Supercharge Your Workout

One of the best ways to keep seeing consistent results from
your workouts is to change things up on a regular basis.

For years I basically worked out the same way week in week
out, month in month out, year in and year out. What
happened? Eventually not much. I reached a plateau. My
muscles adapted and I stopped making progress. Don't get me
wrong, I was still in good shape. However, I wasn't seeing
the external results that I was after.

I know I'm not the only one who has fallen into that rut.
When I used to workout at the local gym I remember seeing
the same people doing the same routines the same way week
after week just like me. Guess what? Most of them weren't
making much progress either. There were a few exceptions,
but overall, I think most people were disappointed with the
results of doing the same old thing.

Listen and listen carefully. Settling for the same old same
old when it comes to your workout is a very bad decision.
Not only does it lead to boredom, which leads to losing
motivation, which may lead to an end of working out
altogether. But, it also leads to stalling on a plateau. On
the other hand, changing things up on a regular basis can
keep your workouts interesting, keep you motivated and keep
you seeing great results.

Simply making small adjustments to your workout program on
a regular basis will keep your mind engaged and keep your
muscles guessing. That will equate to increases in
strength, better muscle definition and greater fat loss.

Let me give you some examples of how you can change things
up.

If you enjoy jogging you can shock your system by adding a
few sprints into the mix. Not only will this make life more
interesting, but if will really boost your metabolism.

Every few minutes kick yourself up near your maximum speed
and hold it for twenty or thirty seconds (or whatever you
can handle), then slow back down to a jog. A few minutes
later, do it again and then again and again. Adding five or
six sprints to a jogging routine can have a huge impact.
This is called Interval Training, and studies have shown
that it can increase the effectiveness of your workout BIG
TIME. It will literally supercharge your routine.

This same technique also works with strength training. For
instance, when you work your upper body, if you are in the
habit of starting a workout with push-ups, then moving on
to pull-ups, then moving on to whatever, try changing the
order of the exercises and you'll be surprised at what
happens!

You can also alter the tempo of your repetitions. If you
generally move in a steady, up down, up down motion, change
it up. Instead of quickly lowering yourself down on a
push-up, squat or whatever you happen to be doing, take
several seconds for that movement (DOWN, two, three, four,
five, six), pause and hold at the bottom of the rep, then
explode back up.

For more variety you could do both the positive and the
negative of each rep very very slowly (DOWN, two, three,
four, five, six, hold, hold, hold, hold, UP, two, three
four, five six). Your total number of reps per set will
decrease, but with a slow rep you will find all sorts of
stabilizer muscles beginning to kick in that normally don't
get much of a workout at all.

If you really want to shock your system, you can try doing
what I like to call Mega Reps. Mega Reps are repetitions
that last as long as you can possibly hold the particular
position you are in. For instance a low squat, the mid
point in a push-up, the top of a pullup, or my all time
favorite handstands.

Combining, "UP one, DOWN one" movements with, "Up, two,
three four, DOWN, two three, four" and "UP, DOWN, two,
three, four" movements and the occasional Mega Rep will
give you mega results whether you are doing bodyweight
exercises or lifting weights. If you try doing mega reps
with weights be sure to always use a spotter.

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James Flanders is a teacher and motivator specializing in
physical and spiritual health. His new CD "Eat, Drink,
Move, Breathe" and DVD "Make The World Your Gym" are
getting great reviews. They are available at his fitness
site: http://www.weightlessfitness.com/