Take a walk through any gym, and you’ll notice many mistakes. Mistakes that waste time. Mistakes that put people in danger. And mistakes that are just plain stupid. Maybe you make a few of these mistakes yourself.

By avoiding these common blunders, you’ll put yourself on the fast track to results. Check out the following five fitness mistakes and the solutions you need to avoid danger and to get fit fast.

Mistake 1: You don’t challenge yourself
The goal of a good workout is to challenge your body, not to simply go through the motions. If you don’t need a few minutes to fully recover after a workout, or if your clothes are as dry after your workout as when you walked into the gym, then chances are you’re not pushing yourself hard enough. Unfortunately, just going to the gym is not enough. You actually have to work hard, get out of your comfort zone and break a good sweat. Lack of intensity, in my opinion, is THE biggest reason that most gym goers don’t get RESULTS!
My motto: Train HARD or Go HOME!

Mistake 2: You do the same routine
You may have noticed that most people do the same exercises each time they visit the gym. Maybe you’ve been doing the same exercise routine as long as you can remember – if it isn’t broken then don’t fix it, right? Wrong.
The truth is that exercise routines have expiration dates, and that is the date that they begin to lose their effectiveness. The best way to prevent a plateau and maximize your results is by consistently confusing the muscle. In other words, you vary your workouts frequently, if not daily. My clients never perform the same workout within a three- to four-month span. The benefit of this is one: their bodies never get used to the workout, and two: they never get bored with their “routine.”

Mistake 3: You ONLY Use Machines
When was the last time in your everyday life when you were in a seated position extending your knees with a 75-pound load strapped to your ankles (aka the leg extension machine)? My guess is NEVER!  If your strength training routine consists of ONLY machine training, you are doing yourself a huge disservice because machines do NOT in any way relate to real world movement. Most people spend all day sitting at a desk, and then they go to a gym to improve their fitness and strength by sitting on a machine! Call me crazy but that doesn’t make much sense. What does make sense is to train your body as it naturally moves so that it has practical value in your real life.

Mistake 4: You use bad form
Gyms are filled with people performing exercises with bad form. The two biggest reasons are that you aren’t focusing on the exercise are: you’re trying to lift weight that is too heavy (most often not the case with women) or you learned by watching someone else who had bad form. Lifting with improper form almost always results in injury. Take the time to achieve proper form, and by doing so, you’ll avoid injury and will reap the full benefit from each exercise.

Mistake 5: You workout alone
People who exercise alone are less challenged, less accountable and typically see fewer results. It makes sense, doesn’t it? Why rush to the gym if no one is there waiting for you? Why push yourself if no one is watching? Exercising alone is a recipe for disaster. I’ve been a trainer for nearly 15 years, and I still workout with a trainer for guidance and accountability (and I do pay).

The best way to avoid injury and to see results is to work with someone who will push you to your limits and who understands what it takes to get results. Working with a fitness professional is ideal, but if not, at least workout with someone who knows what they are doing, who will not let you wimp out and who is passionate about seeing you achieve results – without wasting time, energy and effort on mistakes.

Shondelle Solomon-Miles is a body transformation expert and owner of Synergize! training studio in Hollywood, Fla. You can reach her at www.SynergizeWeightLoss.com.