What to Consider Before Choosing Your Next Workout Program

At one point or another, you’ll be changing up your workout program, and you’ll need to decide what your next plan will be. It’s very common to pursue different goals during different seasons of life. Maybe you’re chasing fat loss, but eventually, you’ll switch to muscle gain or athletic performance… goals may change, and different goals require different types of training. Remember that choosing a new workout program isn’t about finding the perfect program; it’s about finding the program that you can follow and stick to. You also need to make sure you pick the right program for your own individual goals and needs, and not just do whatever’s popular at the moment.To help you make this decision, here are four very important factors you need to consider when choosing a new workout program. ScheduleThis one seems like a no-brainer, but it needs to be addressed. Before you even think about starting a new workout program, be honest with yourself, and figure how many days you can train with your current lifestyle.If you’re a busy, working professional, you probably want something quick and efficient. On the other hand, if you’re working out from home and have a lot of time, like many of us have during this pandemic, maybe you want to choose a program that’s more than 30 minute sessions three days a week.The number of days you’ll be training should seem easy. If your gut reaction is to question whether or not you’ll have time to get those workouts in and be worried about schedule, find something else. If you think you’ll be able to manage 4 or 5 days at the gym with no problem, go for a program that has 4 planned workouts, that way there’s no excuse to miss sessions.Once you've established the number of days you can hit the gym, then you need to figure out how long the workouts are. If you’re planning to hit the gym early before work, and your program requires 2 hours spent in the gym, you may have a hard time finishing the workouts - find something that works well for you. Skill LevelIt’s easy to pick a workout program that matches your goals. After all, if you’re trying to pack on fifteen pounds of muscle this winter, I doubt you’ll spend a lot of time browsing the latest cutting-edge fat loss program. However, beyond making sure the goal lines up with yours, it’s also very important to look at the skill level required. This is less important for fat loss programs, but very important for strength and muscle building programs. Does your program use exercises that you’re familiar with? If you’ve been training using only machines, and don’t have much experience with barbell exercises, then you probably wouldn’t want to start a program that includes heavy Olympic lifts. If you’ve never lifted at all before, maybe a program that has you training 6 days a week is too much. Try to look at sample workouts, and make sure they seem realistic for your skill levels. SupportThis comes down to motivation. Are you the kind of person who can set their mind to something, and then crush it relentlessly, no matter what? If so, you’d probably make amazing progress following a well-designed program without much follow up needed.However, f you think you need a little more support, whether that’s accountability, program adjustments as you progress, or you want access to someone to answer your questions and tailor the program to you specifically, you may want to consider hiring an online coach, or a qualified personal trainer in your area.A good online coach (Online Coaching) will build you a custom program from the ground up, and adjust your training and nutrition as you go, to ensure continuing progress.ExpectationsLastly, you need a realistic expectation of the progress you can make. Results will vary person to person, but you can come up with a general idea. For fat loss, most people will be able to lose 1-2 pounds per week, with consistent training and nutrition. You may lose more each week if you have more to lose, or less each week if you’re closer to your final goal. For muscle-building, a natural lifter will be lucky if they can add a pound a month of muscle mass. You can gain a lot of weight quickly, sure, but most of that will probably be fat if you bulk up too quickly.So, if fat loss is the goal and you choose a program that promises 30 pounds in 30 days, don’t be disappointed if you don’t see the results you were promised. Set your expectations, and find something that seems realistic.