Beginner fitness mistakes to avoid

Every lifter was a beginner at some point in time and has a list of mistakes from that time. Those who don’t are probably still beginners, although they do not feel like it.

For all the lucky beginners who came across this blog post, I will list some of the easily avoided mistakes. If not avoided, these mistakes will slow down short term progress, or even worse, long term one.

Skipping leg day

The hardest muscle group to train are legs both mentally and physically, so this mistake is the most alluring one.
Almost no beginner likes to squat, especially with weight placed on him. There is no easy repetition and good luck getting 10 of those.
But legs and glutes are foundation of all athletic performance and great long term predictor of our health.
So learn to enjoy training legs, endure the stress leg training provides and your glutes will trigger wet dreams.
You don’t want that Johnny Bravo look.

Not learning bulletproof technique

Learning exercise technique is not an easy task, but do you know what is even harder?
Glad you ask.. it is much harder to relearn technique.
It takes a lot of time and gains to relearn bad technique so you might as well learn it the right way.
You lose gains because you need to drop the weight to correct technique and it takes time to reprogram your mind to do a different movement on autopilot.
That is why it is essential to learn correct technique while you are beginner because it makes no difference to you at the time.
You are weak nevertheless, so you might as well be a weak dude with proper technique.
And once you are strong, it is impossible for you to execute the movement poorly.
Just do it Swole Bro.

Using wrong weights

There are two ways to be wrong and you guessed it right.. you can either use too much or too little weight.

With too much weight you compromise technique and amplify injury risk. There are multiple types of injuries and none of them should be taken lightly.
Injuries deserve a topic on it’s own, but keep in mind that the best thing to do is put ego aside and progress slowly and steadily at weekly basis.
Injuries are the reason number one for losing gainz Swole Bro.

With lover weight there is one scary problem, you spend time in a gym and get no gains.
Don’t do that, have a plan and follow it. Select repetition number threshold and when you reach it raise the weight.
Don’t be afraid of hard training, it should be hard and uncomfortable. That’s how you get stronger mindset and a body.
Get strong!

Being clueless about diet

Now, I’m not saying that you should track every gram, calorie or grain of salt but this is a time when you should slowly get familiar with the concept of diet.
As a beginner you can get away with not caring, but as time goes by and you get stronger, you progress will stall.
You could start caring about diet when it stalls, but it takes time to get used to it and that is the time lost.
If you get used to it before absolute necessity, your progress would continue much longer and you would get benefits from good diet long before.
Faster progress, better recovery, you name it.
Get familiar with calories, calorie maintenance, calorie surplus and deficit, tracking macros and do not stall before time!

Not taking recovery seriously

Good nights sleep helps muscles release protein-building amino acids into the bloodstream at an increased rate.
During rapid eye movement (REM) growth hormones are released which helps with muscle repair. This grows muscles bigger and stronger over time.
You can think of sleep as steroids and if you get at least 7 hours you are good, but push it to 9 and it’s the best!
Sleep is crucial for bodybuilding in general, whether you are beginner or advanced lifter, but beginners are more inclined to not take it seriously.

Not focusing on compound movements

Compound movements are exercises which target multiple muscles at the same time which saves your time and energy.
Focusing on these movements will build your muscle foundation and you will notice fast gains in strength, endurance and muscle size.
I’m not saying there is no place for isolation exercises, but at this point of your journey they should be kept on minimum.
So focus on squats, hip hinges, rows, pull ups, presses most of your time and if you notice that your hand or shoulder size is lacking introduce few sets for these areas.
Remember, this is a long term game and there will always be weak link in your physique. Strong foundation is essential and compound movements are way to go.
Get strong at them!

Avoiding cardio

Cardio is crucial part of healthy lifestyle. Between bodybuilding and cardio, you should probably pick the latter.
Heart and blood vessel conditions, cholesterol and blood pressure levels, weak heart and lungs, can be greatly improved with cardiovascular exercise.
You should be strong and athlete, because stronger you get training becomes more cardio demanding swole bro!

There are so many things you can do for this type of activity.
Whether you choose sport activities, such as team sports, grappling, boxing, tennis, or simple running, sprint or high-intensity interval training, swimming, jumping rope etc.. you are covered.

Do your cardio!

Not having a plan

This one is classic and I see it every gym I go. Beginner comes in, turns around few times, finds dumbbells, says to himself “I know this!!” and starts doing curls.
I’m guilty of this myself, being shy and self conscious in a gym, not knowing what to do.
Coming to the gym is first win you get on this journey and it is much better than the alternative, but don’t be stuck there.
Find good beginner program, do your diligence and ask somebody if you are not sure you perform movements correctly.

Consistency

Without consistency there is no progress and if you want to get strong, big and juicy get serious about this Swole Bro.
Missing one workout in a month or two can happen, but I want you to feel grief when it happens and you better have good reason for it!

Overdoing it

Accept the fact that this takes time and most of muscle growth does not happen in a gym but in your bed and your stomach.
If you overdo it, you risk injury and burnout which is devastating for your bodybuilding journey.
Learn to enjoy the process, do your best every workout and try to get stronger every week.. with this approach, you are bound to get big!

Conclusion

“Only a fool learns from his own mistakes. The wise man learns from the mistakes of others.” – Otto Von Bismarck

Until next time!