3 Mistakes You're Making at the Gym

You signed up for a new gym membership, and for once you've actually kept your resolution to drag yourself there a few times each week. So by now, all those sweat sessions should be paying off, right?

If your jeans aren't any looser and your abs still look more like the laundry pile than the washboard, you're probably falling prey to one (or more) of these common gym mistakes.

Committing to a regular workout schedule isn't easy, but hitting the gym hard just once a week won't give you the results you want.

"You can't expect to run on a treadmill for an hour and lift weights for 35 minutes just once a week and be fit," says Julian Bah, a trainer at the New York Health and Racquet Club. "You have to schedule your gym time just like you schedule all the other aspects of your life."

Don't tell yourself you're going to hit the gym every day, says Bah. Set realistic expectations, then reward yourself if you overshoot your goal.

Don't be a slave to the scale, and don't expect to see aesthetic results for the first month, says Bah. "If you're training correctly and incorporating weights and cardio, you may actually see the scale go up at first because you're adding lean muscle mass," he says.

So instead of vowing to lose 15 pounds, set a more concrete and attainable goal—like participating in a breast cancer walk or running a half-marathon, says celebrity trainer Jennifer Cohen. You'll slowly start to see your body change as you work to meet your goals.

"Losing weight is 80% diet, 20% fitness," says Cohen. "If you aren't eating properly, you won't see results."

So just because you sweat buckets during your kickboxing class doesn't mean you get a free-for-all at the local burger joint. And you definitely don't need pre- and post-workout snacks coupled with an energy drink. "Don't go into GNC and buy everything you see," says Bah.