Are you wanting to get connected a gym here in Tacoma, but don’t know where to start or how often you need to train?
We’ve put together this guide to help you figure out what kind of gym schedule will best align with your goals.
Before we get started, remember: Every body is different. Depending on your fitness goals your training schedule can look much different than somebody else’s. And that’s okay! The most important thing to do is assess your goals and go from there. While there isn’t a “one-size-fits-all” approach, here’s a general rule of thumb to go by.
Losing Weight
5-6 days a week
If losing weight and burning fat is your primary fitness goal you’ll want to be hitting the gym between four and five days a week.
Your weight loss journey may look way different than somebody else’s, and that’s okay. Things like age, diet, gender, health history, and your workout routine can all effect how much weight you lose and how quickly.
Most adults need between an hour and an hour and a half (60 to 90 minutes) of moderately intense activity daily to lose weight. But remember, working out is only half the battle. You need to be watching your caloric intake if you want to see results.
Staying in Shape and Improving Fitness
4-5 days a week
The ideal schedule for staying in shape is making sure you get to the gym between four and five days a week. This allows for a balanced routine, letting you get your work out in while allowing for rest too.
If you’re wanting to burn calories, take three days cardio and two strength training. Flip that if your goals revolve more around toning and strength training.
If you find that four to five days is too much for your busy schedule, cut back to three and give it your all. The last thing you want to do is start skipping. This makes it easy to get complacent and stop prioritizing going to the gym as a habit.
Building Muscle
3-4 days a week
To build muscle you’ll want to be lifting three to four days weekly.
Only focus on two muscle groups per workout session, and never work those same groups two days in a row. Your muscles need time to build back up after you work them. If you don’t give yourself proper rest you’re more likely to injure something or experience muscle fatigue.
If you want more focused sessions, try going to the gym five to six days, working one muscle group instead of two.
Remember on your off days you can still go to the gym without weight training. Do cardio or try an aerobic exercise class.
Things to Remember:
Stay At It
Especially if your goal is weight loss, it can be really easy to wane in motivation after a few weeks or months. The key to training your body is consistency, so it’s really important that you do everything you can to stay on top of your routine.
Find yourself getting bored or lacking the motivation to do your normal routine? Change it up! Try and new workout in class.
Don’t Overdo it
On the flip side of getting complacent with your workouts, it can be just as easy to overdo it. This is especially true if you have a specific goal in mind. If your body is aching or tired, listen. Don’t force your body into doing a workout that it is too sore or tiring to do. This can only have negative consequences and can keep you from getting back to the gym if you keep pushing yourself further than you can go.
Technique
Working out isn’t enough if you’re not doing it right. Make sure that you have proper technique before you go and try a new workout. This can help maximize your workout and also prevent injury.
Variety
You don’t need to learn completely new workouts every time you want to change things up. Training up your pull ups, handstands, and pushups and learning variations is a great way to mix things up without too much effort. Just changing your hand placement and footing can target a whole new set of muscles.
Come to Organically Grown Muscle here in Tacoma to get started on your fitness journey. Whatever your goals, we have the equipment and training staff to help get you there, be it an individual or group training.