How Long Does It Take to See Results From Working Out?

Starting a new workout plan can be exciting. Whether you’re new to fitness or switching up your training routine to chase after a new goal, the question soon becomes, how long does it take to see results from working out?

Unfortunately, the answer isn’t one-size-fits-all. Your fitness results depend on the type of workout you’re doing, how much time and effort you’re putting into your sessions, and your overall lifestyle habits.

Still, there is a set of general guidelines you can use to assess your progress.

The Type of Workout Plan Matters

Three of the most common fitness goals are burning fat, building muscle, and improving endurance. If you fit into one of these categories, here’s what you need to know about when to expect results.

Someone on a bodybuilding, muscle-gain workout plan should understand that building muscle takes time. It’s not an overnight thing — it’s a physiologically complex process. It takes patience, persistence, and dedication in the gym.

Take this 2017 randomized controlled trial in the European Journal of Applied Physiology as an example. Researchers measured how long it takes to build muscle in a group of untrained beginners. The participants exercised twice a week for four weeks, progressively overloading their muscles with heavier weights each session. After four weeks, muscle growth did occur, but it was so minimal it was only detectable via ultrasound.

A 2016 study in the International Journal of Exercise Science also examined the speed of muscle hypertrophy (growth) in a group of trained individuals. After training three days a week for eight weeks, the participants increased their lean muscle mass by about 2%.

In fact, about 12 weeks of consistent training may be the sweet spot in terms of optimal muscle growth. A 2012 study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research concluded that three months was the average time it takes to notice significant improvements in muscle mass.

So if you’re consistent with your training, the above research suggests you’ll start building muscle mass in as early as four weeks. But noticeable muscle growth likely won't occur until after three months. Though weightlifting alone may not yield the best results — there are three other important factors that may influence muscle hypertrophy.

If your goal is weight loss, your workout plan needs to be combined with diet adjustments. That’s because adjusting your diet helps create a calorie deficit (burning more calories than you consume). If you’re consistently eating a calorie surplus, no amount of exercise will result in weight loss.

The general guideline is that if you burn 500 calories per day, you can lose a pound of fat a week. But it isn’t a perfect science. If you and your friend both burn 500 calories a day, you may not both lose one pound per week. The calorie-deficit rule fails to account for gender, activity level, height, weight, diet, and health conditions.

For example, if you have hypothyroidism, you may struggle to lose weight. Similarly, if you have a high body weight (higher bone density, fat, or muscle mass), a 500-calorie deficit might not be enough to push you into a fat-burning state.

But the “pound a week” rule is generally considered a healthy amount of weight loss to aim for — that is, if losing weight is something you want to do.

Improving cardio endurance and fitness is essential for sports performance. Unlike building muscle or losing weight, there are fewer caveats and conditions that influence the outcome. That makes it easier to give guidelines on when to expect results from aerobic exercise.

Research suggests that engaging in a minimum of 30 minutes of cardio endurance training three times a week can increase your aerobic capacity between eight and 12 weeks.

As is the case with just about any fitness goal, improving endurance takes consistency. That’s because your body is working hard to adapt. As your fitness improves, the capillary density of your muscles (aka, how much oxygen is transported to them) increases and, as a result, improves your peak oxygen uptake — otherwise known as your VO2 max. These processes result in better endurance but they take time, so patience is key.

Remaining consistent with any workout plan is the best way to ensure you achieve the results you want to see. However, keep in mind that the work you’re putting in on a regular basis is both beneficial to your mind and body — regardless of whether or not the results are visible to you.

For more expert-backed advice on how to improve your endurance, be sure to download the Nike Running Club app!