Anatomy of a Poor Workout

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ANATOMY OF A POOR WORKOUT

About 60% of the average person’s workouts are mediocre. About 20% of them you’ll feel like you knocked it out of the park. The other 20% will be sub-par and some of those will really stink!

There are a multitude of factors that affect the success of your workout:

·        Lack of adequate rest

·        What you ate the day before

·        Stress

·        Illness

·        Soreness or minor injuries

·        Distractions at home or work

·        Lack of motivation

My percentages tend to run a little higher on the plus side but sometimes I have a real stinker!

Last Friday was one of the real stinkers!

I was at the gym about two hours earlier than usual due to other commitments later in the day. But I got my eight hours rest, stress levels were fine, no soreness or other pain, a little eye infection but no big deal.

Almost immediately I started missing my rep goals. I’d hit my reps on the first set but miss on the second and third on almost every exercise. And I seemed to need more rest time between sets. And it got worse as time wore on. The entire workout took me over 90 minutes.

I was almost half way through before I realized what was happening. I got up earlier and was not as hungry as usual and was in a hurry so I ate less than usual before my workout.

I ran out of fuel!

In the morning you have basically been fasting for 8 to 10 hours or longer. (That’s why the first meal of the day is called “Break-fast”) Glycogen stores (what your body burns for fuel) are depleted. And I ate less than normal pre-workout.

To make matters worse, Friday was leg day. My program on leg day starts like this: Squats, hack squats, dead lifts, vertical leg press……all at considerably more than my body weight. All burning considerable fuel very quickly. Fuel that I didn’t have.

By the time I got to the easier supporting exercises (lying leg curls, seated calf raises, leg extensions, etc) I was worthless. I usually keep a couple of protein/carb bars in my gym bag for just such emergencies but I had eaten those on the eight hour drive home from visiting my mom and forgot to replace them.

The point is….I saved a little time by skipping some of my normal pre-workout meal then pretty much wasted 90 minutes in the gym and what should have been a good workout.

Send your comments or questions to alphaedgefitness@gmail.com . If I don’t have an answer I’ll find someone who does.