OUR BEST ADVICE FOR GYM NEWBIES

If you're new to the gym and looking for some advice to kickstart your fitness journey, you've come to the right place. In this article, we share our best tips for people who are new in the gym!

Increase your daily step count

 Walking is a great, low impact form of cardio. Increasing your daily step count is an amazing way to get more movement in daily, without requiring a lot of recovery. In fact, walking barely requires any recovery because of how low impact it is, depending on the volume and time, of course. You can start going on daily walks, add some inclined treadmill walk at the end of your workouts, or simply find ways to be naturally more active throughout the day!

Focus on having protein in every meal / enough protein throughout the day

Protein represents the building blocks of your muscles... LITERALLY. In order to grow strong and healthy muscles, you need to consume enough protein everyday. To make that easier without necessarily tracking your food, make sure you eat 3-6x a day, and try to include a source of protein in every meal/snack. 

Here are some protein sources you can trust : 

• Chicken and turkey ;
• Red meat ;
• Fish ;
• Whey protein or Isolate protein ;
• Greek yoghurt ;
• Cottage cheese ;
• Tofu ;
• Lentils and chickpeas ;
• Eggs and egg whites.

Strength train 3-4x a week

We know how it is : you start to workout, you're feeling extra motivated, and you want to go all out. However, this isn't the most optimal way to go. With this intense approach, you're most likely to give up after less than a month. 

What we suggest is you workout 3 to 4 times per week, which is pretty much the sweet spot. When you're in the gym, you tear down muscle ; it's when you rest and recover that you GROW muscle tissue! Don't neglect your rest days, they're a priority. 

Get as many nutrients as you can through food and complete with supplements

Eating whole foods, complex carbs, healthy fats and quality sources of protein is crucial when going on a fitness journey. Try getting as many nutrients as possible through food, and supplement the rest. Supplements are there to help you reach your nutritional goals and to optimize your results, but you can't only rely on them to do the whole job. For example, if you have a hard time eating enough protein, using a good quality protein powder can be a great tool. 

Opt for a slower, more sustainable approach

Short cuts and magical pills don't exist in the fitness industry. You can't buy health, bigger muscles, more strength, more power, more speed, and so on. Opting for a slow, steady and sustainable is what will win on the long run, and while it may be discouraging at first, remember this is a lifelong journey! In a couple years, the slow and steady approach will have lead to much better results than the yo-yo dieting and unstructured workout routines.

Start with the basics and stick with it

The internet can be a really confusing place when looking for health and fitness advice. The best thing you can do is learn the basic exercises for each muscle group, pick your favourites, and repeat them every single week. Combine repetition, progressive overload, consistency, discipline and patience, and you've got yourself the recipe for success.

*Progressive overload : increasing the difficulty every session/week to make sure you constantly keep progressing. This can be done through adding more sets, repetitions, weight, or time under tension. 

Cook majority of your meals at home

Diet is a really important part of a fitness transformation. What better than knowing what's in your food in order to get the results you're hoping for? Of course, going out to eat or for drinks here and there won't hurt you ; that's just a part of life. However, try making most of your meals at home, and find healthy recipes you enjoy! Who knows, cooking might become your new favourite hobby!

Overview

We believe fitness should always be something that ADDS to your life, not that controls it. We want to help you reach your goals while feeling your best, living your best life, and becoming your Limitless self!