Beginner Workout Schedule

A beginner can start a workout, without buying any expensive fitness equipment. However, if you wish to hire an instructor then it is best to join a gym, where you will be provided with a fitness instructor. But if you wish to form a workout routine yourself, then you need to include the 5 components of physical fitness which are cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, flexibility and body composition. Here are the guidelines for a beginner workout schedule with a sample chart for you to follow.

Guidelines for Workout Schedule for Beginners
When starting a workout, it is important that you monitor your body mass and use exercises which best suit your body composition. Here are some important guidelines you need to follow when starting on an exercise routine for beginners.

Measuring Your Body
Before starting a beginner workout routine, it is important that you design the workout schedule according to your needs. For example, the workout can be aimed at weight loss, muscle gain, or simply for fitness. The first thing you need to do is to weigh yourself, and using a measuring tape, measure in inches, your different body parts like hips, butts, chest, thighs, calves, shoulders, biceps, triceps etc. Note down these measurements in a diary or enter it in a excel sheet in your personal computer.

Cardio Workout/Full body Workout
If you wish to opt for weight loss, then focus on cardiovascular exercises which burn maximum amount of calories. Some of the best options are skipping, running and cross-training on an elliptical machine. For muscle gain, opt for boxing workouts (to build muscles fast), swimming (to build lean muscles) or simply jogging and running. If you wish to enter a beginner workout plan to be in good shape, then opt for simply jogging and running. It is very important that you perform a warm-up session of 10 minutes, before starting on cardio. A warm-up can also be mild jogging.

Muscle Training
For muscle training, the best exercises are weight training and floor exercises. However, people aiming at weight loss, who have fat mass in specific body parts, need to concentrate on that part particularly. People who want to gain muscles need to follow weight training exercises for all the muscle sets equally. People looking to just tone-up their body, should stick to light weight exercises. Some examples of muscle training exercises are calf raises, leg extensions, back extensions, etc.

Stretching for Flexibility
Another important aspect of a beginner workout plan is to perform stretching after a workout. Stretching helps to improve flexibility and is necessary to establish the full range-of-motion for your body joints. These range-of-motion exercises are especially advised for people who have undergone a surgery. While stretching, focus on relaxing and breathing slowly.

Improvising Your Workout
Keep checking your weight on the first date of every month, and again measure your body parts, to check if you have lost weight in inches or gained muscle mass. After a month, you can add a bit more of weight to your exercises and some more repetitions of weight training exercises. After two months, you can include some advanced weight training exercises. If you are not reducing weight or slowly reducing weight from a specific body area, then consider adding more weight to your workout. For weight loss, make sure you burn more calories than you consume on a daily basis. For muscle building, eat more protein rich foods as they are the building blocks of our body and help develop muscles. People who want to maintain their shape should follow a balanced diet. Here is a sample chart which you can follow to start a beginner workout program.

Week	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
1st Week	A cardio session of 45 minutes	½ an hour of cardio followed by 15 minutes of shoulder exercises	A cardio session of 45 minutes	½ an hour of cardio followed by 15 minutes of chest exercises	A cardio session of 45 minutes	Rest
2nd Week		½ an hour of cardio followed by 15 minutes of abdominal exercises		½ an hour of cardio followed by 15 minutes of lower body exercises
3rd Week		½ an hour of cardio followed by 15 minutes of triceps and biceps exercises		½ an hour of cardio followed by 15 minutes of back exercises

For a start, follow the above chart to begin your exercise program, and make sure you include the major components of physical fitness in your workout routine and wear proper fitting shoes to prevent any injuries.