Lifting weights how long before results

Working out is great for our physical health — strength training and cardio, for example, can help improve your metabolism — as well as our mental health.

HIIT high-intensity interval training is effective for burning fat , making an ideal workout for weight loss. And if you're focused on booty gains, sprints and inclines on the treadmill are your best friends. But how soon after you start working out will you start to see results?

We want to preface this by saying that everyone's fitness or weight-loss journey is different, and everyone's body is different. So no two people's results will be the same. That being said, we spoke to three experts on what to expect results-wise from exercise depending on your goals — because everyone's goals are inevitably different, too — and we broke it down for you right here.

Healthy eating habits , he said, have to be an integral part of your workout routine. In terms of losing weight through exercise, he said people can start seeing results in two to three weeks. But he noted that if you want to keep the weight off, you'll need a routine that progresses slowly and steadily instead of one where you're going all out.

For example, trying to lose 20 pounds in a month isn't a realistic goal, Codio said, which is what he sees some people do before weddings and some professional athletes like boxers or bodybuilders do before competitions.

Here's a scenario: If you have more intense parts of your workout and diet plan where you choose to cut calories from 2, to 1, for two months but want to maintain your weight loss after the fact, you should gradually bring those calories back up and increase your exercise routine as you do that, he explained.

Slow and steady wins the race. NASM-certified personal trainer Ashley Kelly told POPSUGAR she puts her clients through a six-week program minimum if their goal is to lose weight via exercise, with three weeks of introductory training to get them used to an elevated heart rate, one lighter week, and two higher-intensity strength-training weeks. She'll usually do a body fat test before and after the program to see their progress. Eating in a caloric deficit and exercising is what's recommended for weight loss because you'd have to burn calories per day in your workouts for seven days just to lose a pound a week , which isn't a realistic goal.

Plus, it's not always recommended that you work out every day. Concentrating on one muscle group per workout will allow time for your muscles to rest and repair, which is also important for building muscle.

The American Center for Sports Medicine recommends you get at least eight hours of sleep nightly and rest for a minimum of 48 hours in between highly intense workouts. However, that doesn't mean you need to stop exercising for those 48 hours.

You just need to rest the muscle group you worked out. During your rest days, you can try foam rolling, yoga, joint mobility exercises, and massage. Haroldsdottir recommends a whole-body approach to strength training.

This includes a focus on functional strength and mobility. Here are some of those exercises and the muscle groups they work:. Make sure you give yourself one to two minutes between sets, drink lots of water, and consider working with a trainer if you're unsure about your technique.

When these exercises become easy, you can increase your reps or increase the weights. If you want to build your muscles faster, go with the increase in weights.

There are numerous fitness tools to use beyond weights and machines to have an impactful workout. Haroldsdottir recommends incorporating the following items:. A minute workout is enough to build muscle and maintain functional strength. If you want to focus on powerlifting and bodybuilding, you may opt for a minute workout or longer. However, the duration of the workout doesn't matter as much as the number of sets per week and the mechanical stress that occurs in a given session.

To induce muscle growth, aim for 10 to 20 sets per week, per body part. Cardio can help build muscle, too, but it will be slower than strength training.

Don't forget about progressive overload. Gradually add sets, weight, or reps to increase stress on the body and to keep building muscle.

For example, if you're lifting pound dumbbells, you might find it difficult at first. After a time, lifting those dumbbells will start to get easier because you're building muscle and getting stronger. If you continue to lift those pound dumbbells you're not going to build muscle. Well, qualified personal trainer Ella Martyn is here to share her timeline and tips on the changes you should see at certain points to keep you motivated along the way.

If you are new to resistance training generally you will see some results with an increase in muscle tone, decrease in body fat and increase in strength in as short as two to four weeks. The three month mark is when the changes really start to show and not just in the way of weight loss. You should be feeling fitter and your overall strength should have increased.

If you have been keeping to a nutrition plan you should also see a noticeable body fat drop at this point as well as feeling better as your body would have adjusted to the nutrition plan. Three months could also be a good point to start changing up your workout plan and try something new. If the gym has been your jam start a new class like boxing or join a bootcamp to keep your workouts exciting and ignite different muscles.

By this point you are well and truly into your new health and fitness lifestyle. You should be well on the way to reaching your goals or have achieved them depending on what goal was set and see a serious change from day one. Around this time weight loss could also plateau so try changing up your nutrition plan to reboot your metabolism and keep your progress going.