How many hours a week do you workout?
- Thread starter JulieMom
- Start date
I consider myself a moderate when it comes to working out. I probably workout 4 days a week. My weeks flip between 3 and 4 hours of working out a week. Just thought it would be fun to see what you all do. But maybe I should have voted for, I don't ever rest seeing how I chase a 2 year old around every day :7 ! Hope you think this is fun too!
lindzebird
Cathlete
Even God had one day of rest.
I do at least one hour 6 days a week. Most of the time I exceed that. I do abs every day. Six days a week I usually do at least 30 minutes of cardio plus work either my upper or lower body for at least 45 minutes. Sometimes I will do circuit training instead of separate workouts.
JoJo
JoJo
Shelbygirl
Cathlete
I probably work out 8 hours a week, but I still take a rest day. On weekends, I do about 1 1/2 hours each day. During the week I sometimes double up working out in the a.m. and then by going to the gym during lunch.
I workout 1.5 to 2 hours in the AM at home(cardio and muscular endurance) and about 1 hour at noon at the gym. Sometimes I also will do very light cardio (just walking on the treadmill) at night for 30 min. after my last meal of the day. So that is at least 2 hrs per day, 7 days per week = 14 hours per week. I DO take time off when I feel that it is necessary and I also incorporate some lighter days. I'm not going all-out-100-percent intensity for 2 hours every single day! This is the amount that I enjoy doing and it makes me feel GREAT!
Shonie
Shonie
T
trevor
Guest
I cannot believe these hour workout totals! No wonder dropout rates are so high and people are not getting results they are trying to get. They don't recommend more than an hour in the gym for a properly done weight workout and if you do the high intensity training for cardio like myself then that is another hour a week for cardio. Very high intensity cardio. So I have 3 hours a week with weights and then a fourth hour of intense cardio.
I get great results in those four hours and then have time for fun outdoor stuff like blading or mountain biking.
I guess to each their own if it makes ya feel good.
T.
I get great results in those four hours and then have time for fun outdoor stuff like blading or mountain biking.
I guess to each their own if it makes ya feel good.
T.
For the last several years I had been working out 6 days a week for a minimum of 1 hour per day with very little results in weight loss or body changes. I will admit that I do not eat a clean diet, however. But, over the last 4 months I've had some major life changes with my father dying and a job change. I was exercising very little and still eating the same, again no change in weight or body. Over the last 2 weeks I've been using nothing but Cathe's beginner/intermediate workouts with at least 2, sometimes 3, rest days per week. I've lost 2-1/2-pounds plus 1/2-inch in my waist, abs, hips, and thighs. I'm really amazed at this loss after all the hard workouts I had been doing previous. I'm going to stick with the easier workouts for a while with more rest days and see how it goes.
scm
Cathlete
>I cannot believe these hour workout totals! No wonder dropout
>rates are so high and people are not getting results they are
>trying to get. They don't recommend more than an hour in the
>gym for a properly done weight workout
Well I have been working out with my current schedule for years and I AM getting the results I want! I enjoy working out and have the energy to do so. Since my workouts are very early in the morning I still have time for all other activities.
>rates are so high and people are not getting results they are
>trying to get. They don't recommend more than an hour in the
>gym for a properly done weight workout
Well I have been working out with my current schedule for years and I AM getting the results I want! I enjoy working out and have the energy to do so. Since my workouts are very early in the morning I still have time for all other activities.
T
trevor
Guest
That's fine if you like spending 6, 8, 10 or more hours a week on working out. Like I said if it makes you feel good then great. I get great results with 4-5 and then have more time for outside stuff or family stuff that I enjoy. I try to stay balanced that way.
