How to Add More Sessions to Your Workouts
Recommendations for weight training workout frequency for fitness and weight loss trainers usually are for 2 to 3 sessions a week. This usually means a full-body workout in which arms, legs, back, buttocks, and abdominals get worked -- ideally with a combination of compound exercises like squats and deadlifts and presses plus a few isolation exercises like arm curls for good measure and variety.
The more serious Olympic, powerlifters and bodybuilders might train 5 or even 6 times a week, sometimes more than one session a day. They can do this because they usually know how far they can push their bodies with volume and intensity of workouts, and because their programs will probably include various adjustments to intensity and volume through changing loads, repetitions and sets on set days and sessions.
Bodybuilders will often include more sessions by focusing on one or two major body regions per session, for example back and arms and shoulders on one day, and legs and butt on another. Therein lies the clue for less committed or robust trainers who want to train, say, 4 days a week. Instead of doing full-body workouts at each session, try alternating upper and lower body sessions on alternate days. It prevents whole-body fatigue and provides a little more flexibility in workouts.
I converted my routine into a “split” about 4 years ago and it was the best thing I have ever done.
I do this; my favorite trainer taught me this. Back and triceps one day, chest and biceps another day, shoulders another, legs another. I might combine abs with shoulders if I have time, or do abs alone another day. One benefit is that my workout takes less time, because even though I would love to work out 2 hours a day, I can’t do that on most days. This flexibility also keeps me from getting bored; if I don’t feel like doing shoulders today (or my shoulder is sore), I can do legs instead. And at my gym I never know if the machine I need will be available when I want to use it, so it’s good to have a Plan B. By the way, I am a 45-year-old woman who lost 50 pounds eight years ago…so the variety and frequency of training also helps me maintain my weight and allows me to eat pretty much whatever I want. I do eat (mostly) healthy, though.
Good to know this works for people. Thanks.
My son uses that technique and he,s got a pretty good built. I don’t have the time. I work out only one day a week 50-60 minutes with weights in the summer….then tennis and bike riding.
Winter no bike riding, less tennis but I ad another
workout day with weights. I think I look good enough.
While most would agree that this seems to be the endall stratagem, it is only a starting point with endless possibilities. ,
Mais bien sūr mon ami.
Hey, but what if it could do this and that to? ,
I ran a test to see the improvements on a split routine. I have been on a split for years and went back to an all over work out for a few weeks.
I found I could only train for about 3 days a week because I was still recovering from the day before. This had a really negative effect. So I have gone back to the split and feel much better, slimmer and stronger