Do you have to have a structured workout routine to see results? Can I wing it every day and still experience the benefits of strength training?

[mihai_1991]

I know this is probably a silly question. I’ve tried to get into strength training many times (I’ve tried the gym, machines, body weight exercises, and exercise bands… the only things I’ve really cared for are body weight and band exercises).
Every time, I inevitably get bogged down trying to follow a plan, often with exercises I hate to do, and feel like I have to watch video tutorials to do correctly and fixate o doing it their way vs focusing on how I feel.

However, there are a few workouts I really like, and I feel like if I just did those at my own pace every day, I could grow to actually enjoy exercise and may be able to get more disciplined with it over time. But I do want to build some strength obviously, I don’t expect insane results but like ability to do a push-up eventually would be great. Is this a bad plan? Will I see no benefits without following someone else’s routine? I did this yesterday and today and I’m sore af now but idk if that’s any indication that it’s GOOD lol.

TIA!

 

[gibbs41]

@mihai_1991 The perfect exercise regimen is the one you following consistent

 

[abastzar]

@mihai_1991 I mean, newbie gains are a real thing, so I say yes. Winging it is fine as long as you change your objective from " I need to look a certain way by doing this" to, "trying to find something I don't hate enough to do consistently" --- for me, I didn't care for weightlifting until I used the weight room at my climbing gym. Because if I get bored, I can take a month off and just do climbing... until I'm bored with climbing and then I switch back.

 

[mihai_1991]

@abastzar I’m in a calorie deficit for aesthetics, working out for health benefits lol. I assume I won’t ever be shredded and I’m not really interested in that as a goal, but I do want to feel stronger/more flexible/more capable and if I suspect if I build on that foundation I might be more willing to stick to a more dedicated routine? Maybe even get into going to the gym? But right now I’m trying to be realistic about what I will actually do and won’t do

 

[abastzar]

@mihai_1991 Valid. Nothing really stuck for my spouse until he found exercise he actually enjoyed. So to me, switching up whatever you are doing every 3+ months (for example) is legit for "do I like this enough to keep doing it?"

Since the calorie deficit is for the aesthetics, but the work out is for the health benefits, that greatly expands what you can try out.

Strength training might be dull, but you might like biking or rowing, or a bunch of other physical activities that use muscles without specific muscle groups mattering. \o/

 

[wisdomtracker]

@mihai_1991 If you're in the gym just to get some movement and exercise this is fine, I'm personally not a fan but that's irrelevant. If you are actively trying to make signficant progress in the gym, with muscle growth, increased endurance, increased strength, and are VERY goal oriented, then this will hinder progress signficantly because you're not being consistent with your type of exercise and likely aren't on a program, both of which will make linear progression difficult to achieve.

So TL;DR you can still see results and make progress by winging it everyday and reap benefits, but you will make SIGNIFICANTLY more progress with a strict routine and program. The effort + consistency + discipline you put into the gym will directly correlate to your results.

 

[djj1973]

@mihai_1991 I believe so, I opted for healthier food and less processed foods. Also fast (skip breakfast)

I did a combo of walking and jogging outdoors. Which I enjoy and my muscle memory has kicked in and now I feel like I've progressed a lot.

I have some weights and barbells and every now and then I'll do some shoulder press, dead lifts or compound body exercises. & I feel the difference

 

[mihai_1991]

@djj1973 Curious about the difference you feel doing that — is it significant? Do you feel more strong/stable/capable in general, or is it just less hard to lift the weights you have?
Have you noticed any visible effects from the strength exercises you’ve done?

I don’t really have a defined goal. Like yeah it would be awesome to be toned or shredded, but realistically I don’t think that’s a short term goal for me. Maybe in another chapter of my life but right now envisioning that isn’t really all that motivating. But I do feel like I’m very weak and would like to have more foundational muscle. I’m not in awful shape but all my fitness is cardiovascular. I can walk very long distances, hike, bike, and even run (short)distances without issue but I can’t do a push-up or a pull up and I notice issues trying to like lift boxes while moving. My arms get tired doing my curly hair routine
I’d truly love to just be able to do a push-up lol!!

Plus I want to do some strength training cause I’m in a long term deficit, I’m worried about losing a lot of muscle … I’ve been in a deficit since June of last year and I’m set to continue until ~January. I wanna preserve and maybe build some of my muscle mass if it’s possible??

 

[djj1973]

@mihai_1991 I feel a lot more in tune with my body. My endurance has gone way up. I naturally love running outdoors and got into lifting in college. and used too be pretty fit in college. I stopped for a bit but now I'm getting back into it.

So getting back into running I feel like I have more energy now and every now and then I'll lift with my barbell. Although I also have a goal weight but I don't know if I can reach it without a gym membership given the location and the challenges surrounding the environment.

Abywho I think if you eat more protein rich diet and lift light or start off with 1 girl pushup then try doing more reps you can do it. The fact that your fit with cardiovascular can only help with gaining more muscle. If you eat accordingly. Is my opinion.

 

[pgeorge]

@mihai_1991 I'm a very lazy Person. The only Workout I do is a little full body circle on egym machines a few Times a week (when I'm good). But it still helps with my backpain a lot (I always feel how it would be without when I'm sick for a few weeks) and I gained a lot of strength. I'm not ripped in any way though.

So I think it depends on what your goals are?

 

[marytx0]

@mihai_1991 I didn’t stick to anything until I randomly tried CrossFit- which is “constantly varied” . I’m pretty fit and my endurance has sky rocketed , but aesthetically i know I’d have better results if I stuck to a traditional type split. I just recently started adding that in 3 days a week and It’s so boring but I’m learning to think of it as “chill time”lol I still prefer my CrossFit classes

Like everybody here says, it depends on your goals. But I fully support movement just for the sake of moving, health and fun. It doesn’t need to be for aesthetics. Whatever you will stick to and enjoy is 10000% better than nothing.

 

[dawn16]

@mihai_1991 If you want to do a push up, do a push up! Start against a wall, then when you feel comfortable do it on your knees and when you feel stronger do a full push up. Maybe you can only do 2-3, the next time try to do 4 and keep pushing yourself little by little and you get there.

 

[jesuain]

@mihai_1991 I wish I hadn’t wasted years winging it in the gym. It wasn’t until I started tracking my weights and reps, did the same set of workouts for 4-6 weeks, and focused on progressive overload that I actually saw results. You don’t have to follow someone else’s routine, though! You can take some time to figure out what works best for you. All that matters is that you push yourself just a little bitter harder each week if you have a goal you want to reach.