How much time should be spent on a workout

defscarlett
defscarlett Posts: 8
in Fitness and Exercise
To go to the gym and do a workout how much time should be spent. Also should you do strength and cardio on the same day or should they always be separate?

Replies

  • xMrBunglex
    xMrBunglex Posts: 1,121 Member
    You're going to love this answer:

    "It depends."
  • rprussell2004
    rprussell2004 Posts: 870 Member
    About twelve.
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    how long is a piece of string?
  • AdaVanderlyle
    AdaVanderlyle Posts: 113 Member
    You're going to love this answer:

    "It depends."

    That it, in fact, the only possible answer :flowerforyou:

    OP, some additional info from you would be much appreciated.
    What are your goals and stats, for start.
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
    It should take however long is necessary to accomplish the goal(s) that is/are set for that specific day. My deadlift day takes about an hour and a half, due to all of the assistance that goes on. My squat day takes about an hour, but that'll be going down starting this week to 30-45 minutes. My heavy bench day typically takes about 45 minutes. And my light bench day takes about 30 minutes.

    As far as strength and cardio on the same day or separate? Whichever works for you. If you want to strength train and do cardio on the same day, so you can have a full day of rest between sessions? Great. If you alternate days of strength training and cardio? That's great, too.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    Yep - all of the above. :smile:

    Mine are planned out and depend on what I'm trying to accomplish and how much time I have. Some days it's an hour. Other days it's 20 minutes. Both are beneficial and effective if done right.
  • cw106
    cw106 Posts: 952 Member
    start slowly. i did 7 mins on treadmill and recumbant bike for a week to begin.
    now i do 40-60 mins treadmill. then swim.
    ask your local instructor for advice.
  • jeanlake
    jeanlake Posts: 130 Member
    It does depend. Have you met with a trainer, or knowledgeable person, to get started? Some days I go 70 minutes at the gym and include both strength & cardio. Other days I split it up. Some days my cardio isn't in the gym when I walk quite a distance or cycle a distance. And some days, I give my knees a rest. I know my routine and what I want to accomplish each week well enough to vary it and feel good about it. Start with a goal and allow yourself to be flexible. Good luck.
  • giggitygoo
    giggitygoo Posts: 1,978 Member
    Well to quote Jason Statham: "Get serious, do 40 hard minutes, not an hour and a half of nonsense."
  • wrbiii
    wrbiii Posts: 151
    how long is a piece of string?

    Twice the distance from the center to one end.
  • rprussell2004
    rprussell2004 Posts: 870 Member
    how long is a piece of string?

    Perhaps not uncoincidentally, also about twelve!
  • JoRocka
    JoRocka Posts: 17,525 Member
    as long as it takes.

    As far as cardio/strength- are you training for something- or just general health/wellness.

    Because if its' training- then you're end goal will determine what takes priority. If it's general wellness- do whatever you want- but there is no harm to doing both on the same day.
  • defscarlett
    defscarlett Posts: 8
    I used to be in awesome shape, i'm also military. I'm currently coming back from a long term (3 year) injury on my back, but have to get back in shape to take a pt test in Oct. I've been going to the gym and spending about 1.5-2 hrs working out. Some days it's only strength and other days its strength and cardio. Just wondering if that's too long.

    Hopefully that helps, if you have any other questions please feel free to ask.
  • MsBetteDavis
    MsBetteDavis Posts: 118 Member
    I used to be in awesome shape, i'm also military. I'm currently coming back from a long term (3 year) injury on my back, but have to get back in shape to take a pt test in Oct. I've been going to the gym and spending about 1.5-2 hrs working out. Some days it's only strength and other days its strength and cardio. Just wondering if that's too long.

    Hopefully that helps, if you have any other questions please feel free to ask.

    Do you have a physio? I think that they would be better suited to answer this question, since my answer really depends on how well your back is holding up. You don't want to push it too hard and then aggravate a back injury.
  • defscarlett
    defscarlett Posts: 8
    Doc says do what I can but know my limits... also was given a short list of exercises not to do, sit ups etc
  • defscarlett
    defscarlett Posts: 8
    With the additional information added, is 1.5 - 2 hours too long to work out?
  • shadowofender
    shadowofender Posts: 786 Member
    With the additional information added, is 1.5 - 2 hours too long to work out?

    Again, it depends, as others have said. You said the dr gave you a list of things not to do, what was the reason behind them? Setting goals is where to start. I know I couldn't do 1.5-2 hours of straight cardio in one day, but I'm up to 40-45 minutes at once when it used to be hard to get through 30. So it's really about knowing your start point, knowing what your goals are, and then moving on from there.


    ETA: I just saw why you can't do some things. If you're getting through that time line and feel good, then the answer is no, it's not too much. But I'm not a doctor and there could be other considerations to keep in mind.
  • martinel2099
    martinel2099 Posts: 899 Member
    You're going to love this answer:

    "It depends."


    Best answer here.

    What are your goals? If you want to lose weight and maintain muscle mass I recommend trying a heavy lifting program like "Strong Lifts" 3 exercises a day 3 days a week. These are compound lifts so they are very good, you're hitting multiple muscle groups at once and it doesn't take long to do. 45min on average for me.

    I like to do 30 minutes of cardio after not before, because squats kick my *kitten* (good thing). On the off days (tuesday and thursday) I do cardio only for 30min to an hour, or take the day off depending on my mood.
  • defscarlett
    defscarlett Posts: 8
    I don't do 2 hours of cardio LOL I would die! I've been doing a 5-10 min warmup on the treadmill, then weight training, then cardio (different type each day) for 30-45 min depending on time restraints, then 5-10 min cool down. strength training (work 1-3 muscle groups i.e. legs, core etc a day) 3 sets of 6-12 reps on exercises (when I hit the 12 rep, then I move up to the next weight and start at 6 reps and work my way up to 12 rinse repeat), 30 sec rest cycle between sets. On days when I'm very sore I'll just do cardio and no strength training.

    My goal would be to lose weight I have a 50 lb ultimate goal, however in about 15 lbs I will meet my max weight allowed for the military, so from there it's really going to be about gaining strength and endurance to pass my PT test. 2 min of situps (at least 45), 2 min of pushups (at least 17), and 2 mile run (at least 20:30)
  • No_Finish_Line
    No_Finish_Line Posts: 3,661 Member
    i'd say for most people a typical workout is between 30 - 60 min. obviously due to motivation or different rountines, etc. this will fluctuate for everyone. thats pretty standard for a few reasons: less then 30 isn't to effective unless its very intense, more then an hour is tough to fit into your day for extended periods. obviously goals will influence how long you want to workout, but most of the general public seems to fit in here.

    you can do cardio and strength on the same day, or not. A good rule of thumb is not to go more then 3 days between a work out. so if you lifted on monday, you'd want to do the same body part or routine again by thursday (and take a day off in between).

    hope that helps a little
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Sit down and establish some fitness goals...that will help you determine what you need to be doing and for how long, etc.

    Personally when I'm just workout out for fitness I ride for about an hour 4-5 days per week and lift 2-3x weekly which takes me about 45 - 60 minutes depending on wait times for equipment, etc.

    When I'm training for an event or racing, that's another story.
  • defscarlett
    defscarlett Posts: 8
    When training, how much time do you spend on your workouts?

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