“At 6 to 8 weeks, you can definitely notice some changes,” said Logie, “and in 3 to 4 months you can do a pretty good overhaul to your health and fitness.”
Six months is more than enough time to lose weight, build muscle and improve your cardio stamina and muscular endurance. Using a coordinated plan that increases the lengths of your workouts, raises the intensity of your exercises and controls your calories, you will start seeing results in a matter of weeks.
Your body transformation largely depends on what you eat and your workout regimen, as well as many individual factors including genetics. However, with a healthy diet and regular intensive swimming, you could start seeing results in as little as a month (7).
There is no magic diet or magical time to get ripped. Instead, you must commit to a workout program for at least six months. A good workout program should include both resistance training and HIIT exercises. By varying your routine, you'll avoid boredom and get the desired results.
Generally, aim to do either : 30 minutes of moderate-intensity cardio activity at least five days per week (150 minutes per week) at least 25 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity three days per week (75 minutes per week)
The answer: Depending on how often you exercise and the intensity of your workouts, give it between four to eight weeks for your muscles to get ripped, says Kawamoto.
After three months, you'll start to see more of a significant improvement in strength and endurance along with a noticeable improvement in resting heart rate, blood sugar levels, blood pressure, and other health indicators.
While seeing results from working out heavily depends on the person and their current level of fitness, "My [clients] generally see initial changes within four to six weeks, and actual results within eight to 12 weeks," Wilson explains.
After 6 months or so, your heart will grow in size from the more intense blood pumping. As a result of this process, it will also get stronger and become more efficient. Additionally, your resting heart rate and your blood pressure will decrease, which lowers the risk of heart attack.
In general, fitness experts don't recommend surpassing five training sessions a week for the average exerciser. Five days per week is plenty to help even advanced workout enthusiasts reach their goals and maintain their fitness.
And if you exercise regularly, over time you will gain even more fitness benefits. “At 6 to 8 weeks, you can definitely notice some changes,” said Logie, “and in 3 to 4 months you can do a pretty good overhaul to your health and fitness.” Strength-specific results take about the same amount of time.
Three months is enough for some people to get ripped — at least to a certain extent. You can lose up to 24lbs of fat in that time if you're starting from a higher weight or build up to 6 pounds of muscle.
Aim for between 2-4 sessions per week. If you segment your body parts even further, you could go to the gym between 5-6 times a week. Just make sure your sessions aren't too intense and you're giving yourself adequate rest across the week. Always take rest days.
You need to work hard to build muscles, but that does not mean you spend your entire day in the gym. Performing weight training exercise for 20 to 30 minutes, twice to thrice in a week is enough to see results. You have to target a specific muscle group on a particular day.
Depending on the intensity and the consistency of your workout, it will take 4 to 8 weeks for your muscles to get toned.
In general terms, a person at a reasonable level of fitness will start to see changes after two months of serious strength training, and results should be clearly visible after four. For a truly ripped physique, most people need a minimum of one year's hard work.
While the process of getting ripped can take a long time depending on how you workout and what your diet looks like, intense training can certainly produce results in around 2 months. During this time you can expect to see weight loss or gain (depending on your goals) and a basic change in your figure.
Strength training specifically leads to gain lean muscle gain. These are fat-free tissues that are highly metabolic, allowing more caloric burns than any other tissue in the body. Essentially, this is why strength training works best: it loses fat while maintaining muscles that burn calories.
Experts recommend exercising at least three times a week to maintain good health. Many people choose to workout more than the minimum recommended number of days, but busy people should not feel guilty for exercising only three days a week.
How much is ideal? A weekly day of rest is often advised when structuring a workout program, but sometimes you may feel the desire to work out every day. As long as you're not pushing yourself too hard or getting obsessive about it, working out every day is fine.
Morning workouts are ideal for burning fat and losing weight, but afternoon workouts may give your performance a boost, since you'll have eaten a meal or two by the time you get going. “Any time you eat, your blood sugar levels rise,” Hackney says.
The optimal number of days to lift weights per week ultimately depends on your goals and your schedule, but planning your training sessions ahead will allow you to get the best possible results for you. The best number to shoot for most people is three days a week, with two as a minimum and four as a maximum.