YORK COUNTY, Pa. — We've all heard of leg day, and the soreness shortly there to follow, but did you know that you may just be better off gearing gym time toward full-body workouts?
For the everyday athlete, Danny Amon, York JCC Fitness Center and personal training manager, full-body workouts can be more beneficial than just working a body part split.
“Really the only people that do body part splits are going to be bodybuilders, which if you are looking to become a competitive bodybuilder you are probably going to be going to a specific coach for that anyway,” said Amon.
These types of workouts have been trending on social media, but Amon says that when gymgoers give these viral splits a try, sometimes they will get too sore to do their next workout.
He says that this can lead to a lack of accountability on certain workout days, whether it be legs, back or arms, and leads to several missed days in the gym.
“A lot of people seem to be familiar with body part splits, you hear about the fabled leg day and often it is talked about with consternation because of how you feel after you do it. I am of the opinion for the vast majority of people a full body workout and not a body part split is way more beneficial, and full body we are talking about doing multiple muscle groups in the same workout say something for the legs, something for your upper body, and something for your back,” said Amon.
Adding some sort of core or ab workout to this can also be a nice finisher to the overall workout.
The benefits of spreading out work over all your muscles day to day will lead to less muscle max-out fatigue, and Amon says that can help you stay on track with your goals.
"That kind of workout is going to be a lot more beneficial for your average person and one of the reasons being we are trying to limit your soreness afterward and still give you the same benefits,” said Amon.
If you are looking for the best workout plan for your goals, click here to get connected to the trainers at the JCC.
You just got better!