How Many Times a Week Should You Go to the Gym? Two Is Fine

By Paul Butler · Online Coach & Personal Trainer

How many times a week should you go to the gym? It is a question that carries more weight than it should, mostly because the internet answers it with a photo of someone who trains twice a day and sells protein powder.

For most people the honest answer is two or three times a week. That is enough to get stronger, change how you look and feel, and hit the NHS guidance, as long as you keep it up. More can be better, but only if you can recover from it and still turn up next month.

How many times a week should you go to the gym as a beginner?

Twice. Maybe three times if your week genuinely has room for it. Two full-body sessions, working every major muscle group each time, will make a beginner stronger within weeks. Starting with five days usually ends with zero days by week three, because life gets in the way and the plan doesn't bend.

What the NHS actually asks for

The NHS guidance for adults is less demanding than most people assume. It asks you to:

• "do strengthening activities that work all the major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders and arms) on at least 2 days a week"
• "do at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity a week or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity a week"

Moderate intensity means you can still talk but not sing, and a brisk walk counts. So two gym sessions plus a decent amount of walking ticks every box. The same NHS page also points out that "exercise just once or twice a week can reduce the risk of heart disease or stroke", which is worth remembering on a week when two is all you can manage.

Does going more often build more muscle?

Less than you would think. A review of 25 studies compared training each muscle once, twice or three or more times a week. When the total amount of work was the same, how it was split across the week made no real difference to how much muscle people built.

"...for a given training volume, individuals can choose a weekly frequency per muscle groups based on personal preference."

"Training volume" just means the total amount of work, roughly the number of hard sets you do for each muscle across the week. So ten sets for your legs in one long session or five sets in each of two shorter ones should land in roughly the same place.

One honest caveat: in studies where people simply did more sessions without matching the work, training more often came out a bit ahead. Mostly, though, that is because more sessions usually means more total work. Which brings us back to doing what you can keep up.

What your week could look like

So when do you add a day? When two sessions have happened every week for a month or so without a fight, and you are sleeping and recovering fine. Add the third session on whichever day is easiest to protect, and keep it short at first. Adding a day you can't keep just turns a good week into a "failed" one.

If you want something to follow, the four week beginner programme is built on two sessions a week, and the dumbbell workout plan works if you would rather train at home.

What if you are going to the gym to lose weight?

Then how often you go matters less than what you eat. You can't out-train a diet that gives your body more than it uses, and most gym sessions burn less than people hope. Two or three sessions a week to keep your muscle and strength, plenty of daily walking, and eating a little less than you burn will do far more than a sixth weekly session.

Rest days are part of the plan

Your muscles don't get stronger during the session. They get stronger while you recover from it, which is why rest days are not wasted days. If you are always sore, sleeping badly, or dreading every session, you are probably doing more than you can recover from right now.

I have Cystic Fibrosis, so breathing is already a part-time job for me. That has given me a very practical view of training: nothing goes in a session unless it earns its place, and I don't buy the idea that more is always better. A mediocre plan followed for 12 weeks beats a perfect plan followed for 12 days.

And if you are coming back after time off, start at the low end. The first few weeks back are where people overdo it.

Frequently asked questions

Is it OK to go to the gym every day?

It can be, if you vary what you do and you are recovering well. Most people don't need to, and many end up worn down or bored. Daily movement is a great idea. Daily hard training usually isn't, unless you have built up to it over a long time.

How long should a gym session be?

Forty five minutes to an hour covers most people. Thirty minutes of focused work beats ninety minutes of wandering between machines and checking your phone. If your sessions keep running over, cut the number of exercises, not the effort.

How soon will I see results going twice a week?

Most beginners notice they are stronger within the first few weeks, well before anything shows in the mirror. Visible changes take a couple of months of steady training and sensible eating. Keep a simple log of your weights so you can see progress on the days it doesn't feel like any.

Should I do cardio and weights on the same day?

That is fine for most people, and it saves a trip. Do whichever matters more to you first, while you are freshest. If getting stronger is the main goal, lift first and do your cardio afterwards or on another day.

This is general information, not medical advice. If you have not exercised for a while, or you have a medical condition, the NHS advises speaking to your GP first.

More honest guides on fat loss, nutrition and training

The NHS physical activity guidelines for adults and the 2019 Schoenfeld, Grgic and Krieger review of resistance training frequency are linked in the text. Images from Pexels (free to use): Andrea Piacquadio, cottonbro studio, Ivan S.