How hard should you work out? Should you take breaks? Keep a steady pace?
This is a question we should all ask ourselves as we take on programs and workouts that may be beyond our current level of fitness.
Your workouts should be intense but controlled and safe.
Plain in simple, you should go hard. That doesn’t mean being out of control, but the goal of almost all your workouts is not to feel comfortable. You are here to put in some work and get results. Results don’t happen with going through the motions and never attacking your weaknesses. We need to struggle to get better!
Your level of intensity will vary and increase as you get more fit.
This is what is cool about focusing on intensity. I can workout at a 9 and do some weighted pull ups with 70#s. Someone just starting out can also workout at a 9 and do assisted pull ups. Ultimately the weight does not matter, it’s your intensity relative to your ability. If you go all out and get 18 assisted pull ups and that is all you have, you have done as good of a workout as someone else that may not need to do assisted pull ups but still gives their all. IT’S ABOUT YOU!
Can you hear Tony yet? “Do YOUR best and FORGET the rest!”
Pacing yourself tends you make you shortchange yourself.
When people pace themselves too much, we tend to go easy on ourselves and not get as much out of workouts. Now that doesn’t mean you need to blow yourself out on the front end of a workout, but if you never flip that switch and go hard, you are missing out on the best results and health.
So my recommendation on lifting is to take it close to failure when you know you have a whole workout ahead. That usually means leaving 1-3 reps in the tank on moves like push ups and pull ups. Then when the back half of a workout comes, you can go all out and challenge yourself. Nowhere is this clearer than P90X Chest and Back. On the first half, I am pushing hard but leaving some reps in the tank. On round 2, I am going for it. You are doing it right if your final numbers drop off hard.
You will see bigger gains in strength, more BF lost, and better cardiovascular health with more intensity.
And you won’t be able to make it through all your workouts at high intensity, that is ok! Use that pause button and then get back to it! You are always better to go with high intensity for as long as you can and take some breaks than going easy. If you want to be made to do that, check out MAX30!
When is lower intensity appropriate?
Intensity looks different on certain workouts. You don’t need some Energize for yoga or mobility LOL Still take your workout seriously, but you can see that the intensity will be the same.
If you need recovery or are taking a Recovery week, then by all means, dial it back. You should always listen to your body.
But as soon as you are 100% again, back to high intensity.
This is how teamRIPPED gets results!
Coach Wayne
Need a coach?
My email: coachwayne@teamripped.com
IG: @wayne_wyatt
