The average member at a boutique or specialized gym trains 2 to 3 days per week. Let’s be kind and call it 3 days. There are a lot of reasons why that’s the case. Some are nothing more than well-formed excuses that people conjure up because they don’t want to do more. Others are legitimate time constraints. But there’s another reason that’s suspicious. They’re sold that training 3 days per week in the gym is enough to get them the results they want. That’s rarely true, especially if a person wants to improve their strength and endurance.
If each gym workout lasts an hour, that leaves 165 hours remaining in the week. Forty or so are devoted to work. And, of course, there’s family time, sleep, and meals, etc. However, there’s still plenty of time left over to train. The problem is knowing what to do with the time left over for working out. It’s not the person’s fault. Training is not their expertise. But it is the coach’s fault if they aren’t giving their clients work to do outside of gym sessions, especially when it comes to endurance training.
At Beyond Strength, we specialize in coaching people who want to build both strength and endurance—not just become better lifters or better runners, but become more capable across both.
Most fitness coaches know how to coach workouts, they don’t know how to coach training. That means they coach exercises, not people. And those people, unfortunately, fail to get the lasting results they want. But with the right guidance, you’ll know what workouts to do outside the gym to feel stronger, to feel more capable and confident, and to have better endurance.
How to Structure Strength and Endurance Training for Better Results
We’ll start by making sure your gym workouts are focused on the right things. The last thing we want is for you to waste the 3 hours you do have in the gym.
Your in-the-gym training should focus mostly on mobility, strength, power, and short, intense conditioning. It has the best tools and resources for that kind of work. Also, these are the aspects of training that require the most hands-on coaching. A coach is there to make sure you’re using the right form and technique. They’re also there to ensure you’re using the right amount of weight for each exercise, no sand bagging or going too heavy.
Plus, 2 to 3 strength workouts per week are what most people need to gain strength, build muscle, and move better. So, it’s best to use that time wisely to maximize your results.
HIIT workouts are often short and come at the end of a strength training session, making the gym a great place to do them. Plus, you have a coach, and the energy of the group, to help push you. You can’t discount the effect of an environment when it’s time to drop the hammer.
The gym is also the best place to do specialized conditioning sessions. For example, we prep a lot of our members for HYROX competitions. We’ll often build those workouts into our class schedule.
There is one more type of workout we do in our gym that most specialized gyms skip over. We program our Endurance class to include cardio, mobility, core, and some strength training. The blend of movements and methods helps you recover, improves your mobility, and offers some base endurance work. It’s a great mid-week reset before the heavier and harder training continues.
How to Build Endurance Outside Your Gym Workouts
Your training outside the gym should center on building endurance. Use that time to build your aerobic base with easy running, rucking, and hiking. And then expand on that base with intense aerobic conditioning—harder runs, loaded hikes, longer HYROX sessions, etc.
It’s best to do this kind of work outside of your scheduled gym sessions for a couple of reasons. First, this work isn’t super technical. You can nail it by reading a coaching description or watching a coaching video. You don’t need a coach looking over your shoulder the whole time. Second, it takes time. Conditioning sessions can last anywhere from 30 minutes to multiple hours. You can’t maximize your endurance by trying to fit it into a class schedule. It requires more work.
Now, just because it’s best to do your endurance workout outside of scheduled classes doesn’t mean you have to do it alone. That’s one of the great things about the Beyond Strength community. Our members coordinate to do things like long runs and HYROX endurance sessions together. Meet in class then carry on the training party outside of it.
The Most Important Things for Your Strength and Endurance
It all must fit together to meet you where you’re at and take you where you want to go. You can’t slap together a random strength program and a random endurance program and maximize your results. That’s where testing and coaching comes in.
We test each new member’s baseline mobility, strength, and conditioning. And we have specialized testing for those who want to do our running endurance and HYROX training outside of their gym sessions. We take the testing results and create a customized path for each person so they’re always doing the right mobility, strength, and endurance work at the right times. We also re-test at regular intervals so you can see your progress and so we can update your programming as you gain strength and endurance.
Also, you’re never truly going it alone, even if you’re training on our programming outside of scheduled sessions. You get access to coaching and messaging through our app, and we’ll check in on your workouts to monitor how they’re going for you.
All of your training fits together as it should, and you get the guidance you need to get the results you want.
On top of that, we have membership options that offer 24-hour access to the gym. So, if you miss a scheduled workout, or want to do some early morning or late evening endurance work, you can let yourself into the gym and get after it.
Use the Other 165 Hours, Get the Results You Want
Three gym sessions per week is not enough if you want to build lasting strength and endurance. You need to use the other 165 hours per week well to get your results. But all of your mobility, strength, and conditioning work must fit together in a way that makes sense for you right now. You need a great program and you need great coaching and a great community. That’s the recipe for results you earn and keep.
Stop overthinking your fitness.
If you’re new here, explore our New Member Guide.
And if you’re ready to get started, schedule a free intro below and we’ll help you build a plan that actually works for your life.
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