I am just saying that based on alot of research on my part and alot of monkeying with my own workouts over 15 years I know that really only 4-5 hours a week is needed. There is apparently a point of diminishing returns, where the time invested is not worth any minimal gains that might be made by working out longer. I also know that people just starting out often feel like they have to do all of this extra stuff when it is not necessary. They burn out, and often end up quitting. Same goes for even some advanced exercisers. Women, in particular I have read, seem to go ape-nuts on the cardio when it isn't necessary and often they end up not accomplishing anything bodyshaping-wise. I see this everday. This woman at my club comes in early in the morning and just goes all out on the treadmill for the whole time I am there lifting(about an hour, maybe 1.5 hrs. if I am running behind)and then I shower and she is STILL on there when I am leaving. Total time might be 2 hrs.! She does this EVERYDAY and she looks very burned out and emaciated. She is an example of someone who hasn't a clue really. And then she hits the wall after a month or two of that and I might not see her in there again for 3 months before the cycle starts up again. It's an extreme example but I think you get my point.
The fact that you are getting results is great but I bet you that if you cut back to 4 or 5 hrs, assuming you are currently doing more, you'd see the same or perhaps better results. Assuming you have the right intensity level. People often equate longer with better when really you want QUALITY over quantity. People also tend to equate huge amounts of sweat and breathing hard to mean you are working hard and that's incorrect as well. The heartrate, and how you manipulate it, is the key to everything in getting results. And how you manipulate the various muscle fiber types in your body is the key to great weight workouts.
Anyway, I hope you aren't taking offense to my original post.
T.
I am just saying that based on alot of research on my part and alot of monkeying with my own workouts over 15 years I know that really only 4-5 hours a week is needed. There is apparently a point of diminishing returns, where the time invested is not worth any minimal gains that might be made by working out longer. I also know that people just starting out often feel like they have to do all of this extra stuff when it is not necessary. They burn out, and often end up quitting. Same goes for even some advanced exercisers. Women, in particular I have read, seem to go ape-nuts on the cardio when it isn't necessary and often they end up not accomplishing anything bodyshaping-wise. I see this everday. This woman at my club comes in early in the morning and just goes all out on the treadmill for the whole time I am there lifting(about an hour, maybe 1.5 hrs. if I am running behind)and then I shower and she is STILL on there when I am leaving. Total time might be 2 hrs.! She does this EVERYDAY and she looks very burned out and emaciated. She is an example of someone who hasn't a clue really. And then she hits the wall after a month or two of that and I might not see her in there again for 3 months before the cycle starts up again. It's an extreme example but I think you get my point.
The fact that you are getting results is great but I bet you that if you cut back to 4 or 5 hrs, assuming you are currently doing more, you'd see the same or perhaps better results. Assuming you have the right intensity level. People often equate longer with better when really you want QUALITY over quantity. People also tend to equate huge amounts of sweat and breathing hard to mean you are working hard and that's incorrect as well. The heartrate, and how you manipulate it, is the key to everything in getting results. And how you manipulate the various muscle fiber types in your body is the key to great weight workouts.
Anyway, I hope you aren't taking offense to my original post.
T.
I don't consider jogging, roping, lap swimming etc. a workout because I do it for fun. Thinking about it now, I don't consider a lot of tapes a workout anymore because my workout time IS fun time. Exercise became my HOBBY a few years ago along with some very sedentary activities like sewing, knitting etc.
I agree just because someone works out a lot of hours doesn't mean he's getting better results.
I agree just because someone works out a lot of hours doesn't mean he's getting better results.
T
trevor
Guest
Hi Katerchen,
Yeah I kinda figured you did those things for fun. I think that's great. Maybe the difference for me from alot of people is that I don't necessarily workout for fun all of the time. I like it, but I tend to separate it from other activities like mountain biking and blading which I guess I could count as "working out" but I don't engage in them with the same intensity as I do my regular workouts.
Anyway, I just didn't want this poll to turn into a competition where people who don't log as many hours all of a sudden feel they have to double their workout time because they feel they aren't getting it done.
T.
Yeah I kinda figured you did those things for fun. I think that's great.
