How Often Should You Work Out? The Perfect Weekly Workout Routine

How Often Should You Work Out? The Perfect Weekly Workout Routine

​There’s no magic number of times you should hit the gym every week. How often you go depends on your body, your fitness goals, and your schedule. 

The right number of sessions per week differs from individual to individual and largely depends on many factors relating to your body and your training. For instance,beginners will,of course train less often than regular fitness freaks. Another factor concerns the type of workouts you do. Workouts mainly consisting of cardiovascular training to improve your endurance like cycling, swimming, walking, jogging, indoor rowing and indoor cross-training have to be seen differently than strength training with your own body weight or free weights for the purpose of building muscle.  All these factors are important and have to be considered before giving any reasonable training suggestions.

How often should you work out each week?

How many times have you joined a gym or committed to an exercise plan to lose weight, only to back out after a few weeks because you have no idea how often you should work out?

If your answer is “too many to count,” you’re not alone. Knowing how many days you should exercise can be confusing. This is especially so if the amount of time you’re putting in doesn’t match up with your goals.

So, whether your goal is to sweat it out on the treadmill more often to lose a few pounds or to increase the amount of weight you’re lifting in order to gain muscle, the following tips can help you hit your target sooner and with greater success.

What should each day of working out look like?

​If you want to work out five days per week and are working on both strength and cardiovascular fitness, try three days of strength training , two days of cardio, and two days of active rest. If you only want to work out four days a week, think about your goals: If you want to add muscle, cut a cardio day. If you want to improve endurance(toleration), skip a strength day. Or, switch it each week.

​Remember, it's important to be realistic about your own schedule when you're asking yourself, "how many times a week should I work out?" If four days makes more sense for you than five days, do that. But if five days is reasonable, great!

​Either way, here's how (and when, and why) to crush it at each one.

​​Strength Training: 2–3 Times per Week

​Why: "The more muscle you have the higher your metabolic rate. It also strengthens joints and bones."

​How: To build muscle mass, you should try to work each muscle group two to three times a week. So in a two- to three-day strength plan, this means you should aim to do full-body workouts—you'll want to hit the major muscle groups of your upper and lower body, including your glutes, quads, hamstrings, chest, shoulders, back, arms, and core. That might sound like a lot, but that's where compound exercises come in. Moves like squats, lunges, and bicep curls-to-overhead presses work more than one muscle group at a time, so you get more bang for your buck. Compound  exercises also work your core, so while you can throw in some abs work at the end of a sweat session, you'll also be working your core with every squat (which also works your glutes, hammies, and quads).

​You also want to have a balance between pushing and pulling movements. So, for example, a pushing movement would be a chest press, and a pulling movement would be a row. You should do different moves in each of the three strength sessions, but repeat those same moves every week.

​How Long: A strength-training session should last 45 to 60 minutes and at least a quick warm-up  beforehand.

Cardio: 2–3 Times per Week

​Why: As important as it is to strength train, cardio has its place in a balanced workout routine too. "Doing cardio keeps your circulatory system working optimally helping you to recover faster.

​How: You've got a ton of options: an outdoor jog, the good old elliptical machine, the list goes on. "Whether something is cardiovascular depends on where your heart rate is at and how long you’re doing it for." Target heart rates are different for everyone, but  a good baseline to aim for during your cardio routines is between 120 and 150 beats per minute for 45 to 60 minutes. Often incorporated in strength training, they have their place in a cardio workout too—the key is trying to do more reps within a certain time span to keep that heart rate elevated. 

​How Long: A cardio session lasts 150 minutes of moderate -to-intense activity per week

Rest Days: 2 Times per Week

​Why: Taking a break lets your body recover and rebuild so you can get back to your workouts refreshed and ready to rock it. A rest day should actually be considered active recovery, meaning you don't have to hit the gym or break a serious sweat, but you should do something. "It’s not just about the physical recovery—it's also the mental."  "Doing something that you enjoy that’s active is great for the mind  and it assists in residual fatigue." Plus, it keeps up your conditioning.

​How: Whether you do some stretching or just take a walk, active recovery shouldn't require a ton of effort like a workout day, but it should get you moving. You can also try a restorative class, like gentle yoga or a relaxed mat Pilates class.

How Long: Aim for 30–60 minutes.

''Of course, your perfect gym week may vary slightly based on your goals and your schedule, but it's all about having good fitness habits.''