Many may speculate that the longer the workout, the quicker the results. This is similar to the nutrition equation, the less you eat, the quicker the pounds come off. The math might work in the short term, but what about long term benefits? This exercise equation long term results to burnout and potential injury. Just like longer term calorie deficit leads to no energy and malnourishment. This is not a healthy plan, and definitely not our end goal.
You may have thought, or have heard people say, “I exercise almost every day, why am I no longer losing weight?” “I run all the time, why am I not getting faster?” “I spend hours at the gym, why am I not getting stronger?”
When digging deeper for the answers to these questions, most people find that they stick to the workouts they know and repeat it weekly. Those who want to get stronger, may be separating muscle groups for each workout, but are routinely lifting the same weight at the same reps.
Those who want to run faster, run the same 3-mile route every day. Those who want to lose weight, do the same workouts every week.
We are all creatures of habit. We stick to what is comfortable and also stick with what works! Although we may enjoy the same workout, our bodies acclimate and need variation. Think of when the weather gets colder. That first 35-degree day feels unbearably cold. However, after weeks of 35 degrees, it still might feel cold, but we don’t get as flustered and shocked by it when we take a step outside. This is called body acclimation. Your body is expecting the cold, so it adapts. Similar to exercise, when our body is hit with a demand, it may be tough in the beginning, it may burn a ton of calories, and you might see results right away, however over time our body acclimates to that demand. The everyday 2-mile run doesn’t need as much energy to accomplish and it doesn’t seem as difficult than when you first started.
A quick and mindless resolution is to add more time to the workout. The 30-minute group exercise class is now stretched to 45 minutes, a 2-mile run every day turns to 5 miles, and 3 sets of 12 repetitions turns to 4 sets.
Adding time isn’t necessarily a bad thing. We want to add time to build endurance. However, there is only a certain amount of time we can add without it becoming too much. Your body will require and use more energy with longer workouts. You will see change in the beginning, but then the body will acclimate. Depending on how much you add, it can lead to burnout and potential injury. Your body will acclimate to the same 60-minute group exercise class every day, your body will burnout to running 5 miles a day and your body might risk injury if you continue to add more sets to your resistance training.
What’s the secret to exercise? Change in quantity, also comes with change in quality. There is no one or the other. They go hand in hand. Our body needs multi-dimensional workouts. Workout progressions does not just mean more time. Workout progressions should create different stimulus to keep the body challenged.
Running 5 miles every day is not as sustainable as running 2 miles every day. A safer and progressive option for someone currently running 2 miles a day that would like to progress to 5 miles, or more, could be:
1. 1 day a week add .5 to 1 mile to your running route until you hit 5 miles
2. 1 day a week for 1- 1.5 miles of interval speed training
3. 1 day a week for a 1-3 mile tempo run, or another form of cardiovascular training (>20 minutes) such as biking, swimming, high intensity interval training (HIIT), hiking, etc.
4. 1-2 days a week (> 30 minutes) of resistance training that targets muscles used for running and core stability
5. 1 day a week that targets flexibility and mind-body recovery (>30 minutes), such as yoga and Pilates
6. And 1-2 days of recovery to rest and recover muscles
This plan long term will increase your mileage safely, increase run speed, increase cardiovascular and muscular strength and increase flexibility. This progressive plan can work for someone who enjoys running for exercise or is training for a 5k, half marathon, or Ironman. We need to remember that the body cannot sustain the same high-volume intensity day in and day out, and the body will not change if it does the same workout every day.
Every week, the body needs days to build strength, support endurance and aid in flexibility and recovery. We want to create workout progressions and workouts each week that focus on these components.
Endurance
Moderate in intensity due to the body being able to sustain the demand for a long period of time.
- Activities or cardiovascular aerobic training that starts gradually increase with progressive training. o Walking for 20 minutes straight and building up to walking for 60 minutes straight.
- Resistance training that includes repetitions of 12-20.
Strength
Moderate to vigorous intensity for a shorter duration.
- The body cannot sustain that high amount of energy for a long period of time. o 2 minutes of walking, followed by 2 minutes of jogging/running for a total of 20 minutes
- Resistance training that includes repetitions of less than 12.
Flexibility and Recovery
An activity or exercise that is focused on moving a joint through its complete range of motion, such as Yoga, stretching, or Pilates.
- This should be coupled with an endurance or strength workout and it is an activity that allows the muscles to rest and repair o 30-minute jog, followed by 10 minutes of stretching.
Diversity in your workouts will lead to faster and well-rounded fitness results. Not only will your workouts feel more productive, but each workout component creates a positive return for the other. Endurance is the foundation for strength, flexibility aids in strength exercises, recovery brings rested muscles to endurance and strength workouts!
No matter your level of fitness, it is beneficial to write down what you will do each week to make sure you have all four components. When you dedicate the time to plan out your weeks, you are more motivated to get it done. Take a look at the 8-week example below.
8-Week Beginner Workout Plan
Weeks 1-4
Monday: 20-minute bodyweight circuit (STRENGTH)
Tuesday: Brisk walk for 20-30 minutes (each week add 5 minutes) (ENDURANCE)
Wednesday: Rest (RECOVERY)
Thursday: 20-minute high intensity interval training (HIIT) video (STRENGTH)
Friday: 30-minute yoga class (FLEXIBILITY)
Saturday: 30-minute bike ride (each week add 5 minutes) (ENDURANCE)
Sunday: Rest (RECOVERY)
Weeks 5-8
Monday: 20-minute free-weight circuit or 30-minute bodyweight circuit (STRENGTH)
Tuesday: Brisk walk for 45 minutes, OR jog for 20 minutes. Each week change modality. Do a combination of brisk walk and jog, jog for less time (start at 10 or 20 minutes and add 2-5 minutes each week) or keep adding time to your brisk walks. (ENDURANCE)
Wednesday: Rest (RECOVERY)
Thursday: 20-minute HIIT video or 15- minute more advanced HIIT video (STRENGTH)
Friday: 30-minute yoga class or bump it up to 45-minutes (FLEXIBILITY)
Saturday: 30-minute bike ride (each week change your modality to a different form of cardiovascular training, such as swimming, or hiking) (ENDURANCE)
Sunday: Rest (RECOVERY)