How Often Should I Work Out?

I know a lot of people who fall into the trap of 'if I can't work out 5-6 times a week I may as well not even try.' I often times get down on myself if I miss a couple of workouts in a week and get the feeling that I've ruined the week and I should just give up.

But through my own experience, and watching those around me who workout on a regular basis, 5-6 times a week is simply not necessary to make a major difference.

A 24 year old was looking to shape up for her wedding and wanted to lose fat and gain muscle in the 9 months she had before displaying herself in a wedding dress before 300 people. She did two sessions of cardio and two sessions of weight training per week. By the time her wedding rolled around she was happy and comfortable with her body, and everyone commented on how great she looked in her wedding photos.

A 27 year old male I know wants to bulk up and put on pounds of muscle. He hits the gym 4 times a week for a half an hour to an hour, and has gained a noticeable amount of muscle with this schedule. He says it's important to take those 3 days off to allow his body recovery time and the chance to build the muscles he worked out while training.

One older woman I know has a goal of getting to the gym just three times a week. This way she can hit every major muscle group, and gets about a half an hour of cardio each session as a warm up. She is 57 and in better shape than most of my younger friends, including myself. She says all she needs is 3 days a week to maintain the muscles she has and to keep extra pounds off.

So if you're like me who feels guilty if you sleep in a day or two during the week, relax and realize that your body needs those off days just as much as the workouts themselves. Plus, you can still make a major difference in how you look and feel with just a couple of hard workouts per week!