The age old beginners question that can still baffle even advanced athletes

[LateStart]

So......how much time in the gym is enough? This is obviously different for different goals but for the sake of argument let's say you are only interested in building muscle and reaching the most lean mass you can. And I mean time spent lifting weights. Cardio has its place in any routine or goal but I am interested in what you guys have to say about time spend lifting.

I just read an article that inspired me to come here and ask what you guys think. The article suggested that for the "natural" athlete he should train 45 min two to three times per week......and that more training time is only effective if using steroids. Pretty sure I don't buy that at all. How bout you guys?

My opinion is : I like 5 to 7 days per week for 45 min to an hr each session, regardless of natty or enhanced. I think that longer sessions could be beneficial for those who wish to recover more fully between sets to maximize the weight being used. With my current schedule I rest a minute, and in many cases less, between sets to make better use of my limited time. My sessions generally last 40 to 45 min but I sometimes superset and get done faster.....say 30 min. I try to get in the gym every day with no days off. Chest twice per week, back twice per week, arms once per week, shoulders once per week. I have injuries that prevent a thorough leg workout and I realize this is holding back my overall growth a good bit.......but I squeeze in a little work here and there on the legs (very light weight for legs)

How about you bros?

 

[Tbills02]

LateStart,

There are a million theories on working on and probably 500 plus studies, The most recent one i've heard of (and forgive me i cannot remember the source but Jeff Nippard on youtube has it on a video under training frequency) Is that even in trained males they say the most muscle growth with working body parts twice a week. I beleive they were doing and upper lower split so that would lead me to beleive they were training 4x a week. At the end of the day though you have to listen to what your body is telling you. Volume, recovery, intensity can change week to week and does person to person as well. If you enjoy quick high intensity workout goes for it. if you like longer rest periods to move heavier weight in a 5x5 style use that. Keep variety in the gym so you do not platue and do what your body tells you. Keep in mind to deload for your CNS. I workout for about an hour and 15 minutes PPL style at pretty high weights 80-90% I'm also currently cycling so my recovery is much better then average but even natrual i used a similar split but didn;t have the progression and deloaded more frequently.

 

[SoHo]

3-4 movements each body part, 4-5 day split, so my workouts are never less than an hour. then +30 minutes for cardio. lately i've been taking my sweet ass time too so the gym for me is usually about a 2 hour thing from the time i leave the house until i get back home.

 

[Mycelium]

In terms of muscle growth I respond best to HIT training. Forced reps, drop sets and limited sets. Probably 30-45 minutes but mostly under a bar. . . . . but look at my picture. I can gain cardio and endurance easily. Running a higher volume workout I either get to many reps on the first set or 2 on the last. I'm not gonna get 4 sets in 8-12 rep range. I might get 12 on the 1st set but I'll get 6 on the 4th set.

HIT style lifting has worked best for me. Strength and size
But I've never gained more than 20lbs above my teenage weight. 145-147lbs as a teen. Heaviest body weight training was about 170lbs. Usually hover around 160lbs.

 

[oldmusclemike]

This Question is varied by all of us. My time in the gym was changed from when i had my family and a my employ had me on the road and in airplanes.So then i had to watch a clock when I was at home in my gym .

There is an important factor that I have to consider if I have a training Partner. When i have a good partner in which we bond over training purpose I go a bit faster and I'll work with partner with super sets , drop sets, and failure and beyond with forced reps and more. However the intensity was just crazy.

My partner and I would train for 1-1/2 hrs but when alone I train much slower so it can be 2 or more hrs, but older now I do a bit too much talking now. MY least workout time is an hour but as said 1-1/2 hrs.

My .02

OMM

 

[SoHo]

3-4 movements each body part, 4-5 day split, so my workouts are never less than an hour. then +30 minutes for cardio. lately i've been taking my sweet ass time too so the gym for me is usually about a 2 hour thing from the time i leave the house until i get back home.

was half asleep when i wrote this so allow me to expand a bit on the topic.

i think everyone who works out should eventually, throughout the years, have discovered the secret formula that works for them. what works for me might not work for the next guy. i'm not sure if this is something i've developed from experience, but every time i leave the gym i have a sense of wether i trained to my full potential or not. this is also why i don't have a routine. i have a general outline of what i'd like to accomplish but no rules really. i just split up body parts and listen to my body. some guys use some routine they got from somewhere or someone, and while i'm not opposed to that, it shouldn't be your rulebook. if you feel like you can do another movement for that body part then by all means do it. once you've learned your body through experience, then you can leave the gym knowing that you have trained to the best of your abilities. and once you know you've done all that you can you will never be discouraged.

 

[SoHo]

This Question is varied by all of us. My time in the gym was changed from when i had my family and a my employ had me on the road and in airplanes.So then i had to watch a clock when I was at home in my gym .

There is an important factor that I have to consider if I have a training Partner. When i have a good partner in which we bond over training purpose I go a bit faster and I'll work with partner with super sets , drop sets, and failure and beyond with forced reps and more. However the intensity was just crazy.

My partner and I would train for 1-1/2 hrs but when alone I train much slower so it can be 2 or more hrs, but older now I do a bit too much talking now. MY least workout time is an hour but as said 1-1/2 hrs.

funny you say that because i usually train alone, but yesterday i ran into an old friend and we were doing the classic 'lifting and talking'. we had a lot of catching up to do. then i was like "oh shit! we've turned into those older guys we used hate back in the day!"

