- More cardio will not get you in better shape.
Don’t get me wrong, cardio is great. I love to run, and I prioritize my twice-weekly runs. Cardiovascular health is super important at any age. For me personally, running helps me burn off the crazy too! However, it cannot be your only form of exercise. Yes, you are building endurance, and sure you are keeping your heart and lungs strong. Still, if it is your only form of exercise, you are seriously limiting your potential and opening yourself up to overuse injuries.
- Resistance Training is Queen
I started doing Pilates videos in college and continued in the studio setting after graduation. I have made a career by sharing this fantastic method with the world. Pilates is a form of resistance training, and I know it has kept me (almost) injury free for my entire adult life. Pilates requires minimal equipment (yes, mat pilates is still a form of resistance training) and can be done by anyone from anywhere. As I have gotten older, I have also enjoyed weight training to challenge my body further and build muscle mass. If you are hesitant to try traditional weight training as a woman, please don’t be. Find a qualified trainer and give it a try. Once you start adding resistance training, I promise everything else you are doing will get that much better.
- More is not always better, and an hour is an arbitrary amount of time to work out.
For years I would skip a workout if I didn’t have an hour. I would skip a workout versus working out for 30 minutes. WTF was I thinking? Where in the world did I get the idea that a workout had to be 60 minutes to be worthwhile? I would run my body into the ground to get 60 minutes of cardio on my watch. I would overwork my body by doing these brutal 60-minute workout videos that left me depleted instead of empowered. I would skip a Pilates session in my studio because I was a young mom and honestly didn’t have 60 minutes. Once I decided that some movement was better than no movement, everything changed.
I was a young, exhausted mom. My husband was still early in his career, working insane hours, and we were living overseas where I had no help. I felt horrible and knew I needed daily movement, but mentally and physically, I couldn’t muster an hour. So I just decided I would do what I could when I could. Guess what happened? I started to realize that 30 minutes of working out was plenty when you work efficiently and effectively. Pilates is perfect for a 30-minute workout, and I began to realize that I not only enjoyed my sessions more but because I was so focused for those 30 minutes (or something even less), I was getting a lot more out of my sessions.
What’s something that you wish you had known sooner when it comes to your health and fitness journey?
