Gym workouts for beginners

As a beginner, how long should I do the workout for?
Set a goal to continue with the workout programme for 3 months. Creating a long-term exercise routine is all about forming positive habits, which means giving your mind and body the time to adjust to doing something new.

Each workout should take 45 minutes to 1 hour and you should always leave 48 hours between workouts to rest and recover properly. So a Monday-Wednesday-Friday routine works well for most people.

How much weight should I lift?
As a beginner, the best thing you can do is start at the lower end of the weight spectrum and work your way up until you reach about 60/70% of your max limit (the most amount of weight you can lift for 1 repetition with good form ). That will give you a rough idea of what to start on and you can slowly increase the weight little by little every week.

What are reps and sets?
A rep is how many times you repeat a specific exercise, whereas a set is how many rounds of reps you do. So if you lift 10 times on a bench press, that would be ‘one set of 10 reps’. If you took a short break and then did the same again, you’ll have completed ‘two sets of 10 reps’.

How many reps and sets you go for depends on what you’re trying to achieve. More reps at a lower weight would improve your endurance, while fewer reps at a higher weight would build your muscle mass.

When it comes to sets, people usually aim for between three to five, depending on how many you can complete without compromising your form.

Tips for each workout
Go slow – focus on your technique
Rest 60-90 seconds between each set
Keep moving when you’re resting – a gentle walk around the gym floor will keep your muscles warm and your heart rate up
Ideally perform the workout in the order listed, but if equipment is busy then switch the order for convenience.