Who doesn’t love the idea of having that big chest, broad shoulders & wide back when they visit the beach this year? What often holds people back from achieving this is how long they think it will take to see these results.
What people often don’t know is how long it really does take to build muscle. It heavily depends on how out of shape you are, but the overriding factor is how committed you are to shredding fat & gaining muscle.
It’s important to remember that it does vary for everyone. Some people can achieve their dream body in 6 months, some it may take years. Here is a guide that Muscle & Fitness produced, advising people with ‘5 Steps To Obtain Your Dream Body’
It’s all dependent on your personal goals. Are you looking to get strong? Are you looking to be aesthetically pleasing? Are you looking to be able to run a marathon?
You have to take into account what are the desired outcomes you want to achieve & what are going to be the activities that will get you there. For example, full body workouts are great if you’re looking to get toned. High Intensity heart rate increasing activities are great for reaching your goals faster. It all depends on the type of activity & what you want to achieve.
Although it may seem like it can take a long time to get in shape, we have some good news for you. Beginners can “get in shape” a lot faster. This is because they are beginning from a lower point in the fitness ladder. It is easier to reach your goals if you’re not in shape as you have more room to develop & change.
As your fitness increases you have to work harder to see more results. What type of exercise you are doing & your workout routine will change over time.
Are you already a healthy individual who is looking to tone up? Are you recovering from an illness? There are plenty of factors that come into play, including how fit you are at the beginning of your fitness journey.
Great advice for beginners on their strength training journey is to invest in a personal trainer. They will provide you with a moderate intensity workout plan designed to increase your health & fitness. Stick with your personal trainer for around 12 weeks, so you can learn the ropes of what to do at the gym – After that, it’s time to go solo!
What Changes Can I Expect To See After One Month Of Working Out?
Typically people can begin to see changes in their appearance as soon as one month after they start working out. You will rapidly see an increase in your muscle tone, strength & physical endurance as you start to feel more confident in your own skin.
Usually at this phase, this is where people make a big decision. Are they going to allow the gym to tail off, or are they going to stick to the daily grind & chase the rewards?
Your metabolic rate will start to increase & your body will start burning calories even quicker.
What Changes Can I Expect to See After Six Months Of Working Out?
After six months of working out you should see a noticeable difference in your body. People who you haven’t seen for months will be blown away by how much you have changed. I can promise you that.
At this stage, it starts to get a little harder to increase your muscle mass. This is where sticking to a strict diet comes into play.
If you start to feel like you are reaching a point where you can’t increase your mass, you may need to increase how much you are eating & start following a meal plan. This will help you grow by putting your body into a calorie surplus, giving your muscles the fuel to grow.
Setting Your Goal
It’s important to set realistic goals when working out at the gym, whether it’s for muscle gains or fat loss. An ideal goal is to aim to lose around 1% body fat each week. To achieve this you need to aim to be in a calorie deficit of about 10%. Here is a guide that Very Well Fit produced on How To Set Up & Plan Weight Loss.
As your weight decreases, weight loss will begin to slow down, so don’t be alarmed, this is normal. This happens because as you lose weight, you also begin to experience muscle growth, muscles weigh more than fat.
It’s important for everyone who is following a fitness journey to maintain a good mindset. You have to fall in love with the process & be process oriented rather than results orientated. It is a lot easier to be process orientated a few weeks into the gym when you’re experiencing the mental health benefits from working out. Have faith in what you are doing & that it is effective and push through at all times, working out is a long term plan.
The real secret to achieving the desired body that you want in life, is to be motivated. Motivation comes from discipline & the mind, the more you build on these factors the easier you will find it.
How Do I Start?
The hardest part about going to the gym is taking those first steps into it. After that, working out is easy. A lot of people struggle to get themselves to go to the gym because they feel out of place, but desire that aesthetic appearance & muscular tone. Luckily, there are ways around this.
If you’re one of those people you may want to invest in a gym shed. Gym shed’s are a comfortable way to train from your own house & are far more cost effective than having a gym membership in the long term. If you’re the type of person who is goal orientated & will commit to something once you start, then a gym shed is perfect for you. If you’d like to browse what selection of sheds we have on our website, click here.
