I have to admit that I'm pretty much still going to keep up my schedule because I'm stubborn, but curious to see what the OPINION is on this. I'm using a total gym for my strength training and I work out every other day, not three days a week, but every other day. Is there any problem with working out every other day instead of just three days a week and having the two day rest period every week?
I'm sure with real weights that would probably be the case, and although I have a lot of faith in the total gym because I have seen results, and I know some muscle heads out there will poo poo it, it's still not as intense and strenuous on the body as real weights, so I figure I can get away with every other day and not have the two day break period. I plan on taking a week off like every 6 weeks or so when changing up my routine. As for my workout, I do about a 45 minute workout totalling about 320 reps per workout. So it's a moderate level workout, not too intense, but not too light.
No musclehead here, but I am a definite fan of free weights. You can definitely workout every other day. That should give you 48 hours between workouts, which is fine even for a full body routine.
__________________ In Fitness & Friendship, MAHLER
______________________________ __________________________ There is no light at the end of the tunnel. You carry the light with you.
I definitely agree with the preference for free weights, but I don't really have the time and access to them right now. I've got the old like $200 total gym I bought around the time they first came out and I use that at home in the evenings. I can't believe those things cost like $1,500 now. From what I can say the only improvement is that they're built more sturdy, but it doesn't look as though they offer much more in the way of additional exercises you can do on them.
I was thinking of buying a couple of 20 lb dumbbells to at least at a little bit of free weights to my routine. I could probably get a good 6 months of use out of those before they got too light for me, and probably even longer for the more challenging exercises.
if you want DBs, it would be more cost efficient to go to Play It Again Sports or equivalent and buy some DB handles and some weight plates. Fixed wt dbs are great, but really only useful if you have them in a wide range of weights.
I actually encourage training almost every day. Keep the workouts short but intense. Eat well. Sleep well. My older clients have seen great benefits from this, namely, they recover quicker and actually experience less joint pain. Kettlebell training, along with some other key basic compound lifts are the prescription. For more information about Kettlebell training, I offer the best priced 3 hour DVD for Kettlebell and Strength Training. visit: www.midwestkettlebell.com
Thanks, and good luck with the training!
I have the Total Gym 1700 and think it is fantastic, but then I am a 57 year old diabetic. I keep mine in the garage, use it, well, every other day like you. What I do is pull it out of the garage along with my weight bench and free weights. I do the free weights strenously, then jump on the Total Gym for a easier "recovery" then go back to the bench, back and forth. I used to add 80 lbs to the Total Gym, but now I use the bench in coordination with the TG and get great workouts.
I also go the gym once or twice a week to get heavier workouts, especially squats, then the next day the Total Gym is a light recovery workout. I'm sure that younger people might not find the Total Gym sufficient, but I find that it is extremely convenient and used in coordination with free weights makes an excellent workout. For a stand-alone workout, it is okay, or better than nothing IMO, but for us older people and diabetics, it is certainly a good blood sugar reducer.
I train 4 days per week splitting push and pull (2 days a week pull M & TH, 2 days a week push (T & F). I use wed and saturdays for forearm/grip work and isometric band work for sprint speed, which I find improvement already from doing that one week (the bands isometrically for the butt, hamstrings, hip flexors, abductors, and adductors..should always be felt in the glutes). On sundays I do nothing or if I feel like going to a class at the gym, I go..yoga or cardio kick box extreme.
its up to you whatever you want to do. try different splits and stuff and see what you feel comfortable doing.
full body 3 days a week (mon/wed/fri example)..you can also go mon, thurs, sunday, tuesday, friday, so on. every 2 days will work better for strength gains rather than just every other day. some lifts just need 2 days off inbetween for recovery unless your doing endurance.
split push/pull or lower body/upper body (2 days a week for 1, 2 days a week for the other like me. mon thurs and tue fri.
Can I strength train EVERY other day?
Linear Mode
