Strength Training Frequency / Off Days Etc.

Hello.  I mostly lurk here, but I have questions about strength training that I'd love to get your thoughts on.

I have been working out pretty intensely 4-6 days a week at the gym since January. Basically doing lots of cardio and alternating lower and upper body weight training, taking at least a day off in between. However, I'm a restless and easily bored Gemini  plus I usually work out on my lunch breaks and work has become incredibly busy sooo I've been doing some different workouts at home. 

I think I'm getting too caught up in not working certain muscles on consecutive days.  For example, if I do legs one day at the gym, should I not do any squats, lunges etc. the next day as part of another workout?  Or if I do an arms circuit, should I stay away from push ups the following day?  I know cardio works lots of the same large muscle groups on significant days so does it really matter?

Also, how often should I be working muscles each week?  Any thoughts?  I also don't want to start using this as an excuse not to work out which I have been prone to do in the past.

Thanks!

I am by no means an expert but so far this has worked for me. I do 90 mins of upper body weights and 45 mins of cardio on Mon,Wed,Fri b4 work. On Tue,Thu I do 30 minutes of lower body weights and 2 hours of cardio. Most days I go back for 40-45 minutes of cardio at lunch. I take the weekends off. The every other day has worked for me to get some strength back. In the past 3 months I have more than doubled what I could do in the weight room. Other people may have different opinions and they may be correct as there are a lot of people on here that have been doing this a lot longer than me.

Thanks Nate. It helps to see what works for others.

Lara

You should NEVER lift weights on the same muscle groups on consecutive days. Give your muscles 3-4 days to recover before working them out again. Many people who do not follow this advice experience Muscle Atrophy, which means instead of building muscle, they are breaking down the muscle and actually LOOSING mass. I see the same people at the gym EVERYDAY only doing curls and bench press, that's all they do everyday, they have not gained any muscle mass and appear to be lifting about the same amount of weight they were 1 year ago. Break your strength training into SPLIT workouts, which might help balance out your training schedule. For example:

Monday: Shoulders & Triceps
Tuesday: Back & Abs
Wed: Cross train or cardio
Thurs: Chest & Biceps
Friday: Legs
Saturday: Cardio / Cross train

By hitting all muscle groups once a week, you will make gains and allow proper recovery between workouts, which is equally, if not MORE important than the workout itself. Muscle does NOT grow in the gym, it grows when the torn muscle fibers / tissue repair themself, hopefully a little bigger, the following days AFTER the workout. Hope this helps. Best of luck...

Thanks.  I definitely knew no weights on consecutive days, but what would you think about (using your schedule as an example) doing a cardio workout with lots of squats and lunges on Saturday? Does that really matter? 

I like your schedule. Very helpful.

Lara

Lunges and squats are a leg workout, so if you did no leg workout on friday, that might be ok. This actually is not my schedule, it was just an example... I run, typically 40-50 miles a week, swim 8-10 miles a week, and cycle 125-150 miles a week.  Best of luck...

Gotcha.  Thanks!

I break up my gym days with lap swimming days. I go to the gym every other day and do 20 minutes on the treadmill or the bicycle, then I spend about 25-30 minutes on the weight machines. I might work the same set of muscles, but there has been a day in between (lap swimming on the days I'm not at the gym), and I use different machines every other time, so the muscles are worked a little differently. I also alternate between high reps/low weights and high weight/low reps to try and keep my workouts fresh. Now that it's getting nice out, I'll be doing more walking and biking in my neighborhood. I have some 10 lb. dumbbells at home, so if I walk instead of going to the gym, I'll still get some weight work in.

Good luck!

Jenny

Thanks Jenny!

Lara