You have to stay consistent and workout regularly to reach your goal. Getting fit isn’t a matter of how long you workout, but doing it consistently over time. You can’t workout for three hours one day and skip the rest of the week. You have to break that time down throughout the week working out approximately 45 minutes every other day. That gives your muscles a chance to heal and make the changes that you’re hoping to achieve. Fitness is marathon not a sprint.
Make exercise part of your schedule.
Consistency includes being consistent with the time you workout. Consider a simple action like brushing your teeth. It’s probably part of your morning routine and evening routine, like taking a shower or going to bed or getting up at the same time. When you workout at the same time every day, it becomes habit and part of your daily routine that you do automatically. That’s often why people workout the first thing in the morning. There are fewer interruptions for them and it’s part of their morning routine. No matter what time you choose, stick with it.
Marathon style workouts won’t get you the results you want.
Going to the gym and performing a marathon of working out may make you sore the next day, but won’t get you the same results as someone who breaks down that time to several sessions. Exercise isn’t something you can catch up on all at once, like getting all the dishes done at once or finally cleaning out the closet. It’s more like eating. People normally eat regularly, rather than saving up all their calories for one day a week. Think about how you’d feel if you ate a whole week’s worth of food at once. It would make you sick, so will marathon exercising.
You lose everything you’ve gained between workouts.
When you exercise only occasionally, you may actually maintain, if you do it frequently enough, but you won’t advance or get fitter. It makes you lose momentum and ultimately lose some of the muscle mass you’ve gained. It’s actually dangerous and can increase the risk of injury that comes from overdoing all at once.
- Health benefits disappear the longer you avoid a workout. You start to lose muscle mass after a few days, which can put you at risk for the same serious conditions you hoped to avoid.
- Studies show injury rates increased after taking three days off from the gym. The rate of injuries didn’t increase with just a day or two away from working out.
- If you have problems working out because of your schedule, work with your personal trainer to find a solution. For instance, if you travel, the trainer can recommend a workout you can do in your hotel room.
- Put exercise at the top of your priority list. Staying healthy should be your top goal. Without good healthy, other goals are either harder to achieve or impossible.