More Exercise is Not Always Better

Posted Oct 20, 2009 by nia shanks. This entry is filed under strength training, fat loss, and workout.

One Leg Squat - Hard Work

Sometimes Less is the Answer

This is one of the most common things I see in the gym every day. Most people are overwhelmed with the concept that “more is better” when it comes to exercise.

The thinking tends to go somewhat like this: If strength training three days a week is good, then four must be better. If four is better, than five has got to be even better.

If performing conditioning exercise (aka: cardio) two days a week, then three or four must be better.

As a result, many people end up spending hours in the gym several days a week. And if that doesn’t work, they do even more in an effort to get their body to respond.

And do you know what usually happens? They get so burned out after a while that they disappear all together. They wonder why all that work hasn’t paid off. I mean, they have been working out for hours a week!

It’s probably because of genetics.

Their body just can’t change.

Yeah. Right. I have heard those remarks and many more from people who just can’t seem to get the results they want.

Well, here’s my answer: it’s not because they aren’t doing enough work; in fact, they are probably doing too much. Instead of working out more, they need to workout harder and smarter.

I have trained people who used to strength train five or more days every week, and they did hours worth of cardio on top of that. When they come to train with me, they only strength train three days per week with total body workouts, and we greatly reduce the amount of cardio they perform and use different methods.

I have them strength train three days per week, and they do conditioning work after training or two to three days per week on off days. As a result, they are doing half the amount of work (sometimes even a third) they were doing before hiring me.

At first, they are incredibly skeptical and worried they are going to gain weight or not get results. However, the exact opposite happens.

They start losing weight. Their body responds to the workouts. They have more energy throughout the day. They have a lot more free time to invest in other activities.

So here’s the question: how is it that someone can cut their workout time in half but get more results at a much faster rate?

It’s not about how long you workout, but the quality and intensity of your workouts.

If you work hard doing basic compound exercises for 30-45 minutes three times per week, you are going to get great results.

If you include some basic condition (cardio) work two to three days a week, you are going to get great results.

This has never failed with myself or any of my clients.

If you spend several hours a week working out but are not getting the results you want, just try this.

Center your workouts around the following exercises:

- Squat, deadlift, and lunge variations for your lower body

- Chest presses, parallel bar dips, and push-up variations for your chest, shoulders and triceps

- Rows, chin-ups, and inverted rows for your back and biceps

- Standing overhead presses and push presses for your shoulders and triceps

- Planks, side planks, ab wheel rollouts, and other stabilization exercises for your core

Make sure you use a challenging weight for all of those exercises, and push yourself hard. Don’t stop a set short when you can do another rep or two. And, if you can’t get the work done with two or three sets for each exercise, then you probably aren’t working hard enough.

For your conditioning work that will increase fat burning, try activities like jumping rope (check out a sample jump rope workout here - Fat Burning Jump Rope Workout), running hill sprints, and intervals with bodyweight exercises like burpees.

If you want to include brisk walking for added activity, then go ahead.

Transforming your body is not complicated, and it doesn’t take near the amount of time that people think.

You have to train hard, and train smart.