So I’m putting together a compilation of what I think are some better lower body, upper body, cardio, & core exercise ideas. ** Coming Soon**
I thought today I’d give some suggestions regarding “tempo” of your exercises. Your exercise “routine” should be changed up and like EVERYTHING ELSE you will EVER hear [or SEE 
] me say [or write], it’s YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY. Perhaps a good rule of thumb is every 4-8 weeks, though.
-Vary the number of reps you do per set. In doing this, you may need to vary the weight/resistance. For instance, if you’re a “3 sets of 8-12 reps” kinda person: 1] switch it up to 3 sets of however many you can do at 80-90% of your I RM (=1 repetition max or the heaviest amount you can do once). 2] or 2 sets of 15-20 3] or 4 sets of 5-12 or 4] however many reps you can crank out in 30 seconds, rest 1 min, then do another 30 seconds.
There’s 4-8 months right there!!
If the weight is too easy (or if you’re doing bodyweight exercises & you can do 30 reps in 30 seconds) then crank it up a notch in terms of weight or challenging technique. [Don't do something so ridiculously easy, after the first say week, for the rest of the period!]
Vary the speed in which you actually do your exercises. I like “up” at tempo and “down” very, very slow. In another 4-8 weeks make both the action & release super….super…slowwwwww.
Now with these 2 variations, that’s another several months to add to the variations above!
If you are used to doing machines, do nothing but free weights and cables. If you’re used to doing free weights, do bodyweight exercises. If you’re used to doing bodyweight exercises, incorporate the big Swiss balls, body boards, or medicine balls.
See where I’m going here?
Good.
The list is endless.
Some people, okay..us GIRLS, lean out and do better when they lift heavy. Some lean out when they do many repetitions (into the hundreds) with lighter weights. Some do better with bodyweight. And some are training for a sport-specific purpose. Again, your mileage may vary, you just need to find out what that is.
It’s ALLLLLL good.
Changing up your cardio is a good idea too though you probably don’t need to do it as often as other exercises if at all if a) you’re training for a purpose or b) if the only exercise you are able to get is a thrice weekly aerobics class, then DO IT. But for those who live and breathe (no pun intended) for their workouts-change it up. The “trend” is high or intense short bursts of all out max cardio. Again, you can vary this: treadmill (speed or incline), Precor (speed, resistance or incline), and “all out” for 1 minute, rest for 30 or “all out” for 30 secs, rest for 1 minute. Do 10 cycles, do 30 cycles. (See? There’s several MONTHS of ideas for you right there!)
I’m not completely sold on intense cardio because I don’t think it’s something that is reasonable for everyone. I also think that adrenaline and cortisol levels get increased and with some, not all BUT some, that’s the last thing they need. For a lucky few, they feel no adverse effects, save for a little windedness at the time, and are able to shave down their exercise time from 45-60+mins to 10-20mins.
Carry on…
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