Can Fewer Sessions Still Boost Fitness?
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Many people believe that to improve fitness, you need to train several times a week. But a recent study published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports challenges this idea. Researchers compared two exercise patterns: a traditional high-frequency schedule and a low-frequency “Weekend Warrior” style, where the same total weekly workout time is condensed into fewer sessions. The results show that training less often may still deliver the same benefits for your heart and lungs, as long as the total exercise time and intensity stay the same.
What Was the Study About?
The researchers wanted to know if doing just two long workouts a week could improve cardiorespiratory fitness as much as four shorter workouts. They recruited 28 healthy adults aged 18–45 who were either sedentary or only lightly active. Participants were randomly placed into one of two groups:
- High-Frequency (HF) group – four sessions per week
- Weekend Warrior (WW) group – two sessions per week on back-to-back days
Both groups did the same total amount of exercise each week and worked at the same intensity. The difference was simply how that work was spread across the week.
What Did the Training Look Like?
Training included a mix of:
- Continuous sessions – steady cycling at a moderate-to-hard pace
- High-intensity interval training (HIIT) – repeated bursts of harder cycling followed by recovery periods
Because the WW group trained only twice a week, each session was about twice as long as those in the HF group. This made sure the total weekly exercise time was equal.
The Main Measure: VO₂max
The primary measure in the study was VO₂max – the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during intense exercise. It’s a key indicator of cardiorespiratory fitness. After eight weeks, both groups saw similar improvements in VO₂max. The “non-inferiority” test used by the researchers showed that the WW approach was not worse than the HF approach in improving this measure.
Other Fitness Changes
Besides VO₂max, the researchers measured several other factors:
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Hemoglobin mass – related to the blood’s ability to carry oxygen
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Muscle oxidative capacity – how well muscles use oxygen
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Exercise thresholds – points during exercise where breathing and fatigue increase sharply
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Performance in time-to-exhaustion tests
Both groups improved in all these areas. Training frequency didn’t make a difference in how much participants improved.
How Did People Feel During Exercise?
Interestingly, after training, both groups reported that the same exercise felt easier. Ratings of perceived exertion dropped from “hard” to somewhere between “light” and “somewhat hard.” Feelings of overall fatigue during exercise also decreased. This means participants could handle more work with less discomfort.
What Does This Mean for You?
The findings suggest that if your schedule is too busy for multiple weekly workouts, you can still boost your fitness by concentrating your exercise into fewer, longer sessions. This is great news for people who can only find time on weekends or a couple of days per week. However, there are some practical points to consider:
- Longer sessions require more endurance and mental focus – jumping from no exercise to two long workouts can be tough.
- Recovery time matters – doing back-to-back intense days means your body has less time to rest between sessions.
- Injury risk – if you’re new to exercise, longer workouts may increase soreness or strain if you do too much too soon.
How to Apply This Approach Safely
If you want to try a low-frequency plan:
- Match total weekly volume – make sure the total exercise time and intensity are similar to what you’d do in a multi-day plan.
- Build gradually – start with shorter sessions and slowly increase duration.
- Include variety – mix steady-paced work with intervals to target different fitness systems.
- Listen to your body – adjust if you feel overly sore or fatigued.
- Stay consistent – benefits come from regular training over time, regardless of frequency.
The Bottom Line
You don’t have to train almost every day to get fitter. As long as you put in the total time and intensity each week, doing fewer but longer sessions can work just as well—at least over the short term. For busy adults, the “Weekend Warrior” style could be a practical and effective way to improve heart health and endurance without sacrificing results.