10 Reasons Why Your Workout Might Not Be Working Out

A new year has just started, and if you’re one of the millions of people that has made a New Year’s resolution, chances are it has something to do with improving your health. But if the definition of health is inaccurate, focusing on it can be very difficult. When you enter “what is health” into a search engine, you are given about three billion results in less than a second. What’s worse, is if you search with Google the top response is “the state of being free from illness or injury.” That definition, however, is misleading because society determines the threshold for what is considered a disease. The absence of disease or injury does not guarantee that a person is healthy or healing, just like the presence of disease does not guarantee that a person is unhealthy or not healing. The World Health Organization defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. According to the National Institute of Health the average person, children included, is starting the new year in the hole and gains about 1.5 pounds during the holidays. Over a 5 to 10-year span, that person can accumulate 7.5 to 15 pounds. We base successful weight loss with the simple phrase, “calories in vs calories out.” With that way of thinking, to have success with losing weight, you have to eat less and exercise more. What happens when you’ve tried that without success? “Calories in vs calories out” is such a destructive way of thinking because if you’re not successful it is implying you’re eating too much and/or you’re not moving enough. In a very blunt sense, you’re led to believe that you are lazy and gluttonous because you are overweight.

If you have ever struggled with gaining weight during the holidays and/or losing the weight with an exercise program, you aren’t alone. The National Institute of Health found that more than two in three adults are considered overweight or obese and more than one in three children are considered overweight or obese. Exercise might be the primary catalyst for weight loss, but there are other factors that have an equally important role. These are the top ten reasons your workout might not be working out.

You aren’t using proper form/technique – A specific exercise has the greatest impact on the body when the targeted muscle is brought through a full range of motion. If your range of motion is limited, the exercise might have a minimal health impact, if it has any at all.

Your workouts are too long – If you work out at a low intensity for a long period of time, you will burn fat during the workout but your body will store fat for the rest of the day, based on a survival instinct. In order to burn fat all day after your workout, your body has to burn sugar (glycogen) during the workout. Working out at a high intensity for a short burst is the only way to keep your body from using fat for energy during the workout. High intensity interval workouts also kick start your metabolism, so the earlier you workout the better.

You’re toxic – It is extremely difficult to lose weight if your body it toxic. Studies have shown that environmental toxins passed from mother to baby during pregnancy induce excess fat storage in the baby before birth.

You’re stuck in a rut – The problem with any good workout routine is that your body will eventually get used to it. Our bodies have an amazing ability to adapt to stress and will quickly get used to the same exercises. Using a workout program that constantly changes the time, tempo, and type of exercises will keep your body from hitting a plateau.

Your diet stinks – It doesn’t matter how much work you put in working out if all of your efforts are canceled out because of a poor diet. Whether you’re training your body to become a finely tuned fitness machine or just starting to exercise, the type of nutrients your body has for fuel makes a huge impact. The biggest thing to remember is that if your body is going to burn fat for energy throughout the day, it has to be given good fats. Sugar, alcohol, bad fats, and food additives can quickly derail the best workout program.

You’re not consistent –
You don’t have to exercise six days a week to get results, but you do have to be consistent. It is impossible to get results from a week of effort followed by two to three weeks off the wagon. Exercise programs like MaxT3 eliminate the hurdle of not enough time because each workout is less than 20 minutes. Everybody has an extra 10- 20 minutes in their schedule they can put towards exercise, and MaxT3 is safe for all ages and ability levels.

You aren’t getting enough rest –
Rest is an essential part of working out. Your body has to have time to recover. If you do not allow your body to get enough rest, results will begin to decrease. In extreme cases, muscle wasting can occur and exercise can have the reverse effect. Many studies have also shown that lack of sleep can negatively impact hormone production, blood sugar levels, and metabolism.

You aren’t drinking enough water – Dehydration has been connected to weight gain. If you do not drink enough water, your kidneys cannot flush out impurities. This, in turn, impacts other organs such as your liver. A liver that is not in optimal functioning cannot properly metabolize fats.

You’re too stressed – Chronic stress causes an increased production of Cortisol, a stress hormone that affects other hormones in the body and can increase weight gain. It is impossible to eliminate all stress with the snap of the fingers, but acknowledging sources of stress in your life and eliminating them over time will have a huge positive impact on your health.

You’re subluxated – If there are misalignments in your spine, there is no way your body is functioning how it should. Many problems with weight loss resistance can stem from hormone imbalances in the body. Correcting the problems in your spine will not only allow you to feel good and give you more range of motion to perform exercises, it will allow your body to function exactly how it was designed to, making it easier to maintain the proper weight.

By Zach Zovath, MEd CES

The 5 Essentials are not something you can pick and choose. You might be able to get away with neglecting one or two of the essentials for a while, but it will eventually catch up. It’s time to go all in with your health. You deserve it!