Maybe the difference for me from alot of people is that I don't necessarily workout for fun all of the time. I like it, but I tend to separate it from other activities like mountain biking and blading which I guess I could count as "working out" but I don't engage in them with the same intensity as I do my regular workouts.Anyway, I just didn't want this poll to turn into a competition where people who don't log as many hours all of a sudden feel they have to double their workout time because they feel they aren't getting it done.
T.
It does make me feel good plus I have gotten greaaaaaaat results. In addition, I have been doing it for years. So much for your theory on dropping out and not getting results. In addition I find time to manage an accounting practice, do outdoor stuff, cook, clean, laudry, read, manage my own investments and spend time with my family (just to mention a few). And I enjoy every minute of it all.
JoJo
JoJo
You are right, Trevor. People could start to compete about their workout times.
When I started out eight years ago, I couldn't understand how people would do more than one exercise tape. But, I guess, the more fit you become, the more you'll add and try out because all for a sudden it's your 'Lifestyle' and not just a chore.
And it's not like I'll do 10 hours of High Intensity Training a week, there is an hour of yoga/stretch and an hour of 'functional fitness' included.
When I started out eight years ago, I couldn't understand how people would do more than one exercise tape. But, I guess, the more fit you become, the more you'll add and try out because all for a sudden it's your 'Lifestyle' and not just a chore.
And it's not like I'll do 10 hours of High Intensity Training a week, there is an hour of yoga/stretch and an hour of 'functional fitness' included.
I was so surprised when I came to this forum how many folks worked out 6 days a week. I truly had never known anyone like that before. Trevor makes some good points.
I always thought I was really hitting it when I did 4x a week, of course, that was a tough step class plus about 45 min of weights. I wasn't eating all that great back then so I am not sure if my lack of results was from that.
I think it is possible to overtrain working out 6 days a week, but like Trevor said the important thing is quality when you do workout. I think workout intensely 6 days a week would be too much for me. The 4 step classes a week killed my knees. Sometimes when folks post their rotations I wonder how they are not killing their joints, but I suppose it has to do with how intensely you are doing it, maybe they are modifying a lot....or maybe they have tougher joints than me.
I have seen those type of women trevor mentioned in the gym too, who are at every single solitary class and still don't look that great....I often thought it must be their eating, but now I am wondering if it is overtraining. I think a 3 day rotation of weights, plus 1 or 2 cardio workouts, plus maybe a yoga would be ok for me...but there you have it, that is 6 workouts a week. It is hard to fit it all in!
I think the "possible" skewing of the polls results could be the profile of the typical person who visits these forums...a hard core Cathe who cares enough about it to visit these forums. Same type of results you get when you ask "WHich is a better workout...gym or Cathe" on this forum, you are going to get an overwhelming "Cathe" because the gym rats are....at the gym! And not on the forum. Just some thoughts.
Jen
I always thought I was really hitting it when I did 4x a week, of course, that was a tough step class plus about 45 min of weights. I wasn't eating all that great back then so I am not sure if my lack of results was from that.
I think it is possible to overtrain working out 6 days a week, but like Trevor said the important thing is quality when you do workout. I think workout intensely 6 days a week would be too much for me. The 4 step classes a week killed my knees. Sometimes when folks post their rotations I wonder how they are not killing their joints, but I suppose it has to do with how intensely you are doing it, maybe they are modifying a lot....or maybe they have tougher joints than me.
I have seen those type of women trevor mentioned in the gym too, who are at every single solitary class and still don't look that great....I often thought it must be their eating, but now I am wondering if it is overtraining. I think a 3 day rotation of weights, plus 1 or 2 cardio workouts, plus maybe a yoga would be ok for me...but there you have it, that is 6 workouts a week. It is hard to fit it all in!
I think the "possible" skewing of the polls results could be the profile of the typical person who visits these forums...a hard core Cathe who cares enough about it to visit these forums. Same type of results you get when you ask "WHich is a better workout...gym or Cathe" on this forum, you are going to get an overwhelming "Cathe" because the gym rats are....at the gym! And not on the forum. Just some thoughts.
Jen