Hi guys, Kris from Custom Fitness here, your personal trainer in Amarillo. Earlier this week I was asked “How many days do I need to exercise to see results?” This is a question that pops up often because many people want to know how much effort does it take before you start seeing progress? I’m here today to answer that question. If you would like to know more or are curious about how to start this fitness transformation, give us a call: 806-322-3188.
How many days do I have to show up?
Today I want to tackle some of the myths surrounding this topic that are out there with industry research and evidence we have found within our own client population. The answer to this popular question is one of my favorite responses, “it depends” based on your goal. If you’re looking for muscle gain, weight loss, or maintenance the answer will vary. Gaining muscle requires about 3-4 workouts a week. Weight loss is 4-5 workouts in a week that continually change – maybe cardio one day and strength work the next. Keep in mind when we have a specialized day, it does not mean that is the only focus of the workout. You always want to approach each session with an integrative plan. Including circuit style training into your workouts will allow you to get a higher intensity and have the body begin to change a bit quicker.
What happens if you take a day off?
We encourage an active rest day here at Custom Fitness. Days where you lounge around on the couch doing nothing to get you closer to your dream body. Active rest days are where you are still doing things, but not to the same level you do when you are working out. Being a personal trainer in Amarillo I’ve hear a lot of clients tell me they struggle balancing their rest days and motivation. If someone is used to a Monday, Wednesday, Friday routine, then take Saturday and Sunday off, and when Monday rolls around again they fight to get back on the horse. By Tuesday they are thinking “should I even still go or is this week a wash?”
How many total days can you take off in a week?
I personally like to stagger my extra rest days where I never take them consecutively. My main reasons for that is boredom and falling off the horse. You don’t want to cause further issues from lack of motivation, so by staggering them you give yourself a better chance of recovery and continuing showing up. If you were to take 4-5 days off due to vacation you may start thinking, “how do I go back to it?” *cough, cough* You can still workout on vacation *cough, cough*. That’s besides the point. After about 7 days your strength will begin to weaken. You’ll notice things aren’t as easy as they were the week before. After 10 days your cardiovascular endurance will deplete. You will notice a slow regression back to where you started. You’ll definitely notice a significant difference if you were to take 2 weeks off where you didn’t do anything.
Have you ever taken a week off and when you come back to the gym it feels like you are starting all over? It is really tough to climb back on that horse! That’s why it is important to keep up with what you are doing at the gym and keeping active rest days that are similar to what you’ve been doing so you don’t lose your progress towards your goal.
Make sure you get in the right amount of exercise days, give our bodies the right amount of recovery time, and that recovery time includes rest as well as some light activities. Schedule these days in your calendar if you don’t have a personal trainer. Know when you are working out and when you are actively resting. If you do have a personal trainer here at the studio, we will call you if you don’t show up – we want to make sure you’re okay (and accountable). We want to keep our clients on track.
Many people tell me that they try out the DVD based programs, or a workout regimens they found online but they don’t work because they are missing the accountability portion. Maybe, they make it through the first day or two and then they start to get a little lazy. No one is there to keep them in check with their goals or encouraging their progress, so they give up little by little until eventually they aren’t doing anything to get themselves where they want to be.
Accountability is a HUGE part of a lifestyle transformation. Having the support of another human being who actually cares if you’re showing up or not can make all the difference. If you don’t show up for a week at Custom Fitness because of vacation or whatever, you may leave crawling on the floor, but the personal trainers of Amarillo will talk with you to help get you back in the groove by modifying your program, so that next time it isn’t as much of a shock to the system upon you return.
If you’d like to know how we do things here, how to get in those efficient and effective workouts (even on vacation), and get the right amount of rest and the right exercises in a done-for-you plan, then give us a call at 806-322-3188 or e-mail us at info@customfitness.biz. All we ask is that you show up and do it. Everything else is provided for you. We’d be happy to set up a consultation for you. Here we focus on the customized approach where everything we do is tailored to what you and your body need. A lot of people don’t realize what that means until they try us out. My only question for you, is why not try out the made-for-you approach now? At Custom Fitness we are YOUR personal trainers in Amarillo. Have a great day!