I see a lot of people at the gym who are there frequently but do not get good results. This always makes me watch them to see how they work out. More often then not they are simply not working out efficiently. Some questions to ask:

Should you be sweating when you workout?

• Yes, unless it is freezing cold in the gym you should be sweating from your workouts.

How long should I be resting between sets?

• Short periods of time. Get less rest between your sets so you keep your heart rate up and your muscles feel the burn.

What if I need more time between sets because I just can't lift the weight without a longer break?

• Lower the weight or Alternate exercise. Work out two different areas of the body at one time. For example you could work out your chest and do calf raises or work out your biceps and back at the same time. This leaves no time for breaks and keeps your heart rate extremely high.

Am I lifting enough weight?

• If you are able to complete all your repitions for each set then no you are not. Lets say you bench pressing 3 sets with 8 reps per set. If you can complete all 3 sets at 8 reps then you should go up in weight. You should be complete the first two sets of 8 reps and fail on the third set with at 6 or 7 reps. If you just barely finish your 8th rep on your final set then you know you did a good job but still need to move up in weight.

Are you going up in weight?

• If you are a person who goes to the gym frequently you should be going up in weight frequently as well. If you are not increasing the weight you lift you might as well leave and go watch bruno.
• I personall have gone up in bench from doing 3 sets - 8 reps of 185 pounds to 225pounds in about 4 months. Thats a 40 pound increase in about 90 days. Push yourself to go beyond what your body thinks you can do and you will achieve results.
  Note: I was actually closer to 245 but I was only able to finish 7 reps on my last set.

How long should you stay in the gym?

• Generally about an hour to 1.5 hours. It really depends on how many exercises you are doing though. Sometimes I only stay 25 min sometimes when my friends who want to do full body workouts come I stay for 2-3 hours.

Am I resting enough between my workouts?

• I don't know. I have never been a huge fan of telling people to rest for a long time between workouts. I know at some point your body just needs nutrition and to take a break but to many people use this as an excuse to stay home from the gym or to skip workouts. If you are actually seeing results from your workouts the I will allow you to decide if your body needs a break.
  

Do I have enough variety in my workouts?

• Probably not. Even I have trouble coming up with new workouts. Watch people around your gym or where ever you go and copy what they do. I have picked up a few really good exercises this way and sometimes I see people copying mine.
• Sometimes I also just make things up. I figure if I can barely do it then it must be workout out something right haha

I'm sure I'll add more to this list soon. If you enjoyed this please leave a comment below