Personal trainer shares tips for workout success
Finding a weekly workout routine can be tough. What exercises should you do on what day, for how long, in what combination? We asked Maillard Howell, a personal trainer, to describe his ideal weekly workout.
DAY 1: DOING THE LONGEST RUN. At the start of the week, he is usually at his most rested and ready for a long cardio session. Lately, that’s been 40 minutes of running. If that’s not your thing, your cardio can involve a walk, an elliptical trainer, a stationary bike or a rowing machine. Pick a pace that’s not too taxing. If 40 minutes of cardio is too daunting, start with a shorter period.
DAY 2: DOING LESS CARDIO, BUILDING LOWER BODY STRENGTH. He cuts back his cardio to 30 minutes and might increase his intensity a little to compensate. Then he spends 30 minutes strengthening his lower body and abs. He uses free weights and does exercises like dead lifts and squats. If you’re trying to build muscle, choose weights that are light enough for you to do eight to 10 reps per set, for four to five sets, but heavy enough that you can’t do many more.
DAY 3: DOING EVEN LESS CARDIO, MORE UPPER BODY. This workout begins with 20 minutes of cardio, then focuses on the upper body. To activate as many muscle groups as possible, he does a variety of weight exercises, like bench presses, incline dumbbell presses and kettlebell swings.
DAY 4: DOING A SMIDGE OF CARDIO, THEN MACHINE EXERCISES TO “POLISH OFF” THE MUSCLES. By the fourth workout of the week, Howell is down to just 10 minutes of cardio. From there, he does training exercises that he enjoys or hasn’t done in a while. For him, this typically means machine work. “Machines are really good at targeting really small muscle groups, or even one specific muscle,” Howell said.
DAY 5 (OPTIONAL): DOING FULL-BODY EXPERIMENTATION. On the last day, Howell engages his whole body. His workout routine on this day is the most flexible, because he’ll reward himself with fun exercises. Often, this means high-intensity interval training work — such as burpees, situps, jump rope or planks, done in short bursts. Working out his whole body means he can start the weekend ready to rest.