Most of the fitness aspirants are told by trainers that their workout should not exceed 45 to 60 minutes. How this should not be considered as a standard rule. We will discuss the duration of workout & tips on how to adjust duration based on you fitness goals & lifestyle.
So what does workout duration means?
If someone says that they train for 2 hours, it does not mean that they exercise for entire 2 hours. The workout consists of:
- Warm up period
- Rest Period
- Stretching
- Washroom break
Proponents of shorter workout duration says that if you workout more than an hour, your testosterone levels goes down, your cortisol levels( stress level) goes up & you end up in catabolic state( lose muscles)
Lots of studies have proven that some long workout- 90 minutes plus enhance testosterone upto 2 hours after training session. High Cortisol level does not ruin the progress.In Fact, it is a proven fact that high cortisol helps you grow more muscles. Therefore reducing workout duration to enhance hormonal response is unfounded.
There is no concept of optimum workout length. There is a realistic & sustainable workout duration that works for you. For instance, weekday morning workout would not be as long as weekend training.You have to maintain a balancing act between your fitness goals & professional aspirations. Workout has to be a priority in your life but it should not have a negative impact on your work responsibilities. So adjust your workout accordingly to your schedule. For instance if you have 45 minutes for workout instead of 90 minutes, use high energy workout techniques such as supersets, drop sets, circuits impacting multiple muscle groups.
Length of your rest period between 2 sets will have important bearing on workout length. So what should be an ideal rest period? Most trainers recommend 40 to 60 seconds. However a simple answer is you should rest until you’re ready for the next set. Shorter rest periods( 30 to 45 seconds) shall result in slow muscle growth when compared to longer rest periods ( 2 to 3 minutes). Longer rest period will help your central nervous system recover & you would do more reps till failure.
Your workout length will vary depending on the muscle group and the intensity you’re aiming for. If your goal is to build muscle and gain strength you will spend more time training than when you want to keep your heart rate up and burn more fat.
Workout length guidelines that will help you structure your workouts:
- High intensity workout (gain strength and muscle): 60-120 minutes
- Moderate intensity workout (build muscle): 45-60 minutes
- Light intensity workout (recovery day): 30-45 minutes
- High intensity interval training (HIIT): 15-30 minutes
- Low intensity steady state (LISS): 45-75 minutes
Rest period guidelines:
For compound exercises: 2 to 3 minutes
For isolation exercises: 60 to 90 seconds
