Why More Isn’t Always Better: The 3-4 Workout Sweet Spot

How often do you think you “should” workout in order to be strong, healthy, & fit?

The answer might surprise you.

Most people think that the MORE workouts they do, the MORE fit they will be. I mean, the logic makes sense right?

Unfortunately, more workouts does not equal more results for the average person. In fact, it most times messes up your results and leads to more frustration.

The reason for this is a bit nuanced and sciency but the simple explanation is that most people who just add more and more workouts to their schedule are usually (unintentionally) working out less & less intense with each workout they add.

They are then also validating poor nutrition habits with the thought of “well I did like 8 workouts this week so I deserve this (insert high calorie indulgence)”

When you are trying to offset poor nutrition with more workouts or just doing more workouts with no structure it becomes a losing battle of diminishing returns.

You are then in this predicament where you are married to an ineffective workout schedule but scared to do less because your belief is that less workouts will cause you to gain fat.

This is fitness purgatory.

Truthfully, for most adults trying to get more fit, leaner, & stronger, 3-4 workouts per week is the sweet spot.

Each workout should be focused on good technique, increasing weight or increasing reps from the week prior, and having some fun.

Getting the unlimited membership at your local group studio and doubling up on workouts some days or cramming yoga, HIIT, and spin into your week isn’t what creates a healthy & fit body.

Especially if you are also under eating protein, having “off the rails” weekends, and living a high stress life.

I have personally coached men & women who were working out 5-9x per week and eating strict macros before me, who were seeing almost no progress.

We then switched them to 3-4 solid workouts per week, increased their calories & carbs, and like magic they got leaner, stronger, slept better, and stayed 10x more consistent for longer.

When you have an urgent, emotional, & obsessive mindset toward your fitness goals, the process becomes unenjoyable and you rarely stick to it.

Generally, the first area to flake is the nutrition.

You start being way too lenient on food because you “workout so much.”

This leads to workout intensity that starts diminishing week to week.

So while your calorie intake is going up, your calorie burn is going down, and you stay in a very prolonged plateau.

But the whole time your mind is wondering what is “wrong with me”?

This is when you can fall down the rabbit hole of wondering about hormones, gut health, age, thyroid, etc which leads to more overwhelm.

When all along, this could be fixed by having more structure and proper planning for 3-4 workouts per week that progress overtime.

Then with the time we free up, we can focus on building simple nutrition habits that allow for carbs, fun food, and build the body you want.

This may make sense to you, but the one thing that will prevent you from taking action on it is your mindset.

And that is where talking to a professional can help.