(BPT) - Whether you’re hitting the gym to get healthy, tone up or improve your overall well-being, seeing results can be one of the most satisfying feelings. Noticing even the smallest change in the way you feel or look is reason enough to lace up your sneakers for another sweat session.

When results seem to plateau or schedules get busy, don’t give up! Keep the below tips in mind to help maximize your fitness routine and stay on track.

1) Find a workout buddy

Instead of flying solo, bring a friend so you can encourage each other during your workouts. Exercising with a buddy can breed healthy competition, but also hold you accountable. To help maximize the impact, try to pick a partner that is on the same fitness level as you and shares similar goals — you will want to be able to increase your intensity level and challenge each other as a team.

2) Fuel up

An active lifestyle requires proper nutrition. When regularly exercising, your body needs fuel for optimal performance and proper recovery. Before a workout, opt for healthy and easily digestible carbohydrates like brown rice, quinoa, whole-grain bread and pasta, fruits and vegetables to give you energy. Afterward, try a protein-packed snack like Emergen-C Protein Fuel and Superfoods. With 15 grams of organic plant-based protein and two full servings of 14 superfoods, the protein and superfood powder blend can help you make the most of your active time by providing the wholesome nourishment you need, along with supporting your natural defenses with a high potency serving of vitamin C.

3) Head to the weights

If your fitness goals include improving body composition and losing weight, you may want to introduce strength training into your regimen. While exercises such as walking, running and cycling can do wonders for your cardiovascular health and help burn calories, strength training with weights can elevate your metabolism for a longer period — meaning your body will continue burning calories even after a workout. Plus, strength training can target and tone hard-to-reach muscles, improve balance and help protect your bones.

4) Switch it up

After a while, bodies can grow accustomed to the same exercise routine, often leading to stalled results. If you find yourself breezing through a workout, it’s time to switch it up and push your limits. Varying your exercises can challenge your mind and body, help burn more calories and prevent boredom. If you like to run long distances, try implementing sprint intervals. At the gym? Try out new equipment or vary your reps. Challenge your body and you may be surprised by the results.

5) Take a break

The last way to maximize your fitness routine has nothing to do with the gym at all. In fact, it requires you to skip the gym. Exercise provides many health benefits, but too many high-intensity workouts can backfire, potentially causing injury from overuse and hindering your results. Allow your body enough time to heal before hitting the gym again and try to work active rest days into your schedule, such as going for a light walk or bike ride.

Keeping these tips in mind can help you make the most of your fitness routine and magnify your efforts in the gym, on the track, in the pool or wherever you choose to exercise. Above all, don’t hesitate to ask fellow gym-goers for help or to make modifications when something feels off.

For more information, visit www.emergenc.com.

3 Tips for a Successful 2019 and Beyond

(Family Features) The demands of today’s always-connected culture can make finding balance in life nearly impossible. Between work, school and extracurricular activities, schedules can be crazy, and setting aside time to exercise is often difficult.

For Performance Enhancement Specialist Emily Hutchins, balance is key to seeing hard work turn into lifelong, healthy habits.

“Whether my clients are striving to lose those last couple pounds or completing their 100th marathon, the most important thing to me is that they're on track to a long life of great health,” Hutchins said.

To help build easy, long-term fitness habits and set yourself up for a successful year of healthy living, Hutchins recommends these tips.

Get Real
Whether trying a new workout class, joining a local gym or training for your first marathon, set an attainable fitness goal you have confidence in. Finding a workout plan you enjoy or a friend to hold you accountable can help establish a routine. While falling into old habits can happen as the year goes on, setting realistic intentions can help you stay on track and avoid excuses.

Recover Smarter
Your journey to better health doesn’t end at the finish line or when you get in your car after a fitness class. In fact, what you put into your body post-workout can be a critical piece of your fitness path and help prepare you for your next workout so you can keep working toward your goals throughout the year.

Hutchins recommends low-fat chocolate milk after a tough workout to help repair, rebuild and refuel muscles. With natural, high-quality protein to build lean muscle, fluids and electrolytes to replace what you lose in sweat, calcium for strong bones and the right carb-to-protein ratio to refuel exhausted muscles, chocolate milk is the real deal for real recovery.

Relax and Unwind
Make sure to give yourself a break, relax and unwind, too. It is important to refuel both your body and mind for balance in the midst of a busy schedule. Reset with something you love to do like cooking or curling up with a good book. This can help you recharge to take on the next day and the next workout.

It takes real work day-in and day-out to build healthy habits that can benefit you long-term. Setting goals, recovering properly and taking care of your mind and body can jumpstart a better and stronger you. For more information on the benefits of recovering with chocolate milk, visit builtwithchocolatemilk.com.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images