Going to the Gym But Not Seeing Results? You Might Not Be Exercising As Effectively As You Think

You've been heading to the gym diligently a few times a week, but you're still not seeing results? It turns out you might be wasting your time.

By doing the same workout all the time, your body eventually gets used to it and you just won't be working hard enough.

How can you make your workouts more effective? Here are some tips to bust out of your workout rut:

Combine strength training and cardio. Research shows that the most effective method of weight loss is to do a combination of strength training and cardiovascular workouts. That means it's better to do a combination than to just run, bike, or hit the weight machines without doing anything else. The key is to expend a lot of calories. Try doing full-body circuits with free weights, linking one exercise after the other without rest.

Change the workload. Eventually, your body will adapt to any form of exercise, so change your workload as you go. Say, for example, you usually do 15 pushups. Try doing inverted pushups (feet raised slightly above the head), or changing your arm position to make pushups harder. Whatever you do, keep challenging yourself to reach new heights.

Buddy up. Grab a partner and work out with someone else. You might find that you work harder than usual just having someone else with you.

Try something new. Don't just change the workload of your exercise; try to change up your workout itself from time to time. For example, if you usually run, why not try biking or a boot camp class to shock your body a bit? Just make sure you're working out at the same intensity as before. You can't go from an intensive boot camp-style workout to a gentle yoga class and expect the same results.

Alison Dunn is Editor of Primacy Life, a Canadian-based health, wellness and fitness website. Primacy Life is published weekly and covers important topics affecting Canadians everywhere. Visit Primacy.ca Primacy.ca today.