3. Develop Proper Form

Developing proper exercise form is critical, whether you are lifting, running, or training for a sport. It takes about 500 repetitions to get the hang of a new motion. After 500 reps of any given movement (curling a dumbbell or swinging a golf club) your body will develop some idea of how to perform this movement without your consciously thinking about it. But it takes over 5,000 reps to change the way you instinctually perform a movement once you’ve learned how. The moral of the story is to develop good habits from the start. A lot of beginning exercisers want to push the weight in the gym and push themselves for speed or distance in cardio. When you do this, you end up sacrificing good form. Further, pushing too hard will get in the way of achieving your goals. Remember, less is more, and the biggest mistake beginning exercisers make is overtraining.

So how do you develop proper form? Hiring a certified trainer is great. Yes it’s expensive, but think of it as education. Twenty sessions with a trainer costs less than most college courses, and what you learn should serve you well for the rest of your life. If hiring a trainer isn’t feasible, most gyms offer a class or two on basic weight lifting. Our Weight Lifting Form Tutorial can also help you develop good form, but there's no substitute for live teaching.