How To Set Up A Weekly Workout Schedule

A planned, weekly routine using a calendar or exercise diary is one way to change your exercise habits, according to a 2005 article by John Jakicic, PhD, and Amy Otto, PhD, published by the American College of Sports Medicine. Adding your exercise sessions to your schedule increases your chances of achieving your physical activity goals. Ensure the location of your training is convenient which will help you maintain your exercise program.

Step 1

Write down the end result or long-term goal you wish to achieve. Divide that goal into smaller goals, achievable in five week intervals.

Step 2

List all the exercise activities you need to do including weights, aerobics and stretching. Remember, the American College of Sports Medicine recommends a minimum of two days of strength training and three to five days of moderately to vigorously-intense aerobic exercise to reduce your risk of chronic disease; 60 to 90 minutes of physical activity five to six days a week--including aerobic and strength training--are necessary to lose weight or maintain weight loss.

Step 3

Pair your stretching exercises with your aerobic activity. Plan to do the stretching exercises after your aerobic session when your muscles are warmed up and are more elastic.

Step 4

Print out a calendar. Schedule your strength training sessions on alternate days; do two days of full body workouts or three days of different muscle groups. Pair chest and back exercises together on Mondays, legs and shoulder exercises on Wednesdays and biceps with triceps exercises on Fridays. Change the pairs after five weeks.

Step 5

Add your aerobic and flexibility sessions to Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Divide your aerobic training into a morning and evening session if you do not have one, big block of time. Take Sunday off or adjust your week if you need Saturdays or a weekday off.

Step 6

Do aerobic training before your weight training session if maximal strength is not your goal; too much cardio reduces your strength capacity, especially before your weight workouts. Include both types of training in one session if your schedule does not allow for six days per week of exercise.