Stop the Insanity | PhitZone

Get with the times

“The definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over and expect different results.” Rita Mae Brown ‘Sudden Death’

If you’ve been around fitness for any amount of time, you have either heard or even uttered something to the affect of, “The way I worked out in high school…”

Admittedly, I still do this, to a point. There are a lot of “old school” ways that work, and they shouldn’t be over looked.

You don’t have to hold on to those antiquated methods.

On the other hand, much has changed over time. Various studies have shown us better ways to eat, train, and recover in order to obtain better fitness.

Look in the sports world. 20 years ago baseball coaches wouldn’t dream about letting their players near a weight room. The belief was that athlete would become too bulky to perform in their given arena.

That’s no longer the case. Training professionals now know that they can improve strength, and build explosive power specifically for a given sport.

Not just for the pros

For those of us that aren’t professional athletes, we can use that same knowledge to improve our daily lives.

Unless you enjoy running for hours on end (I do not fall into this category), you can replace running on the treadmill resistant circuit training.

If you just can’t give up on the treadmill, throw in some High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). You’ll accomplish more work in a fraction of the time.

You don’t have to do three sets of 8 reps for every exercise in the weight room. Increase the weight, and do five reps. That’s nothing new, but most people don’t know about it.

It all comes down to working smarter, not necessarily harder. That doesn’t mean to let up on the intensity, just don’t waste time doing the things that aren’t doing you any good.

Are you stuck in the old ways?

Photo: Fladson Thiago

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