We all know that exercising regularly is good for our health. Getting ourselves to actually do it is a different story. It’s so easy to fall into the cycle of overdoing it, followed by a period of doing nothing at all. If that’s you, you are not alone. Having knowledge about how much we should exercise won’t solve all of our problems of getting started or staying consistent, but it will definitely help. My hope is that you leave this article feeling more capable of finding an amount of exercise that will help you feel your best, reach your goals, and that you can stick to.

According to the American College of Sports Medicine, which is known as the gold standard for exercise recommendations, we should be incorporating both aerobic exercise and strength training into our routines. The minimum recommendations for aerobic exercise are 30 minutes, five days per week at a moderate intensity, or 20 minutes, three days per week at a vigorous intensity. An easy way to tell the difference between moderate and vigorous intensity exercise is to notice whether or not you’re able to have a full conversation. If you can, you’re in the moderate range. If you can’t, you’re in the vigorous range. On top of this, we also want to incorporate a minimum of 2 strength-training workouts per week that work all of the major muscle groups. 

This may sound like a lot, or it may sound easily achievable. Remember, these are the minimum weekly recommendations. Most of us lead such sedentary lifestyles that although hitting these minimums will definitely help us feel better, I’d encourage you to do a little bit more if possible. 

It’s important we take other factors of our lives into consideration when planning our weekly exercise schedule. One important factor to take into account is the amount of time you spend physically active outside of your scheduled exercise. As time being sedentary increases, your amount of intentional exercise will also need to increase. If you’re walking or carrying objects for most of your day, you may not need as much intentional exercise as someone who sits at a desk for eight hours. 

Other factors we want to take into consideration include our goals, what we need to do to reach them, and how much exercise makes us feel our best. Write down what your current exercise routine looks like each week including the type of exercise you do, intensity level, and the time spent. Where are you in relation to your goals? Notice if you need to step up your exercise game or if you’re happy with where you currently are. Neither of these is right or wrong, they are just pieces of information that help us make decisions to move forward. 

It’s usually our goal to move toward the state of health we desire. If you notice that you are in a state of being that you are not happy with, it is also okay to use that as motivation to move away from what you know you don’t like. This will turn into moving towards what you want once you give yourself the momentum to figure out what that is. If you need help creating your weekly exercise routine or if you’d like a workout plan to follow, email me at maggi@calofitnessllc.com so we can get you started on a plan that fits your life, your goals, and helps you become your strongest, most confident self. 

Xoxo

Coach Maggi