Are You Exercising or Training?

The main difference between exercise and training comes down to the intention. If you have a specific strength or fitness goal, and you’re exercising rather than training, then you likely won’t reach that specific goal. If you just want to exercise to enjoy all of its many benefits, then that’s totally fine too!

What is exercise?

Exercise is any activity that requires physical effort with the goal to keep you healthy and well in general. The current exercise recommendations for adults are:

Aerobic Activity:

• 150 minutes of moderate activity

• OR 75 minutes of vigorous activity

• OR any combination of the two

Resistance Training:

• At least 2 days per week

You can fulfill these exercise guidelines in any way you wish!

What is training?

Training requires you to develop a plan or program that allows you to adapt, recover, and work toward your goals. The key here is that your training has a specific intention. Want to get stronger? Change your body composition? Compete in a powerlifting meet? Run a marathon? You’ll want to develop a plan that allows you to reach your specific goal. Doing random exercises or whatever you feel like probably won’t get you to these goals, but training is much more likely to!

To recap…

Deciding to exercise or train comes down to your goals and intentions. If your goal is to be generally active, just get moving or enjoy movement, then exercise is great! You can choose to hike, swim, participate in group classes, yoga, lift, whatever it is you enjoy.

If your goal is more specific, like competing in a sport, gaining muscle or strength, or learning a new skill, you’ll want to develop a plan and train toward your goal.

If you have any questions or you’d like help developing a training program, feel free to send me an email.

In strength,

Jory