When Will I See Results? The Timelines of Different Goals, What You Can Do to Get Results Faster, and How Invictus Boston Can Help
When joining a new gym or beginning a new exercise program, we are often motivated by certain goals. Whether we want to lose weight, build muscle, or look like Chris Hemsworth or Scarlett Johannson in the Avengers, there is some goal that gets us to sign up. After taking that important first step into the gym, it is very normal to wonder “When will I start seeing results?” The short answer is, it depends! Every fitness goal has unique factors that influence the timeline and extent of results. Here we will break down what you can expect when pursuing different goals, what you can do to achieve those goals faster, and how we at Invictus can maximize your results.
Building Muscle and Gaining Strength
Whether you want to compete in a powerlifting meet, or simply feel more confident carrying your groceries in from the car, improved strength and muscle mass can help you live longer and feel better throughout the day. Gains in strength and gains in muscle mass, however, do not follow the same timeline. If you are new to resistance training, you can expect to see increased strength within a few short weeks of consistent training. Over the first few months of training, you can see steady increases in strength that begin to slow after 4-6 months on average. This is often referred to as “newbie gains” or neural adaptation. In this period, your body and brain is learning how to lift weights efficiently.
Muscle building is a slower process. During the first period of “newbie gains”, muscle building slowly picks up as you start lifting heavier weights. In general, you can expect to see results in 6-8 weeks. There are, however, many things you can do to improve the efficiency of your time in the gym and see results quicker! Nutrition is a key factor in muscle growth. Studies show that in general, eating more protein is better, but a good goal for most people is 1.3 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. Consuming more protein than that may produce faster results, but the difference is smaller than the increase seen up to 1.3 g/kg. Sleep is also incredibly important for building muscle. Studies have shown that just one night of sleep deprivation can lead to 18% lower muscle growth. As it is while pursuing any goal, consistency is key for strength and muscle building. The good news is that you can achieve great results with as few as 2 days a week of resistance training.
To see consistent results, your training also needs to incorporate a principle known as progressive overload. Put simply, progressive overload means that over time, you need to lift more or lift heavier weights to continue seeing results. At Invictus, all of our programming is created with this in mind. We also offer different types of programming to focus on different results. Our Crossfit programming is focused on balancing a number of different aspects of fitness, including aerobic conditioning, strength, endurance, power, and more. We also offer classes focused specifically on strength training if that is your goal! All of our programs produce great results: at the end of our recent 8-week cycle of programming, we saw increases in back squat strength by as much as 25 pounds!
Losing Weight and Body Fat
This is one of the most common reasons why people begin an exercise routine, and for good reason! Excess body fat can increase your risk of many health problems, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers. The reality of losing weight can be complex and frustrating, but there are several things you can do to make the process more effective. The most important thing is to approach weight loss as a long term process, and build healthy habits to achieve your goals. You may see extreme diet and exercise routines online that promise fast results like “lose 10 pounds in 10 days.” Research shows that almost all crash diets are not effective in the long term, as the lifestyle changes are not maintained over time. This is why it is important to choose an exercise and nutrition plan that you like and are willing to commit to over a long period of time.
We must first recognize that exercise alone is, unfortunately, not a very effective strategy for weight loss. Most studies show that people who only change their exercise routine have worse results compared to those who only change their diet, and those who change their diet and exercise routine. At Invictus Boston, we have paired with registered dieticians to provide our members with nutrition coaching to help them achieve their weight loss goals. While exercise alone is not the most effective strategy for weight loss, the good news is that exercise is very effective for maintaining weight loss over the long term. You also do not have to be 100% perfect 100% of the time. You should not become frustrated if you miss a day of exercise or miss your nutrition goals one day. A good rule of thumb is the 80/20 principle. This means that if you are consistent with your routine 80% of the time, you are still very likely to see excellent results over time.
When first beginning an exercise routine, many people will see a quick decrease in weight. This is generally due to a loss of water weight, as opposed to body fat, as the body adapts to a new exercise routine. Changes in body weight are also not always an indicator of fat loss. For those who are new to resistance training, body weight often fluctuates due to muscle gain concurrent with fat loss. It can also fluctuate based on the time of day, so it is much more effective to weigh yourself at the same time of day and under the same conditions, ideally first thing in the morning. After adopting a new exercise and nutrition plan, people will see results at different paces depending on many different factors including their starting body weight, age, sex, activity level, and many others. If nutrition and activity levels are consistent over time, a reasonable weight loss expectation for most people is about 1 pound per week. Over time, your body’s energy demands will change and you will need to continue adjusting your nutrition and exercise to match.
Unseen Results
While we may have goals that can be counted in pounds lost, or a heavier squat, there are also a number of benefits to exercise that you may start to see sooner than changes on the scale or personal record lifts. For those just starting on their fitness journey you may start to immediately feel results that can vastly improve your day to day well being. Exercise is proven to improve your mood, help you sleep better, and decrease stiffness and aches and pains. While these results are harder to quantify, they can be just as, if not more important for improving your quality of life.
Fitness as a Lifelong Process
Short term goals like losing 10 pounds, bench pressing 225 pounds, or getting abs for beach season can be important short term motivators. We need goals like these to give us an extra kick in the gym or keep us honest when buying groceries
and eating out. However, it is very crucial to remember that fitness should be a lifelong endeavor. Ideally, we find routines that we enjoy and allow us to be consistent in the long run. At Invictus, we have a dedicated and supportive community of members who help each other stay motivated and consistent with their fitness. Our coaches are also committed to your success and are there to guide you as you pursue your goals, whatever they may be.
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