How Many Times A Week Should I Hit The Gym?
Well, the short answer is: technically, there is no right answer on how often you should go to the gym in a week – It all depends on your goals, your metabolism, your body’s ability to recover, your diet, and your lifestyle, so when it comes to making a decision on how often we should go to the gym, the best thing to do is to look for professional advice and coaching.
However, if you choose to take matters in your own hands, the main thing to keep in mind is that you will eventually find your groove and a schedule that works for you, your body, and your lifestyle, but it might take just a little bit longer to achieve results.
With that being said, if you have a particular fitness goal in mind, there are some guidelines you can follow to reach it, so let’s take a closer look!
Goal: To Improve Overall Fitness
If your goal is to build better endurance and improve your overall fitness levels, then you should consider five days a week in the gym: three days dedicated to cardio and two days dedicated to strength training.
If you want to build strength and tone muscles, you can reverse the above and try two days of cardio and three days of strength training. It is also a good idea to occasionally switch each week to keep a balance in your workouts.
Working out five days a week can be tough on your body, so taking two days off a week for active rest is incredibly important. Even on your days off, try taking a 30-minute walk, do some garden work, or some chores around the house – this will keep you moving even on your days off and will help to maintain good health.
Working out five days a week with two rest days can allow you to create a balanced workout schedule and will get you back in the habit of going to the gym while still giving yourself time to rest and recover.
Another tip for working out five days a week is to mix it up and keep it interesting by trying different routines and machines, or maybe even joining some classes – this will help you stay inspired and motivated.
Goal: To Lose Weight
To lose body fat, adults need to work out 60-90 minutes every day with moderate to intense exercise, while also keeping caloric intake into consideration. This will vary depending on your current diet, age, weight and gender.
It is also important to note that you don’t need to spend all of your time on cardio machines or in HIIT classes to lose weight, you can also dedicate two or three days to resistance training to help tone and strengthen your body while also burning calories. For the other three to four days, you should focus on aerobic workouts and exercises.
Going to the gym 5+ times a week will not only be great for weight loss, but for your overall health and well being.
Heading to the gym so frequently can turn boring fast, so try incorporating some kickboxing, swimming, jumping rope or some spin classes into your routine to keep it interesting.
If five days a week is a little too much for you, you can try cutting back on gym time by ramping up the intensity on the days you do work out and altering your diet.
Goal: To Improve Strength and Build Muscle
If you can hit the gym four times a week, try to focus on two muscle groups for each session, making sure not to work the same muscles on consecutive days as your muscles will need time to recover and repair. It is also a good idea to work out five or six days a week and work out one muscle group each day.
Going to the gym more than this and overworking tired muscles can be a slippery slope – instead of working out too intensely every single day, try incorporating a yoga class in one of the days or try taking a sauna or steam room to help your muscles relax. If this still doesn’t sound like enough, a light 30-minute walk will also do the trick.
A fun fact for you – muscles don’t grow when you are lifting weights, they grow when they recover and repair themselves between sessions. So remember that when you feel guilty about resting and relaxing.
How Long Will It Take To See Results?
How you will progress will depend highly on how many hours of exercising per week you are doing, but even with that, it is important to remember that every person’s body is different and we will all show results in different ways.
A lot of people say they see results very soon, then are suddenly hit with a wall of no progress – do not be discouraged if this happens to you as it is all part of the journey,
If you feel you have been working out all the time and are still not seeing the results you want, you may not be doing a high enough intensity workout, you may also not be giving your body enough rest, or perhaps you may need to switch up your routine to find one that works better for you.
Getting some advice from a personal trainer is never a bad idea and they will help to guide you and find the workout that works for your body and your schedule.
Reminder:
You should try to plan your gym visits to suit your lifestyle and schedule and be sure not to overextend yourself. It is also important to note that there is nothing stopping you from changing your gym schedule month to month or even week to week! You can also read our blog on Tips For Returning To The Gym here.
And remember: always speak to a professional if you have any questions or if you are struggling to achieve results and to find a routine that works for you!
