Not Getting Results From Your Workouts? Are You Training Or Just Exercising?
If you’ve been going to the gym, taking classes, doing workout videos or cardio sessions consistently and not seeing results, you’re probably frustrated.
You might think you’re doing everything right. After all, you’re working up a sweat and you’re getting sore, and yet your body isn’t changing.
You might be making a common workout mistake: you might be exercising, not training.
While you might think “exercising” and “training” are the same thing, there’s actually a very important difference between the two. It's important to understand this difference if you have strength, fitness, or body composition goals you want to achieve.
The Difference Between “Exercising” and “Training”
Exercise is something you do for its own sake, for the positive short-term effects you get during the workout or right afterwards. You exercise to get your heart rate up or to feel better when you’ve had a bad day.
Training is something you do with a larger goal or result in mind. It’s a planned and systematic progression of workouts designed to achieve something specific, like getting stronger or fitter, building muscle, losing body fat, achieving a pull up or completing a 5K.
If you:
Do a different group fitness class or workout video each day
Choose random exercises to do in your workouts
Follow a trainer or program who says “no two workouts will ever be the same” or totally mixes up the exercises each time
Do exactly the same workouts each time
Evaluate how “good” each workout was based on how sweaty or out-of-breath you got, how many calories you burned, how tired you feel afterwards, or how sore you are the next day
Don’t track what you’re doing in each workout
…you’re exercising, not training.
Don’t get me wrong, exercise is great for you! If you exercise regularly, you’ll get a lot of incredible benefits:
All of these things can help you make the most of your life. If you’re exercising consistently you’re much better off than if you don’t exercise at all.
However, if you want to build a significant amount of strength, get much fitter or healthier, change the way your body looks, feels, and functions in a very noticeable way, or achieve a specific performance goal, then you need to be training, not just exercising.
Training means following a well-thought out, planned program where each workout builds on the previous one in a way that moves you towards your goals.
It’s really about the process more than each individual workout itself. Each workout is one part of a bigger program that uses the principle of progressive overload to help your body and mind get fitter and stronger.
Progressive overload basically means increasing the difficulty of your workouts over time, to force your body to adapt.
To learn more about this key to results, check out my article on Progressive Overload.
When you exercise without a program that uses progressive overload, your body doesn’t get the stimulus it needs to keep changing. That's why you get some small improvements at first, but not big results.
Even if you’re working really hard during an individual workout, that on its own won’t get you results if it’s not in the context of a strategic program that keeps progressing over time.
This is the difference between going for a jog each day and training for a 5K. They’re both good for you, but only one will help you achieve a goal, and will get you far greater physical and mental benefits than the other.
When You Should Exercise Rather Than Train
I think most people should be training most of the time, but there is definitely an important place for exercise.
Exercise is more informal and simpler than training. You don’t need a plan and you can simply do whatever feels good to you at that time.
If you just want to generally feel good and be healthy, exercise is really all you need.
If that means an easy movement sequence or a leisurely walk to get rid of some stress, that’s good enough. For a quick mood boost, an exercise session will do it.
Exercise is also good for times when you need to take a break from training.
You might exercise when you're recovering for a little while after you’ve pushed yourself to achieve a goal, when you're coming back from an injury, or when you’re on vacation and just want to maintain your habits so you don’t lose the results you’ve already achieved.
How To Train
If you’re ready to shift to training, there are a few important things to do.
Have a clear goal in mind and a plan for working towards it.
The details of your plan will depend on your goal. Make sure you match your training to what you want to achieve.
Use progressions.
For strength training, the general guidelines are to do big compound exercises like bench presses, squats, push ups, pull ups, and deadlifts.
Slowly increase the number of reps you do and the weights you use for each exercise over time. My progressive overload article details a system you can use to make those increases.
For fitness, slowly increase your speed or distance over time. If you’re just getting started, something like a Couch to 5K program will help build a base level of fitness.
Track what you’re doing in each workout.
You need to know what you did last time so you know what to aim for in your next workout. It's also helpful for motivation to see how much you’re improving.
If You Need Help
I have a few resources to help you get the results you want from your strength training.
My FREE Strength Training 101 eBook will teach you everything you need to know to put together an effective strength training program. You'll learn which exercises to do and how to structure your workouts for specific goals.
For even more guidance, check out my Strength Training For Anxiety Program. This 12-week workout program is guided by an app so you can see exactly which exercises to do and how to do them. It has progressions built in to make sure you get stronger and more resilient over time. It also has extra features that can help you unlock the power of strength training for managing anxiety.
For personalized help, my systematic personal training programs can ensure you get the results you’re looking for. Contact me to book a free consultation!