Starting a new fitness regimen can be exciting, but it’s also easy to fall into traps that stall progress. Whether you’re returning from a break, recovering from an injury, or beginning a new training cycle, it’s important to set realistic expectations to maintain momentum.
Streamline Your Sessions
The first workout in a new plan always takes longer to adapt than subsequent ones due to several factors:
1- Mastering New Movements:
Learning or reacquainting yourself with exercises can consume extra time.
2- Understanding New Formats:
Adjusting to different rep and set schemes, like supersets or unusual patterns, can be confusing at first.
The goal for the initial phase isn’t to overwhelm you but to ensure you grasp the essentials and can focus effectively.
Key Focus Areas for Early Workouts
1. Movement Mastery:
While perfection isn’t expected, control is crucial. Starting with lighter weights helps maintain form and reduces the time it takes to progress to heavier loads. Embrace the novelty of new exercises as a way to stimulate your muscles without the need for max weights.
2. Simplified Rep Scheme:
If new rep schemes are confusing, default to the reliable 3 sets of 10 approach. Perform 10 well-controlled reps for 3 sets, and then move on. This allows you to familiarize yourself without getting stuck on specifics.
3. Conserving Energy:
Adopt the mantra “LEAVE SOME IN THE TANK” during the initial weeks. Finishing a session feeling like you could do more keeps you eager for the next workout and helps build a sustainable training habit.
Stay in Command
You don’t need to max out every session to see gains. Focusing on key lifts, preparing adequately, and knowing when to dial back can help maintain long-term progress and prevent burnout. This approach not only builds physical strength but also cultivates mental resilience, turning you into a thoughtful athlete who listens to their body and knows how to achieve sustainable growth.
Use Excitement Wisely
Your fire is a wonderful thing – so let’s keep it fed by giving ourselves time to progress. Here’s what to focus on to not blow up too early.
1-Save it for just the last set :
If you are bursting with enthusiasm, try to save your big effort for just the last set. I see too many people plan out every working set from 15, 12, 10, to 8 with a PR in mind at each weight.
That might be OK in week 6. But in week 1 you’ll end up burning yourself out and leaving no room to progress weights for the last 5 weeks. Instead, hit moderate sets at 15, 12, and 10. Then for your set of 8 you can take it closer to 10/10 RPE.
2- Choose only one exercise a day to PUSH:
Don’t go full tilt on all exercises in a given day. That’s a sure fire way to crush you progress and burn your excitement out early.
Pick just one movement. Then exhibit restraint on the rest.
3- Leave some in the tank:
this is the mentality I use these days. For the first two weeks of any training cycle I just speak the mantra “LEAVE SOME IN THE TANK.” I want to walk away feeling like I could have done more. This in turn makes me hungrier to come back and train the next day and the next.
