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Should You Workout Everyday?

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How often should you workout each week?

Female Athlete Doing Her Strength TrainingThe question of “should I workout everyday” is a question we get asked quite a bit. This especially happens around the New Year when people are motivated to get in shape, plan to go to the gym 9 times a week, and expect to see results by the end of week two.

Day one rolls around and they hit the gym hard, much harder than they probably should, and are so overly sore the next day that they can barely walk. Their plan to workout everyday is already in shambles as they are forced to miss day two due to soreness. Day three comes, which is when the real soreness kicks in (thanks DOMS), and once again they are forced to miss their workout.

So their plan to workout everyday has been shot down by one single workout and now they are upset that they missed workouts and start to fall back into old patterns and it is only 4 days into the new year…

Maybe this sounds familiar…

The worst part about all this, is the majority of times these people will never return to the gym because they “got busy” or “work wouldn’t allow for it” or “kids are keeping them busy.” All very relevant excuses, but ones that can be combatted by working out SMARTER!

The truth is, if you have to ask the question, “should I workout everyday,” the answer is probably NO. Let me explain why:

Who Should Workout Everyday?

For almost 8 straight years, from the start of high school to the end of college, I worked out nearly every single day. Unless I was incredibly sick, injured, or was absolutely forced to take a day off, I was out doing something. Being an athlete, I was constantly driven to get better and better. This meant having the mindset of “no days off” or as the Twitterverse puts it, I was part of the #teamnodaysoff.

Every single day I was working out whether this be lifting weights, doing sprints, working on my jump shot, etc. I was obsessed with basketball so I couldn’t get enough.

With all that to say, should I have worked out every single day?

No, probably not.

During those 8+ years, I got sick a lot, my body was always beat up, I had overuse injuries, and more… BUT, I loved every second of it. Basketball was what I lived for.

When you look at a college or professional athlete, you will notice that they rarely take days off.

Their job is their sport so they must get the most out of their talent and abilities.

What this tells us is that our bodies are able to handle a lot more than we think. If a professional athlete can handle working out 6-7 days per week, then you certainly can too…

But not right away!

College and professional athletes have been going 6-7 days per week since they were little kids. It is natural for them to workout that much. That is why for me when I got to college, only working out 5 days per week wasn’t an option. I was used to going 7 days per week because that is what I had done my whole life.

That said, for someone that is just starting to workout, going everyday is NOT a good idea.

You must build up to doing more and more as your body adapts to the stresses you are throwing at it.

How Often Should Beginners Workout?

fitnessWhen you are first starting out, it is very important to start slow. As we saw in the story above, far to many people start too fast and end up giving up after week one.

After going month (or even years) without working out, you cannot expect your body to just magically adapt overnight to working out. This is like saying, “I read one chapter on how to write computer code and now I am going to work for Microsoft.”

It is the same principle.

You have not worked out for a while so your body is not used to you putting that kind of stress on it. Your first workout is just the first few pages in your “bodies fitness book.” It is just the beginning.

Overtime, you start getting more and more used to the stresses which allows you to workout more.

So back to our question, how often should beginners workout?

In the beginning, going 3 days per week with at least a days rest in between is far enough. The day off in between will allow for good recovery and takes a lot of pressure off in trying to make it to the gym every single day.

If you do want to workout more times per week, start walking.

So yes, essentially you could workout everyday, but 4 of those “workouts” would be walking for 30-60 minutes. Your other three workouts should be high intensity intervals, strength training, and metabolic circuits.

When can I start working out more times per week?

Part of the reason you start slow is because you want working out to be part of your lifestyle. It is not a quick fix to all your problems. If you approach working out as a lifestyle change, your results and mindset will be far better.

After going 3 days per week for a while, you and your body will know when it is time to start going more times per week.

There is no magic number here. Your body will start to adapt to the workouts and you will know that you can add in another 1-2 workouts per week without a problem.

Once again though, do not bump up too fast.

It is always better to start slow. Remember, we are going after a lifestyle change not a quick fix.

A good rule of thumb for beginners, is to keep the same workout routine for 6-12 weeks before changing things up. The reason for this is that you want to build a base before jumping into the more challenging aspects of working out.

Should I workout 7 days a week eventually?

From experience, no you shouldn’t.

After putting my body through what I did back in high school and college, I am now a firm believer in having at least one full days rest per week. I find that in all areas of life, having this one day of rest will allow you to come back stronger and more fresh than ever.

Even if you are an athlete, my recommendation is to go six days per week while adding in one day of doing nothing. Not thinking about your sport, not watching film, etc.

As a regular gym-goer, the same holds true. If you want to workout six days per week by all means do it. But that 7th day should be kept as a full on rest day.

You will find that when you carve out a full day of rest each week, you will come back stronger and more motivated that ever.

When I was playing basketball, I found that when I did take a day off (which was very rare), I came back the next day feeling refreshed and more motivated to get better.

Being young though, I didn’t realize the importance of rest.

Now that I have been through that, I can confidently say that going 6 days per week is far more beneficial that going 7 days per week.

Should I workout everyday: Final Argument

In concluding this article, I would like to put together a tentative timeline for how often you should workout if you are just starting out. Once again, be sure to listen to your body, and do not bump up too quickly. As was stated, it is far better to start slow than to start too fast.

Take a look at the timeline below for when you can start incorporating more workouts each week:

(Note: This is a timeline for beginners just starting out.)

First 6-12 weeks:

Next 4-6 weeks:

Next 4-6 weeks:

Next 4-6 weeks:

  • 6 days per week of higher intensity workouts such as intervals, weight training, and metabolic circuits lasting 20-40 minutes in length.
  • Walking everyday for 30-60 minutes

Future weeks:

  • Change up workout routines every 2-4 weeks, and workout anywhere from 3-6 days per week.
  • Walking everyday for 30-60 minutes

As you can see, it took right around 4-6 months to build up to going 6 times per week. Once again, this is just a tentative schedule for bumping up your workouts. It is really on you and your body to decide when you should bump up the amount of times you workout each week.

Once you feel you have a solid foundation and routine, you can then determine what works best for you. I know for myself, workouts each week will vary as I will go anywhere from 3-6 times per week. I will always get at least three workouts in but no more than six.

What I make sure of though, is if a workout is put on the schedule at the start of the week, I do not miss it.

Make your workouts a priority and part of your lifestyle. Doing this will set you up for lifelong success.

To start YOUR Workout journey, join us HERE!

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