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Ready to hit the gym after Christmas? Here are 3 common mistakes you're making

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THERE ARE PLENTY of things we can do to improve our performance, such as drinking less beer, eating more healthy and getting more sleep.

And while in the gym, there are even more reasons why we don’t maximise our potential.

Here are three common pitfalls you’re making.

1) You’re getting stuck in a rut

Do you do the same routine; the same circuit in the same time with the same weights at the same pace?

Switch it up man/woman!

Change the exercise class for a month, up the weight, decrease the reps.

Go work out on a machine you have never used before.

You’ll be surprised at the difference it’ll make.

2) You’re bonking in the gym because you haven’t eaten enough

While some of us can get away with eating just a little or not eating at all before a gym session, you’ll train better and for longer if you eat something before.

Ideally, you want to try to eat something at least an hour before exercising, so you have time to digest your food and fuel up for battle.

You don’t want to be full, but you definitely don’t want to be starving either.

You also need to make sure you’re hydrated before you start training. Drink a glass of water when you first wake up.

You could drink a sports drink as well before so you know you’re at least getting some additional calories in.

3) You’re not warming up properly

We’re all guilty of it from time to time but for this year, try to break this habit.

It just means getting up out of bed five minutes earlier. The main reason we don’t do it is because we ‘don’t have time’, right?

Some could argue it’s because we’re just eager to get started with the main workout but neglecting the warm-up can result in you feeling tight during your first couple of exercises.

No matter what type of training you’re doing, it’s important to warm-up beforehand to get the blood flowing and your muscles warmed up for exercise.

A warm-up can be a 5-minute brisk walk or slow jog, or warm-up exercises such as marching in place, jumping jacks or knee lifts.

Five big targets to give yourself this year

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6 Comments
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    Mute Kieron Duffin
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    May 10th 2016, 10:34 AM

    What are ya’s on about who’s paying who ? It’s no advertorial ! Am I the only one surprised and delighted them girls are getting a kit deal worth €60,000 ? I remember in my own county the great Wexford camogie team of the time having to scrimp and save to get a bloody holiday, even though they won an All Ireland, went so far that they done bag packing in Dunnes FFS ! Imagine the men doing that !!! Ladies sport, OK, it’s debatable that it’s not as entertaining as the men’s game but they don’t deserve to be treated as second class citizens ! Fair play girls, f@€( the begrudgers.

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    Mute Leo Lowe
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    May 10th 2016, 10:38 AM

    Is a yas anything like a yak?

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    Mute Kieron Duffin
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    May 10th 2016, 10:43 AM

    Stay off the internet when you’re drunk like a good lad.

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    Mute Mark Ryan
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    May 10th 2016, 10:52 AM

    Kieran.. Maybe you should sponsor the Wexford team if you feel so strongly about it..

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    Mute Kieron Duffin
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    May 10th 2016, 10:54 AM

    Maybe I did Marc.

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    Mute Jumperoo
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    May 10th 2016, 9:15 AM

    I reckon this piece should be marked as an advertorial for McKeever Sports/thegaastore.com

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    Mute Arthur Pewty
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    May 10th 2016, 11:38 AM

    Fair play to them. Sporting legends and really need to be recognised so…

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    Mute paddy
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    May 10th 2016, 12:37 PM

    Yeah Arthur absolute legends known throughout the country

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    Mute An_Beal_Bocht
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    May 10th 2016, 7:03 AM

    Is that the old style crest? How come the men aren’t allowed use that?

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    Mute Donncha Ó Ríordáin
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    May 10th 2016, 11:41 AM

    can’t vouch for the ladies team continues with the old crest but I’m fairly sure the men’s team brought out the new crest which was in turn copyrighted by the county board. whatever way you look at it there was money involved.

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    Mute Paul Collins
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    May 10th 2016, 12:00 PM

    The crest used here is the coat of arms of Cork City. The Cork GAA teams (i.e. the mens) came up with a new crest a few years back. I assume that because the Ladies Gaelic Football Association is (bizarrely) not a part of the GAA they can’t use it…

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    Mute An_Beal_Bocht
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    May 10th 2016, 4:14 PM

    Ya Donncha, I know in Tipp and other counties it was a trademark issue and county boards came up with their own makey upey ones and I’d imagine it was money related indeed. Which begs the question are county boards now run like companies just like pro clubs?

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    Mute Ollie Watson
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    May 10th 2016, 7:27 AM

    Is it just me or does the adidas gear look crap when you know it’s sort of fake

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    Mute Lad
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    May 10th 2016, 12:35 PM

    Fake?

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    Mute Ollie Watson
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    May 10th 2016, 3:18 PM

    @lad I’m pretty sure no one working for adidas apart from the factory workers in Pakistan know about the gear still a great deal though

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    Mute Coco Beware
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    May 10th 2016, 12:25 PM

    Bet Anna Geary will be looking savage in it oh & Aisling Thompson too, sexy ladies

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    Mute Veronica
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    May 10th 2016, 5:22 PM

    @coco expect Ann Geary has retired from inter county playing now..

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    Mute Trevor Beacom
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    May 10th 2016, 7:46 AM

    Free kit for the next three years…..a saving for the cork county board. If its a print (white on the inside) its shit just like the o’neills ones

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    Mute john
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    May 10th 2016, 9:11 AM

    Yeah the county jerseys are the same price as soccer ones but the county jerseys are poorer quality

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    Mute Tony Mcgrath
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    May 10th 2016, 9:33 AM

    Who is paying who for this article

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    Mute Veronica
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    May 10th 2016, 5:24 PM

    About time the girls got something, they always play better & win more then the guys do.. Cork GAA hasn’t won hurling since 2005 & Football since 2010, shame on them…

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    Mute paddy
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    May 10th 2016, 12:35 PM

    Sixty grand wow it must be a really popular game

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    Mute Kieran Fitzgerald
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    May 10th 2016, 6:13 PM

    Jesus that’s ugly.

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