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You’ve just got a gym membership, and now you’re ready to get fitter. How often should you go to the gym? Is there a “best” amount?
When you get a gym membership, you want to make the most of it. This is more than just about how often you go, but about the type of workouts you do.
In general, you’ll hear people say that you should go to the gym 3-5 times per week. This is a base, especially for those who are just starting out. However, if you can only get to the gym twice a week, don’t put it off just because you’re not going the optimum time.
Of course, if you’re coming back from an injury, you’ll have a recommendation from your doctor. Listen to that while you build back up from the injury.
It’s about duration as well
While you want to head to the gym 3-5 times per week, you will also need to look at how long you stay there. If you’re going so that you lose weight, you’ll want to spend 45 to 60 minutes each time doing cardiovascular activities. This doesn’t just mean on the treadmill, but it is a great option. You can still do some strength training, but the cardio work will help you burn more calories to help you lose weight.
If you’re going to build muscle, then you need to spend time on the weight training*. In this case, 30 to 45 minutes could be enough. You don’t need to do hundreds of reps of an exercise to build your muscle. You’re aiming to exhaust them, and that can be done with just three cycles of an exercise.
What if you just want to be healthy? In this case, 30 to 60 minutes of activity is going to be enough. Maybe you just need to stretch out muscles or you have a plan given by a physiotherapist. You need to follow that sort of plan, which means you won’t be in the gym as often.
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It depends on your goals when you go to a gym
There are different times and routines for different needs in the gym. The goal you have will affect how often you should head out to the gym. It will also affect the type of workout that you’re doing.
People go to the gym for all sorts of reasons. Some people will have a specific weight that they want to get down to, while others want to tone their muscles. There are some who want to be a bodybuilder, while others just want to go for a little fun as they remain healthy.
I know a lot of people who go to Zumba classes a couple of times a week just to have fun and socialize. That’s their way of using their gym membership*, and there’s nothing wrong with it.
I like to go five times a week and do a mixture of things. Every other Friday, I go to yoga. I try to do pilates once a week, and I add in a couple of weight sessions twice a week. I don’t tend to do a lot of cardio in the gym except for swimming. I choose to run or do dance workouts for that.
We all end up with our preferences. To start off, though, you need to ease you way into the gym. That means a 3-5 day a week schedule to go to the gym.
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What do you need help with when it comes to getting fitter? Share in the comments below.
