Fit/active women of Reddit, what’s your weekly exercise routine like?

[knrn]

@acco340 I did gymnastics for years and had a knee injury so I too suffer from chronic knee pain when I over do my leg days. I have found that typical barbell squats are not for me. I usually do a combo of weight lifting/ HIIT, but my ultimate goal is to lose weight while maintaining and adding muscle. I always start my workout with a run. Then I do one heavy weight lifting leg day and one HIIT leg day with dumbbells and resistance bands. I do the same with my upper body. One day of weights, one day of HIIT with dumbbells, body weight, or bands. Then I’ll usually sneak in a total body HIIT workout and some ab circuits on my 5th/6th day of training. But I like to give my legs at least two days rest in between, otherwise I’d suffer. All of my days alternate but I try to always do my leg weight day on Sunday (cause it takes me like 2 hours) and my HIIT leg workout on Thursday. The rest I kinda just decide day of.

 

[lugiboss]

@acco340 It varies a lot by the season, but I always always always take one full rest day per week (only light yoga and stretching).

In the summer I generally do 5-7 rowing sessions plus a hike, plus core strength maybe 2x, each week.

Now, in the off-season, I'm running 3-5 times, plus various strength work, mostly at home.

 

[jadelynn2]

@acco340 If you're experiencing knee pain (during a squat), "sit back" into the squat more, and put more tension on your glutes. Let your glutes do most of the work. This will take pressure off your knees.

 

[acco340]

@jadelynn2 Thanks! I think that may have been a contributing problem

 

[nerissa1969]

@acco340 So, basically my overall weekly volume is very similar to what it sounds like you're trying to do, but I arrange it differently and I haven't jumped into it so quickly.

I run in the morning four days a week (MWFSa) and have been running for years. Saturday is my long run. It equals about 20 mpw total. On two of those days (MW) I have recently started to lift in the evening, full body compound lifts, 3 exercises 5x5, both workouts have squats. Takes about 60-90 minutes total but you know, a lot of that is rest time or shuffling weights around. I don't always fail the weight but always working near the top of my ability. The mornings after those days (TR) I do gentle yoga to stretch. On Friday evenings I do a core strength yoga video, no major leg involvement and it's a lot easier than my lifting workouts but a bit of an abdominal supplement to them.

My logic is "hard days hard, easy days easy." I get a day of full rest for my legs after every hard day. My logic is also that running is my priority. My lifting would progress faster if I did it 3x a week, but then I'd have to do a workout the day before, on, or after my long run and at least one of them would likely suffer.

I think hopping straight to cardio AND strength in significant volume from a sedentary lifestyle is your biggest problem here. I would also suggest combining your workouts or doing 2 a days so that you can have longer turnaround periods of full rest might be a better way of handling this volume, even when you're in good shape, rather than hitting your legs every day.

I did nothing but run for a long time, and even that I only did about 10 mpw for some years. Then I started growing that to 20 or 30. Got injured and set back, took up strength training as a means to prevent further injuries but started with just bodyweight exercises for runners. After a few months when it became a habit but kind of boring I started a program with actual weights. Obviously my goals are different from yours, but I think the step by step progress is a key lesson, I got here in at least 4 steps, not all at once.

 

[steveinalberta]

@acco340 First, I am a big advocate of slow and steady and habit tracking. Take 2 changes and try to fit them into your schedule and when they become habits, add another 2 on. Stack them with things you already do. Get your body used to the work and as you progress stack them. The below schedule took me 3 years to slowly progress to. I would have never been able to sustain it from the beginning.

Fitness isn’t sexy and exciting. It’s slow and steady. It’s consistency.

Full disclosure: I am a spin instructor part time

Every morning when I wake my daughter (5) up we do 2 sun salutation B together. It helps wake her up and makes her calmer in the morning. If anyone has children who are very sensitive and have trouble communicating, 10/10 recommend yoga! The calming breath work helps center her and helps her concentrate for the day. My son is overactive but only 3. I’ll probably try to introduce him to yoga consistently this summer

Sunday : AM Power class
45 min Back and Shoulders

Monday: AM 45 min Chest and triceps
PM 30 min run and 1 hr gentle yoga

Tuesday: AM : 45 min lower body
PM: teach a 55 min power spin class

Wednesday: Rest (gentle yoga class at night if I can make it)

Thursday: AM 55 min HIIT spin class
PM circuit training group

Friday: Rest

Saturday: 30 min run and 45 min Full Body

 

[dawn16]

@steveinalberta Odd enough, I just read about Habit Stacking in the book Atomic Habits. Great Book, second time giving it a go, exercising the mind with a book has become one of my fave things to do to wind down

 

[christiangal87]

@dawn16 Looked this up and found a link to an excerpt from Atomic Habits. Good stuff! https://jamesclear.com/habit-stacking