.
Mistake 3: Routine
No workout plan is set in stone. The body adapts to exercise stimuli, so after a while, it gets used to specific movement patterns, loads, and types of exercises. The body’s adaptation period usually occurs between the 3rd and 6th week of training – at this point, you often feel like doing an extra set, lifting heavier, or adding new elements to your cardio. And that’s perfectly normal. The key is not to stop there – after six weeks at the latest, review your progress, create a new workout plan, and take on bigger challenges.
Boredom during a workout is a sign that you’re training below your potential. This naturally leads to slower progress, or even a plateau and loss of motivation. It’s important to remember that reaching your goal requires stepping out of your comfort zone. This is exactly how progress is made in any discipline.
Mistake 4: Incorrect technique
Incorrect starting position, using weights that are too heavy, rushing through reps, and incomplete range of motion are just some of the most common mistakes during a workout. That’s why it’s important to focus on proper technique. Otherwise, we train less effectively, develop bad habits, and risk injuries. Failing to master basic movement patterns will become a major barrier when performing more advanced exercises or working with heavier weights.
Our advice for beginners: less, slower, but more precise. That’s exactly why gyms and fitness clubs put mirrors on the walls – so everyone can see how their body moves during exercises. If you still have doubts about proper technique, it’s worth asking a trainer. If you can’t maintain the starting position or complete another rep, it’s time to end the set. And if you have trouble with your range of motion, it’s worth adding mobility exercises to your workout plan.
Mistake 5: Lack of rest
Many physically active people believe that in sports – just like in life – success comes only from hard work. The problem arises when we fall into a training grind mentality. Whether it’s from training too hard or from performance pressure, not getting enough rest sabotages your workout results.
Depending on the situation, the body needs 48 to 72 hours to recover and restore balance. Ignoring this and training the same muscle groups while fatigued will prevent you from achieving the results you want. The same happens if we do intense workouts right before bedtime. Elevated cortisol levels interfere with muscle growth. Insufficient tissue recovery leads to injuries, strains, and inflammation. On the other hand, poor sleep disrupts hormonal balance, increases stress and fatigue, and negatively affects workout results. Anyone who thinks they’re still not doing enough in this situation is on a fast track to overtraining.
Rest should be treated as an integral part of your workout plan. Saying “no rest is like no training” is a bit of an exaggeration – but it’s not entirely wrong. Do intense workouts, but remember to schedule 1-3 hours for cooldown, at least 7 hours of sleep, and 48 hours for recovery. If you can’t fit this in, it’s worth adjusting your workout plan accordingly.
Mistake 6: Discipline issues
Workout effectiveness depends not only on physical effort but also on your mindset. Psychologists, such as Roy Baumeister, have compared human willpower to a muscle that can be trained. Others have emphasised that a key aspect of self-discipline is the ability to stay focused on your goal, resist distractions, and delay gratification. Self-discipline in sports is about controlling your emotions to achieve specific training tasks and goals.
People with strong internal motivation find it easier – provided they can stay true to their personal beliefs and goals. They train because they want to, enjoy it, and know why. The problem occurs when motivation works like a “carrot and stick” – when you exercise just to earn a reward or avoid a punishment. If we don’t have a strong external source of motivation, it’s worth considering working with a trainer – either one-on-one or in group sessions.
A basic tool that helps with self-discipline is a training journal. Whether you keep it on paper or digitally, tracking your activity provides a sense of satisfaction, and the knowledge you gather is always useful. If we want to be completely honest with ourselves, we should also record in the journal any diet slip-ups, use of stimulants, poor nights of sleep, or skipped warm-ups. One “slip-up” isn’t a problem, but it’s worth watching to see if they gradually become part of your lifestyle.
Mistake 7: Impatience
Social media make us believe that the whole world is at our fingertips. Just one new “revolutionary” workout with no effort and “miracle” supplements, and “in a month” we’ll look like a fitness influencer with millions of followers. If we buy into this approach, we’re more likely to get discouraged from exercising than to see any real results. Chances are we’ll also come across “miracle” methods for a perfect body that have nothing to do with solid knowledge about the human body and health.
Under normal conditions, the body needs 3-6 weeks to adapt to exercise. Visible changes, like bigger, more defined muscles or a leaner physique, take 2-3 months of consistent work. We reach the basic level of fitness needed for more advanced types of physical activity between the 4th and 6th month of training. Comparing yourself to people who make a living from fitness only creates unnecessary mental pressure and pushes you toward basic mistakes. Especially since the body’s response to training stimuli is highly individual, depending on factors like sex, age, fitness level, body composition, and more.
For many people, the desire to achieve an attractive physique is a key motivation for staying active. And there’s nothing wrong with that – as long as it’s truly OUR goal, not an artificial expectation imposed by others. That’s why we should avoid “miracle fixes” from the internet and focus instead on honestly following our workout plans. It’s simply healthier this way, and the results will come sooner or later.
References:
- Pontzer H., Yamada Y., Sagayama H. i inni, Daily energy expenditure through the human life course, Science, 2021.
- Schoenfeld B. J., Grgic J., Krieger J., How many times per week should a muscle be trained to maximize muscle hypertrophy? A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining the effects of resistance training frequency, Journal of Sports Sciences, 2019.
- Meeussen R., Duclos M., Foster C. i inni, Prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the overtraining syndrome: joint consensus statement of the European College of Sport Science and the American College of Sports Medicine, Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 2013.
- Baumeister R., Tice D., Vohs K., The Strength Model of Self-Control, Current Directions in Psychological Science, 2007.
- Duckworth A. L., Seligman M. E. P., Self-Discipline Outdoes IQ in Predicting Academic Performance of Adolescents, Psychological Science, 2005.
- Werner K. M., Berkman E. T., Motivational dynamics of self-control, Current Opinion in Psychology, 2024.
- https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/how-much-sleep-do-you-actually-need-202310302986
- https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a36620732/how-long-does-it-take-to-see-workout-results/
- https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/a61927639/how-long-to-see-fitness-results/