You pay out your weight in gym fees, but still can't drop those kilos. Sydney trainer Rebecca Rule tells why.

1. Your form is wrong

"Lack of control with your form can lead to joint injury, which can put you out of action," Rebecca says. "If you feel you need help, a trainer can point you in the right direction — it's a good investment to help reach your goals quicker. "The same goes for running — bad form can hinder progress. Slamming your feet down on the pavement and too much movement in the upper body expends unnecessary energy."

2. Not enough effort

It's true — the no-effort workout is almost as bad as no workout at all. "To get a training effect, work to a heart-rate zone that's appropriate," Rebecca says. "If your goal is fitness and your time is short, you need to increase intensity and work at a higher heart-rate zone. But if you have time to train for longer, your heart-rate level can be lower."

A heart-rate monitor eliminates guesswork. "It links the body and the mind and indicates whether you can work harder or need to pull in the reins," Rebecca says. "The flip side is working out for too long, so aim for an hour a day."

3. Chowing down on the wrong food

You may have your exercise program down pat, but it's easy to undo your hard work when it comes to your diet.

"Think about it as good energy in, good energy out," Rebecca says. "Forget low-carb diets when you're training. The best source [of energy] is carbohydrate — and go for low-GI. Prior to training, porridge and grainy breads are digested more slowly and are great fuel."

After training, it's important to replenish your energy, but don't get into the habit of eating junk food just because you have had a good workout.

"And a note on alcohol," Rebecca adds. "It's empty kilojoules and will be used first, before anything else you have ingested. So a big night out before training will make it harder to lose weight."

4. Doing the same thing every day

We have all seen people who go to the gym every day, hop on the treadmill for half-an-hour then depart, believing it's a good workout. Sure, it is better than nothing, but your body is much smarter than that.

"It's really important to change movement patterns, the intensity and composition on a regular basis," Rebecca says. "For example, you might do an interval session that has high and low intensity, but for a shorter period of time. Chop and change to give your body a nudge, and you will see results quicker."

5. Copying people

Okay, so it's an excuse to perv, but if they are doing it wrong, it can be dangerous to imitate someone else's technique. Women should think twice about copying the guy next to them because they will probably want different results. "It's not a good idea to follow someone's workout," Rebecca says. "You have different goals and training experience. Hire a trainer to work out a program that suits you."

6. Avoiding weights

For lean, defined muscles, you will have to venture into the weights room. Don't worry, you will only look bulky if you also increase your food intake. "You'll gain muscle but you won't look lean unless you watch your diet," Rebecca says. "Weights are great because they help you develop lean tissue, which increases the thermogenic effect inside the body. This leads to an increased metabolism — fat-burning long after you've left the gym."

7. Doing gym only

Incidental exercise — taking the stairs instead of the lift, walking to work or around the park at lunchtime — is every bit as important as your gym workout.

"Our lives are so sedentary that it's important to increase the incidental exercise, as well as doing the hard yards in the gym," Rebecca says. "Those hours you spend in the gym each week, at different intensities and doing different exercises, should supplement the outdoor exercise we should do on a daily basis."

8. Skipping the warm-up/cool-down

"It's essential to warm up, preparing the muscles and cardiovascular system for the exercise you do," Rebecca says.

While working out, you are contracting your muscles, so stretching at the end is one of the ingredients that can help you achieve an elongated, lean look.

9. Not focusing

Know what you want to achieve and avoid slackening off, Rebecca advises.

"Before you hit the gym, say to yourself, 'Today, I'm doing a cross-training session. I want to get my heart rate to 80 percent for 15 minutes on the treadmill, then 15 minutes on the StairMaster, then flat out on the bike for 20,'" she says.

Have a plan, stick to it and you'll be less likely to take the easy way out.

10. Not setting goals

Your gym membership is expensive, so make sure your hard-earned is well spent. Have a purpose when you slap down the plastic!

"When it comes to setting fitness or weight-loss goals, you must follow the SMART formula — Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Time," Rebecca says. "For example, say your goal is to lose 10kg. You've specified your goal, measured it, figured out it's attainable for you and it's realistic — not too big a number.

"You then need to think about how long it will take you and then break down the goal into short-term goals, like losing a kilogram a week."

Follow the SMART form
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Time