Don't exercise more than you need to.

Hi folks,

There are many questions to ask when you’re new to exercise, even the more advanced gym-go’ers actually have quite basic questions, a common one being “how often should I really exercise?” We have busy lives so lets not spend longer in the gym than we need to. The answer to this question really depends on what your goals are.

The national guidelines recommend spending 30min per day doing an activity that makes you slightly short of breath, 5 times per week. This is great for keeping healthy, however if you goal is to lose body fat then your body is only just starting to utilise it’s fat stores at the end of this 30min period, therefore I would perhaps recommend  40 – 90mins worth of moderate exercise 5 times per week for optimum results (after approx 90min of continuous exercise without fuel the body can start to breakdown muscle).

If your goal is to increase cardiovascular fitness levels then the good news is that you only need to go to the gym around 3 times per week but just make sure that the intensity covers a wider range, say up to 90% of your max.

When it comes to weights training then there is lots of flexibility depending on what muscles you want to train & what the desired affects are, so it best to ask an instructor for detail on this one.

Another interesting fact is that it’s easier to maintain your fitness / strength levels than to progress them. In other words research shows that if you normally exercise 5 times per week & are happy with your health, then cut this back to 2 -3 times per week. As long as the usual intensity is kept in those sessions then you will stay the same (good news if your having a busy week or going on holiday).

Hope this is helpful

james