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Mistakes are nothing to be afraid of or ashamed of; everyone makes them along the journey. Mistakes can suck when you’re in the moment, but we learn a lot from our mistakes.
So what are the common mistakes to avoid at the gym?
- Being hungry before, during, or after working out
- Getting inadequate sleep and recovery
- Skipping warm-ups and cool down
- Going too hard too soon
- Not listening to your body
- Prioritizing quantity over quality
- Not wiping down and putting back gym equipment
Let me explain the consequences of these mistakes and how I learned to deal with them!
Table of Contents
Mistake #1: Being hungry before, during, or after working out
One of the most common mistakes of gym-goers is poor nutrition. I have friends who were light-headed and nearly unconscious from poor nutrition and dehydration while exercising. Exercising on an empty stomach can be more detrimental than beneficial to your health. Running on fumes causes so much stress to your body that it will eventually shut down to conserve whatever energy you have left.
What you eat and when you eat are critical to your fitness journey.
Here’s a guide to give you an idea of what to eat.
| What To Eat | What To Avoid | Sample Meals | |
| Before Exercise | ✓ Fast digesting carbs and protein | ✗ Fats that help slow digestion ✗ Anything that upsets your stomach | – Protein bar – Chicken sandwich |
| During Exercise | ✓ Fast digesting carbs | ✗ Fats that help slow digestion ✗ Anything that upsets your stomach | – Candy |
| After Exercise | ✓ More variety (protein, carbs, fat, veggies) | – Protein shake – Beef and veggies with rice |
Mistake #2: Getting inadequate sleep and recovery
Do you wake up feeling more tired than when you went to bed? And during the day, you can barely focus on anything?
There could be many factors contributing to feeling fatigued and a lack of focus. But sleep often gets overlooked. Lack of sleep will affect every part of your body and your life.
I struggled with getting adequate sleep for a long time. I would sleep for 4 hours on average and barely scrape by with the other things in life.
What did I do to get more quality sleep? Sleeping past midnight became a non-negotiable, even on weekends. I had to consciously make an effort to sleep earlier every day and track my sleep with a watch to ensure I got 7-8 hours each night.
Mistake #3: Skipping warm-ups and cool down
Jumping into intense movements without any warm-up not only exposes you to the risk of injury, but your body will struggle to perform optimally.
| Warm-Up | Cool-Down | |
| Type | Dynamic stretch to increase blood flow | Static stretch when muscles are warm and pliable |
| Purpose | – Increase blood flow to your muscles – Increase functional mobility in joints | – Gradual recovery to regulate blood flow |
| Example | – Upper Body: Arm circles – Lower Body: Side lunges | – Upper Body: Arm crossover – Lower Body: Pigeon pose |
For more guidance on stretches, check out the post on how to stretch before and after a workout.
Mistake #4: Going too hard too soon
We often overestimate our ability when starting or restarting a new activity. As a beginner, baselines might be unclear, and even with experience, it might be tempting to listen to your ego instead. After some time, you might plateau with your progress, or even worse, get injured. These situations happen across every activity, like barbell training, running, cycling, etc.
Most people struggle to realize that going too hard too soon can hinder your development in the long run. Building solid foundations mentally and physically will set you up for success in the long run.
What can you do to avoid going too hard too soon? Set boundaries for yourself before you start the new activity. If you want to take a step further, you can follow a program to ensure your approach is safe.
Mistake #5: Not listening to your body
Through fitness, you learn to understand your body better. Your body provides the best feedback; please listen to it carefully.
Here are some body signals to be aware of along your fitness journey.
- Pain: Pain is sharp and intense, and it persists for a long time. Pain and soreness are different. Soreness is fatigue that lasts only a few days. If you feel pain, you should seek professional help from a local sports physical therapist.
- Fatigue (all the time): Experiencing fatigue throughout training is normal, but if you feel like crap all the time, it could be a sign of overtraining. You might need to incorporate recovery and deload into your training.
- Energized: If you feel pumped and ready to go every time you’re training, you’re doing something right. 🙂
Mistake #6: Prioritizing quantity over quality
It’s common to feel impatient for results. When we’re always chasing better performance, we often think more is better.
So what exactly do I mean by quantity?
- In strength training – the amount of weight or number of reps you’re lifting for a specific exercise.
- In endurance sports like running, cycling, rowing, and paddling – speed and distance.
- In other sports – any other measure of performance.
And what do I mean by quality?
- Understanding that all movements are multifaceted.
- Using a full range of movement.
- Awareness of every part of your body during movements.
- Addressing your weak points before jumping the gun.
- Developing a style that works for your body.
As you can see, improvement comes in different forms, not just numbers. Although the numbers indicate improvement, only focusing on it can mean you’re sacrificing the quality of your movements. Building a solid base translates to more engagement, mastery, and longevity down the road.
Mistake #7: Not wiping down and putting back gym equipment
Imagine you’re about to use a piece of gym equipment, but you struggle to find it, and when you do, it’s covered in someone else’s body sweat. Pretty frustrating, right?
That’s why it’s an unwritten rule that you should wipe down equipment after use and put it back where you found it. Doing so creates a pleasant environment where everyone feels respected by one another.
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