I think people struggle with this question of starting to work out mostly because of social media culture. There are millions upon millions of social media accounts that flood instagram and tiktok focusing on the perfect optimal workout routine that takes far too long for any parent or busy adult to have reasonable time for.
Beginner Fitness Mistakes
Unfortunately, this leads to some pretty significant common mistakes that beginners fall in to:
- They work out too often
- They work out with too much intensity
- They use exercises that don’t excite them
Each of these three examples leads to the same result: a dead workout routine.
How I choose my Work Out Routine
Personally, I have had to adjust my frequency of exercise through many different phases of life
- College Athlete
- Husband
- Father of one
- Father of two
- Working two jobs
- Owning a business
Each of these moments in my life led to different frequencies of working out. Early on in adulthood with limited responsibilities, I spent hours at hockey practice and working out. Then, as a husband I needed to change that to 6-7 days/week for multiple hours per session. Parenthood hit me, and I realized I needed to cut down to about 5 days/week for about 90 minutes per session.
Change hit yet again with business ownership, two jobs, and 2 kids. I realized I needed the workout 5-6 days per week, but I only had a maximum of 60 minutes to get it done. This pattern of adjustments has been critical for my longevity to work out for over 10 years straight.
How to Choose Your Work out Routine
In order to reach this conclusion, I continually have to ask myself a few different questions every 6 months or so. These are no different than the questions you should ask yourself as a beginning exerciser:
- How often do you work out right now?
- How does my body feel working out like this?
- How does my progress look working out like this?
- How much do I like working out like this?
- How does this affect my relationships, sleep, work?
The answers to each of these questions are going to look different from person to person but the theme should remain the same.
How Often You Should Work Out
You should work out often enough that you know your body is going to still feel good and accomplish the things it needs to accomplish in a day.
You should work out enough that you notice measurable progress in the weights you are lifting, the speed you are moving, the coordination of your body mechanics, and whatever else is important for you.
You should work out enough to do all of those things but still like the routine and rhythm.
And you should work out enough that you do all of those things without having a negative impact on the people who matter most to you.
How a Coach Can Help you Build your Plan
The fastest way to success in almost anything is to work with a guide, mentor, or coach on your way to get there. Fitness is no different. Yes, you can do it for free, on your own, in a park, in about 15 minutes or less per day (on average).
However, a coach is going to look at what you are dealing with in life, outside of the gym, to help you build your plan. They would consider the time you have in the day, the other responsibilities in your life, and your fitness experience. From there, a coach is going to give you a schedule, exercises, and feedback to build and optimize the work out plan that is going to work for you.
