How varied does a workout routine have to be?

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misssmarita
misssmarita Posts: 130
in Fitness and Exercise
Because to be honest, my favorite thing to do right now while I'm still as out of shape as I am, is just going around the gym, doing my own thing, doing a little bit of treadmill, a little bit of elliptical, and a little bit of the stationary bike. But it's been beaten into me that a routine needs to be balanced, and varied. So how much variation does there need to be? How much variation do you have in your workout routine?

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  • CarolinaBeachGirl2
    CarolinaBeachGirl2 Posts: 31 Member
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    Be ture to YOU! As long as you are challenging yourself (not getting comfortable ie never changing the pace or duration) and keepng your heart rate up you are doing great. Keep up the good work.
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
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    /shrug I don't follow any real 'program'. I just do whatever the hell I feel like doing. It's working fine for me thus far.
  • fishlover888
    fishlover888 Posts: 132
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    First of all, I agree with the above posts that you have to do what you want and what makes you feel good and happy. However your body does adapt to a regular fitness routine and you might not 'get as much' out of it - depending on what YOUR goals are. (this is all about you!)

    But I'm guessing that maybe because you posted this, you are at least interested in finding out what else is out there. And there is a ton!

    I really like that you are getting different types of cardio and not just sticking to the elliptical or any one thing. This helps balance out different muscle groups and keeps you from getting bored. You might enjoy trying interval training, where you go faster for short periods of time in order to bump up your heart rate and challenge yourself!

    I also really recommend that everyone does some kind of weight training. Don't be afraid of the weights! Weights training has huge benefits including preventing osteoporosis, making you feel strong and accomplished, building muscles which burn more calories than fat cells do, and giving you a great bod underneath so that when you do lose the weight you want you look even more awesome!
  • misssmarita
    misssmarita Posts: 130
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    First of all, I agree with the above posts that you have to do what you want and what makes you feel good and happy. However your body does adapt to a regular fitness routine and you might not 'get as much' out of it - depending on what YOUR goals are. (this is all about you!)

    But I'm guessing that maybe because you posted this, you are at least interested in finding out what else is out there. And there is a ton!

    I really like that you are getting different types of cardio and not just sticking to the elliptical or any one thing. This helps balance out different muscle groups and keeps you from getting bored. You might enjoy trying interval training, where you go faster for short periods of time in order to bump up your heart rate and challenge yourself!

    I also really recommend that everyone does some kind of weight training. Don't be afraid of the weights! Weights training has huge benefits including preventing osteoporosis, making you feel strong and accomplished, building muscles which burn more calories than fat cells do, and giving you a great bod underneath so that when you do lose the weight you want you look even more awesome!

    I WHOLEHEARTEDLY agree that women needn't be afraid to include some lifting in their routine if it's something they might enjoy.

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