Despite exercising regularly, are you not getting the workout results that you expect? Are you not making progress at the gym and just can’t seem to pinpoint why? Have you been working out hard, seemingly doing everything “right,” yet you still have that same annoying, unattractive muffin top you had when you started? Well, it’s your lucky day.

I’m about to share six key tips that can help you drastically improve your workout results.

1. Preparation

Without proper planning, you’ll be spinning your wheels and your progress—or lack thereof—will reflect your lack of preparation.

“Failing to plan is planning to fail.”
—Benjamin Franklin

Yes, old Ben had it right. You need to plan your workout before you even set foot in the gym if you want to maximize your results and minimize your frustration.

2. Consistency

Be honest, are you consistent with your workouts? If you want to reshape your physique, it will require steady training.

How long does it take to build muscle? Great question!

 If your goal is to build shapely, calorie-burning muscle, try to hit the weights at least 3 times a week. Hit the weights? Yep, that’s right; weight training is the most effective way to naturally reshape your body and boost your metabolism.

3. Intensity

Like most things in life, you get out what you put in. If you go at your workouts haphazardly and carelessly, then your physique will reflect it.

 Most of your workouts should be hard enough to challenge you. If you can easily lift the weight for the prescribed number of repetitions, then it’s time to increase it.

Don’t take too much rest between sets or get caught up in gym gossip. You can use the timer on your phone or download an app like Interval Timer to maintain your pace for maximum intensity and progress.

How quickly you build body-shaping muscle is determined by many factors, and two of the most important are intensity and …

4. Focus

Want to double your workout results? You need focus.

What do I mean by that? You will get a lot more from each repetition if you visualize the muscle working as you perform the exercise. This is called the “mind-body connection,” and it is a vital component of getting the most from your workout.

“I think of my body as a side effect of my mind.”
— Carrie Fischer

Your mind and your body are intertwined, and the more you focus on feeling your muscles working, the greater your results will be—and the faster you will see them.

5. Variety

Yes, variety is the “spice of life,” and yes, that “spice” also applies to your workout routine. That said, when it comes to variety, there are two reasons why your progress may be stalled:

• You’re doing the same thing all the time—NO variety.
• You’re constantly changing things up—TOO MUCH variety.

You see, a fundamental principle of continued progress is variation (specificity and accommodation). In other words, you will only progress up to a certain point if you’re using the same exercises and weights. On the other hand, if you’re the type who’s enamored with “muscle confusion,” you’ll never give yourself a chance to get better.

While I see many people who fall into the latter category, most who are struggling to get results fall into the former category. Remember what Albert Einstein is credited with saying: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting a different result.”

Don’t be afraid to mix it up! How can you shake it up? Here are a few ideas: Our Top 6 Exercises to Reduce Belly Fat

You can also experiment with group classes, a new workout program, cross training, or outdoor workouts, which have the potential to add a whole other dimension of health benefits. You might also consider hiring a personal trainer, who can help put together an individualized workout program for you as well as help keep you accountable.

6. Patience

Your hard work will pay off. I know, that old tired phrase has been ingrained in your head forever, and you’re probably immune to it by now, but …It’s the truth.

It can take some time to build a noticeable amount of muscle and reshape your body. This is why it’s important to take measurements (like body fat percentage and girth measurements) and progress photos every few weeks or so. Men will naturally build more muscle than women due to greater levels of testosterone, but both can achieve visible results by sticking to a progressive weight training program consistently.

The longer you stick with it and the more consistent you are, the more evident your workout results will be—and the faster you’ll see them.

The Keys to Improving Your Workout Results

In addition to these important principles for building muscle, you’ll also need to pay attention to and be consistent with your nutrition, hydration, sleep and recovery, and stress management to make the greatest progress. All pieces of the puzzle are required to complete the picture.

The bottom line is, if you want workout results, then you’re going to need all the following components:

• Consistency
• Preparation
• Variety
• Intensity
• Focus
• Patience

Does all of this sound like common sense? Well, yes, but you know what they say about common sense … it’s not so “common” after all. If you apply these six key components to your exercise regimen, just wait to see how quickly you start seeing results.