You know that working out is essential to shedding pounds, but if you're unsure exactly how to structure your routine [1], you're not alone. Let's get one daunting question out of the way: how often you should exercise, whether that's at the gym [2], at home, or pounding the pavement [3]. The answer?
"Find something you enjoy (or can at least tolerate), and work your way up to exercising five to six days a week, with at least one rest day per week," Stephanie Blozy [4], MS, an exercise science expert and owner of Fleet Feet [5] in West Hartford, CT, told POPSUGAR.
While the best exercise is one you like enough to keep coming back to, Kyra Williams [6], an NASM-certified personal trainer in Tampa, FL, suggested focusing on HIIT and strength training for fat loss [7].
She recommended lifting weights [8] as part of your workout three to four days a week. "Perform three to four sets of eight to 12 reps of each exercise, using the heaviest weight possible," Kyra explained. This way, "you'll be lifting for hypertrophy or muscle building [9]."
High-intensity interval training, meanwhile, increases your calorie burn both during and after your workout [10], incinerating fat. So, on days when you're pressed for time, "You can burn the same amount of calories in 15 minutes as you would during 45 minutes of low-intensity exercise, like walking or bike riding [11]," Stephanie said, noting that both forms of exercise have a place in any workout plan.
Ultimately, the experts agreed that the frequency of workouts can vary based on your schedule. "If you realistically only have three days a week to work out for one hour, you can get results. If you have 30 minutes five times a week, you can get results in that time frame," Kyra said. "While I would never suggest exercising for less than 90 minutes a week, two days of lifting for 30 minutes is better than zero."