 

[wacoach]

Late Start: Been training myself and athletes for many years. The programs we follow basically just are dictated by our limitations (work & family for normal population or games & practice for athletes). If you can actually train 7 days a week, you can do it successfully without overtraining. It just comes down to solid planning and creating the correct splits through exercise selection. I currently train some athletes that workout, practice and/or play games all seven days each week. We just manage intensity of training sessions, monitor food intake and sleep to make sure we aren’t doing too much.

 

[Landmark_Susan]

When you're motivated to exercise and determined to get results, spending extra time at the gym may seem like a good idea -- but more exercise is not necessarily better. Finding a balance between duration, intensity and recovery will get you the best results while sparing you from adverse effects of overtraining. My friend is a beginner, he improve his basic strength by performing two to three sessions per week, lasting about 20 to 30 minutes each.


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[Nicky_eye_lids]

funny you say that because i usually train alone, but yesterday i ran into an old friend and we were doing the classic 'lifting and talking'. we had a lot of catching up to do. then i was like "oh shit! we've turned into those older guys we used hate back in the day!"

same thing here when my bros come to visit me and we all hit the gym. good times.

 

[Milton]

My standard is to have a general outline of what i'd like to accomplish but no rules really.

 

[casanovaaa]

I personally could not train alone and had to go with my bros to the gym. I found it hard to stay motivated while training, but keeping an eye out for the chicks in yoga pants was about all the motivation i got while training.
i prefer to go with my bros so we can motivate each other while working out and works out beautifully.

 

[PapaNoel]

This Question is varied by all of us. My time in the gym was changed from when i had my family and a my employ had me on the road and in airplanes.So then i had to watch a clock when I was at home in my gym .

There is an important factor that I have to consider if I have a training Partner. When i have a good partner in which we bond over training purpose I go a bit faster and I'll work with partner with super sets , drop sets, and failure and beyond with forced reps and more. However the intensity was just crazy.

My partner and I would train for 1-1/2 hrs but when alone I train much slower so it can be 2 or more hrs, but older now I do a bit too much talking now. MY least workout time is an hour but as said 1-1/2 hrs.

My .02

OMM

I'm exactly the same with training partner, thats why I always train with a PT

 

[SoHo]

I personally could not train alone and had to go with my bros to the gym. I found it hard to stay motivated while training, but keeping an eye out for the chicks in yoga pants was about all the motivation i got while training.
i prefer to go with my bros so we can motivate each other while working out and works out beautifully.

really? i'm the exact opposite. i need to be alone and completely in my own zone when im training. if i go with a friend i just end up bullshitting too much

 

[casanovaaa]

funny you say that because i usually train alone, but yesterday i ran into an old friend and we were doing the classic 'lifting and talking'. we had a lot of catching up to do. then i was like "oh shit! we've turned into those older guys we used hate back in the day!"

same with me man, but in my case we looked up to those guys, literary, we loved them because they where like rock stars.

 

[Nicky_eye_lids]

i go when the yoga classes are in action, spend around 2 hours in total working out.

 

[oldmusclemike]

I'm exactly the same with training partner, thats why I always train with a PT

Ah, ha... I had just one year in alone 79' /80' and in this college town i managed to hook up with these two college guys. And they helped me to an immeasurable amount. One guy moved on and Bill n I bonded. I'm ten years his senior. We really connected , still long distant best friends.

If I may tell , Oh no , not a long story about a partner. No one has said stop my lil old time stories, so , but just be honest

So Bill my partner turned out to be a valedictorian. He was in a high class of geniuses, photographic memory etc... Funny to this day... he was humble about it. After I saw he didn't have to attend all the classes to Ace it all. He also wrote all his partner's papers.... Everything just "A"s ...His and what he did for his buddy.

We needed NO journal / log the guy could tell you for weeks of previous lifting days. He would tell me where i'm at, what i had been saying about my goals as they changed. He kept track.... he stayed clean from AAS

He was an important figure some years later in the building up my Gym in Coral Springs Fl. "Coastal Fitness" really a basic BB gym. lol only two bikes lol

Ha his buddy was squatting close to 500 lb, my partner close to me but more and my max was only 350-370 best. They taught me how to squat and let me tell ya nothing like a close partner. man we could go for it. WE could get into the forced rep squatting just us two. It was so intense some times but we were tight like a machine. We squatted to our but hits the floor. NOT good for joints but that's what i was doing. Man it was the greatness lifting time in my life.

I've hooked up with a few others from time to time but I traveled. But a few minutes in a good BB GYM never been i would hook up with usually the big boys... ha haaa . I'm this skinny ecto but just juiced up to always train till bust. Old school frenzy Guys recognized the intensity i guess so they liked to spot n help another serious BB.
Also when a pretty good looking guy comes in it was fun to jump in ( permission). If he or even she Yeah is a lifter a fun little friendly competition many times would ensue. Hee, hee.

My point is a partner for most, not all, is just so good. Even while getting show ready and you drop weights due to strength decrease while cutting to keep from Muscle wasting a partner can help you force out beyond your best failure on a low weight-High Rep sets a partner can assist you in keeping your lifting going by moving weights, handing each other heavy shit,and set up for the one lifting at a higher then normal rate of speed for the intensity , and to move at a speed to help burn calories etc..

OMM