Nutrition is essential to achieving wellness and weight loss goals, but exercise comes in at a close second. Luckily, fitness is so accessible with a myriad of boutique studios and digital classes to choose from! But sometimes having too many options causes confusion, indecision, and inaction.

This article highlights nine key points so you can break through your workout inertia and get moving towards your goals!

1. Cardio will not make you gain weight. What it will do is help burn fat, improve heart health, and give you the mental break you need.

   Many people are afraid of doing cardio because they have been told it will make them gain weight. However, cardio is not what makes people gain weight; excess food and lack of exercise is. If you eat a proper balance of foods and strategically time your intake so you don’t overeat in response to your workout, you won’t gain weight from cardio. Furthermore, cardio is an excellent way to improve heart health, burn fat, and mentally decompress. So if you enjoy running, it’s time you laced up your sneakers and hit the pavement!

2. Strength training and building muscle is key to a faster metabolism and sustainable weight loss.

   Unfortunately, as you lose weight, your metabolism naturally slows — with every pound you lose it gets harder to lose your next pound, and further restricting food can slow metabolism even more. This is why long-term weight loss through diet alone is difficult and unsustainable. The good news is that strength training boosts metabolism by increasing lean body mass — the more muscle the body has, the faster the body’s resting metabolic rate. Even when you are doing absolutely nothing, your body burns more calories simply by having more muscle. Strength training and gaining muscle allows you to continue seeing results without having to over-restrict food intake.

3. The scale should not dictate your workout.

   When people say they want to lose weight, what they often discover is that they really want to change their body composition – less fat and more lean body mass. But because muscle weighs more than fat, when you increase lean body mass, you don’t necessarily lose weight. This is not a reason to avoid strength training. In fact, if a tighter, leaner look is what you’re after, you likely should be doing some form of strength training. But instead of wanting to see a specific number on the scale, focus on non-scale victories, such as trying on your smaller clothes, to gauge progress and keep up momentum.

4. Don’t calculate the calories you’ve burned.

   The value of your workout transcends how many calories you burn. Not only that, but calculating the calories you’ve burned can tempt you to start counting the calories you consume, which is not a sustainable weight loss method. Stop looking at the stats on those cardio machines or your fitness tracker. Focus instead on how you feel both physically and mentally, how you look and how your clothes fit, and how your fitness levels are progressing.

5. Working out needs to be a regular part of your life to see results.

   Consistency is necessary to see the benefits of exercise, which is why long workout ruts can really throw a wrench in your weight loss progress. Because exercise should be a regular part of your life, make sure to pick workouts you enjoy and schedule them in your calendar so you find time to fit them in.

6. Time doesn’t have to be a barrier. Any workout is better than no workout.

   Skipping workouts entirely will keep you sedentary and can make you fall into that aforementioned workout rut. Aside from the physical benefits of moving your body, the mental shift from just a few minutes of movement can be a game changer to your mental health and stress levels. If 20 minutes is all you have, take the opportunity to move your body instead of spending it scrolling Instagram or sitting on the couch.

7. Listen to your body. Sometimes it needs a break.

   If you are injured, sick, or have been told by a doctor not to exercise, then don’t. If high intensity exercises aren’t for you, don’t do them. And always make sure to schedule a rest day to allow your body to recover. Pushing your body beyond what it can manage is dangerous, and while it may be tempting to stay active at all costs, you will ultimately be setting yourself back.

8. Don’t underestimate the mental benefits of exercising.

   Aside from being a trigger to emotionally eat, stress increases cortisol levels, which further hinders weight loss. Using exercise to mentally and emotionally decompress not only reduces stress and cortisol levels, but it can also replace negative coping mechanisms such as overeating. Finding a workout that is going to relieve stress, provide an endorphins boost, and elevate your mood is so important to facilitating your weight loss journey.

9. Focus on yourself and if you need advice, get it from a professional.

   Everyone is different. Choose your workouts based on what works for you — not your friends. Gauge your progress based on how much better you are today than yesterday — not how you compare to anyone else. And if you have questions, make sure you are getting answers from a certified trainer. There is so much misinformation out there and when it comes to your health and safety, it is so important that you get your information from professionals who will provide answers to suit your specific needs. (While 4Q Method is a nutrition practice, we have an array of elite personal trainers we collaborate with. If you are looking for a trainer, please contact us and we will be happy to make an introduction!)