As a fitness professional I get asked a lot of questions about health and appearance.  Yes, I even get asked, “Does my butt look fat?” Below is a compilation of the most asked questions and my answers.  Enjoy.

How long will it take to see results?

It all depends on how hard you work and how your DNA is programmed but, in general, you’ll start to see results within 2 weeks of starting a fitness routine if you’ve previously been sedentary (i.e. couch potato).  If you’ve been active and are already fairly fit you’ll notice subtle changes in your body within a month, often less.

What part of my body will change first?

Again, it depends on your DNA and your specific training regimen, but you should first see your waist whittle in, beginning at the rib cage and then working down towards your hips.  Next, your thighs will start to slim down.  Usually, the third area is the arms.  Arms can be stubborn.  Those Hollywood arms that actresses have are hard-earned.

How much cardio do I need?

There is a lot of research and a lot of guidelines out there.  Personally I prefer the research from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).  Generally though, it’s best to do cardio 3 to 4 times per week and as often as 6 times per week.  Realistically if you’re not a cardio fan, just try to hit 3 to 4 weekly sessions and you’ll be fine.  Minimum time for cardio is 30 minutes.  If you’re not conditioned start with 10 or 20 minutes and work your way up.

How much weight training do I need?

Weight training keeps your joints strong and fluid and your skeletal system nicely balanced.  If you do one total-body weight training session per week, you’ll see gradual improvements over time.  Increase it to twice per week and you’ll see results happen twice as fast (noticing changes within two weeks).  If you do three sessions per week, you’ll get to where you want to be about 20% faster than with twice a week weight training.  A nice boost, but not a huge one.  I recommend most people do weights two times per week unless they have a specific training reason to do otherwise.

What do you do to stay in shape?

I am not the cardio queen I used to be.  Those 10Ks seem a distant memory.  After I had my child my priorities shifted and I’m not the hard body I once was.  In general I walk everywhere, and I mean everywhere!  I average about 5 miles a day on most days when I’m training clients and about 3 miles on the days that I’m not. I try to do Pilates twice per week but I shoot for three.  I do a combination of equipment work and mat work.  I also train with a friend of mine who is a personal trainer every couple of weeks and she kicks my butt with lunges, squats and little pieces of tubing.  I do NOT workout with my clients, I consider that incredibly unprofessional.  The workout is about the client’s butt ~ not mine!

I would like to give credit to @HeleneDesr, thanks very much Helene for the topic suggestion.

If this post sparked any other questions you’d like to ask, fire away …

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